There is an article in our newspaper today that is apparently not accessible online. However, it is from the NY Times, so perhaps it can be found by going to their site. It is by David D. Kirkpatrick.

AnnaS., I thought this would be of special interest to you: author Stephen Ambrose has been accused of plagiarism in his new book, "The Wild Blue", by "The Weekly Standard" columnist Fred Barnes, and by historian Thomas Childers, whose work it is that is alleged to have been plagiarized.

Mr. Childers is said to believe that Mr. Ambrose did not do this deliberately, because he did it "Mit dem linken Hand", which means with his left hand. Mr. Childers said this saying is the equivalent of not focusing on what he was doing; that he was focusing on something else.

I have heard the expression of the left hand not knowing what the right is doing, or vice versa, but have always interpreted that to mean that there has been a lack of communication. Has anyone heard or used the "did it with his left hand" thing to indicate that someone was distracted, as the article says? Are the two sayings related somehow?