Finally Telling My Story

I'm Valerie Plame Wilson and I'm excited to be here and blog about my book Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House, which goes on sale Monday, Oct 22. When my publisher sent me the finished copy earlier this week, it was thrilling. It felt like a new chapter (forgive the pun) has begun on the journey that has taken some incredible twists and turns since July 14, 2003, when my covert identity was exposed and ended a career that I loved. I've written honestly about my life: why I went to work for the CIA, my paramilitary training, the sort of operations we developed and ran to find intelligence on Iraq's alleged WMD programs in the run up to the war, as well as personal information, such as my battle with postpartum depression and the difficulties I had going from a private to a public persona literally overnight. My publisher, Simon and Schuster, decided to print the blacked out redactions demanded by the CIA and hopefully those passages (or lack thereof) speak for themselves and the extent to which the CIA thought the material in the book was classified.

Watching myself on 60 Minutes was surreal -- who can ever get used to seeing themselves on TV? I guess the book tour has really started and it will be a crazy week ahead. After four and a half years and everyone else in world talking about me, it feels good to finally be able to tell my story myself. It's a story about the consequences of speaking truth to power and the critical importance of holding our government to account for its words and deeds. I'm off to bed, because I have an early wakeup call tomorrow to do the Today Show. I look forward to sharing my reactions and stories with you from the road over the next few days. I will be posting throughout the week and appreciate your comments and support.

Comments

[Wilburrr]

I still find it mind boggling that our government, at least this administration, would find it to their advantage to put you, and everyone you had contact with, at risk for the purpose of diverting attention from Osama bin Ladin in order to divide Iraqi oil reserves for personal profit.

[runsfearless]

"Courage is rightly esteemed the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees all others."

Aristotle

Soldier on. You are not alone.

[ZappoDave]

You're a national hero.

[ProfessorDuh]

Seconded.

[AnotherunhappyDemocrat]

You are a hero. I am so sorry that the White House destroyed your career. I am even sorrier that those criminals have gotten away with it. They all should be on trial for treason. May the book sell very well!

[bookish]

Best wishes Ms. Plame and Mr. Wilson. I'll buy your book, read it, and then donate it to my public library. My two-bit contribution to restoring America. I encourage everyone, especially those in more socially conservative areas,to keep these important books in circulation.

[grendl]

If anyone other than Naomi Watts plays you in the movie version, Ms. Plame there should be another investigation. And in honor of your service to this country, an incorporation into my oft posted poem.

BUSH LEAGUE - A Poem of Hope -( bob )- by e.e. grendl


Thanks for the casualties,
The boys and girls who fought,
A war this nation bought,
Based on a tale, a mushroom sale,
The seller never caught,
We thank you so much.

Thanks for the refugees,
The ones delivered Brown,
The day the wall broke down,
He'd lead a horse to water,
And then he'd let it drown,
We thank you so much.

Thanks for the amputees,
Who hobble off the planes,
With smiles masking pains,
They lost their limbs to righteous hymns,
And aren't offered canes,
We thank you so much.

Thanks for the memories,
The glaring disconnects,
The lapses in the texts,
If pachyderms remember terms,
Why all these " I forget" s,
We thank you so much.

Thanks for the penalties,
Believing as we did,
you cared about our kids,
Then sent our jobs abroad you slobs,
And now we're on the skids,
We thank you so much.

Thanks for the perjuries,
The blatant little lies,
the outing of our spies,
You cost his wife, if not her life,
Her CIA disguise,
We thank you so much.


Thanks for perversities,
Although you don't recall
What happened in the stall,
You reached out to your bases,
But you couldn't touch them all
We thank you so much.

Thanks for the rising seas,
Although its not your fault.
That fuel emissions vault.
This wounded earth needs healing,
Not rubbing with the Salt
We thank you so much.

Thanks for the times like these,
I really have to say,
That come the judgment day,
I wouldn't push,
the Burning Bush
Too righteously their way,
We thank you so much.

[Marmann]

First time I've ever read this. (Applauding).

Very nicely done. :-)

[donaldw6]

We need to add words for the bridge part! Not all of you are as familiar with this reference as I am, I'll bet. This could be on the way to being a classic!

[Nyland8]

You go girl. Give them hell.

8

.

[PaMike]

Pure class! You were supurb on 60 minutes. Thank You Valerie !

[groucho]

Thank you for your work and courage. Five years ago, I was fired for political reasons, in a very low level job, not at all comparable with yours. A new exec director, but instead of just letting me go, they smeared me after 5 years of faithful work. It was been one of the most painful events of my 50+ years.
I admire your ability to maintain your composure and class with all the lies and unfair defamation you were subjected to. I look forward to reading your book.

[Skyhawk]

I wish you luck, and hope one day everyone will recognize the great injustice done to you and your husband. I look forward to reading your book.

[kroses98]

I think we all recognize it already!

[wampus]

Saw you on 60 Minutes tonite. You are a true American hero. You have proven yourself by deeds; not by wearing a lapel flag. We certainly need a country full of citizens like you. Thank you for your service to our country,

[Purcy]

I'm looking forward to buying the book. I have the utmost admiration for Valerie Plame and Joe Wilson. Maybe some day we will actually know if part of the reason for the White House outing of Valerie Plame was so that there would be no valid information with regard to nuclear weapons not only in Iraq but in Iran as well. I'm just so grateful that there are people like this who have had the courage to come forward when it seems there is such a lack of courage to challenge this corrupt administration. We need heroes like the two of you!

[NOSMAVAN]

When George W. Bush' and Dick Cheney's reign of terror over our country ends in January 2009, there should be not one, but two new beginnings.

The first and foremost new beginning should be for our new President, VP and administration to start cleaning out the Augian stables created and left by the two previous, criminal administrations.

But as importantly - and simultaneously - Bush and Cheney should be indicted the same day on charges of treason and crimes against humanity, to name just two.

Only when these two spend time in jail will the U.S. be able to cleanse its reputation both at home as well as abroad, and move forward towards recovering its position of world leadership.