Plagiarism Is Spreading (UPDATED)

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, and forescore and seven years ago we had nothing to fear but fear itself.

But, today, plagiarism is spreading:
Andy Borowitz:

BIDEN ADMITS COPYING STUMP SPEECH FROM YOUNG ADULT NOVEL
Calls Forty Similar Passages ‘An Honest Mistake’

Sen. Joseph Biden’s road to the White House became a little bumpier today as the Delaware Democrat admitted copying significant chunks of his standard stump speech from the young adult novel, How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life by Kaavya Viswanathan.

Mr. Biden made the admission after several prominent bloggers noted the similarities between over forty passages of Mr. Biden’s speech and the book by Ms. Viswanathan, who herself has been accused of plagiarizing from no fewer than three other novels.

At a campaign stop in New Hampshire today, Sen. Biden acknowledged that his stump speech was “influenced� by Ms. Viswanathan’s book but called the similarities between passages “an honest mistake.�

“One of the books that I have been reading while on the campaign trail is How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life,� Mr. Biden said. “I guess that in my mind I got confused about what sections of my speech were written by me and which were written by Kaavya Viswanathan – or whoever actually wrote them.�

There’s more, so read the whole thing.

THIS JUST IN!! From J. Thomas Duffy:

Fitzgerald Contemplating Hitting Rove With Plagiarism In Grand Jury Appearances

Longtime Bush Aide Denies Charges, Says May Have “Internalized� Testimony From Staffers, Others

Sources are telling The Garlic that Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald, as early as this week, may bring charges of Plagiarism against White House Special Councilor Karl Rove, for testimony Rove gave during his five Grand Jury appearances. Additional charges of Obstruction of Justice and Perjury could also follow the Plagiarism counts.

“Fitzgerald is livid,â€? offered Dix Whitcomb, editor of the newsletter “Our Laws Are Different”.

“In preparing for the Libby case, and pouring over testimony of Libby and other staffers, Fitzgerald discovered that Rove has barely offered any of his own words,� added Whitcomb.

There’s more, so read the whole thing.

Hay mas, entonces debe leer la cosa entera (in California’s official language.)

UPDATE: Did George Bush plagiarize himself?