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The Campaign So Far
NY Times ^ | September 22, 2004 | Meathead Editorial

Posted on 09/21/2004 9:32:34 PM PDT by neverdem

President Bush's United Nations address and John Kerry's foreign policy speech in New York were the two big campaign moments of the week, and it's a relief to see both the candidates and the electorate focusing on the major issues. For a while it seemed as if extricating the candidates from the morass of their military records was going to be as difficult as extricating American forces from Iraq.

It was sad that Mr. Kerry's commendable war record was clouded by the more outrageous of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth's attacks, and it was somewhat surprising that Mr. Bush's National Guard service again became a big topic of debate. Voters had pretty well figured out four years ago that the future president's family pulled strings to get him a berth that would keep him out of Vietnam. The evidence that Mr. Bush had been at best halfhearted in fulfilling his duty to the Guard was also clear. People figured out how much that mattered to them when they went to the polls in 2000.

An unexpected casualty in the past few weeks' strangeness was CBS News, which broadcast an exposé on Mr. Bush's National Guard service that turned out to be based on inadequately vetted documents from a highly questionable source. The controversy that ensued was hugely embarrassing to both the "60 Minutes" staff that produced the report and to Dan Rather, who served as the on-air correspondent. After an uncomfortably long wait, CBS has rightly gone public with its own doubts about the validity of the documents and commissioned an independent investigation.

Having been down a similar road, we know exactly the kind of pain CBS journalists feel to be working under this kind of cloud. We can also say with some confidence that they will find that their organization will come out the other end stronger and more committed than ever to the highest standards. We hope we'll be able to say the same thing about the conduct of the rest of the campaign and look back on its beginning as a sort of aberrant Biographygate.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: District of Columbia; US: Texas; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: bush; cbs; kerry; lyingmediascum; rather; swiftees

1 posted on 09/21/2004 9:32:35 PM PDT by neverdem
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To: neverdem
We can also say with some confidence that they will find that their organization will come out the other end stronger and more committed than ever to the highest standards.

After they get sold to Fox.

2 posted on 09/21/2004 9:36:38 PM PDT by VisualizeSmallerGovernment (Question Liberal Authority)
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To: neverdem

Expertly written left wing slanted semi truthfull half deleated facts with white lie aftertaste. A RAT with a journalism degree.


3 posted on 09/21/2004 9:37:21 PM PDT by Uncle George
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To: VisualizeSmallerGovernment

LOL!


4 posted on 09/21/2004 9:37:22 PM PDT by neverdem (Xin loi min oi)
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To: neverdem

Nope, no bias or collusion noted here. </sarcasm>


5 posted on 09/21/2004 9:38:46 PM PDT by NavySEAL F-16 (Proud to be a Reagan Republican)
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To: Uncle George
A RAT with a journalism degree.

Probably forged.

6 posted on 09/21/2004 9:43:31 PM PDT by Mark (Treason doth never prosper, for if it prosper, NONE DARE CALL IT TREASON.)
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To: Uncle George

"...based on inadequately vetted documents from a highly
questionable source."

Yup, that's a RAT with a journo degree alright! The rest of us poor uneducated slobs would call them forged.


7 posted on 09/21/2004 9:47:37 PM PDT by Theresawithanh (FLUSH THE JOHNS IN 2004!!!!)
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To: neverdem

After Rather and his merry little gang buries See-BS in an ashheap of journalism, I hope to see the NYTimes follow on their heels.
This article is just a bunch of biased BS pointing out the Dem talking points of the day. How many times will they swear the "story" is true even tho the docs were forged? Where's their shame?


8 posted on 09/21/2004 9:53:30 PM PDT by IceAge
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To: neverdem
Voters had pretty well figured out four years ago that the future president's family pulled strings to get him a berth that would keep him out of Vietnam. The evidence that Mr. Bush had been at best halfhearted in fulfilling his duty to the Guard was also clear.

They wouldn't have to pull strings. Any recruiter in his right mind would be happy to get a Yale grad who's dad was a pilot and a war hero. And that's exactly what the officer who recruited him says. If that's the public perception it's because of endless insuations by the left-stream media such as the Times. As for being half-hearted it's undisputed that Bush flew full time for four years before taking a leave to work on a campaign in Alabama. And that happened only after the aircraft he was flying was phased out and it was made clear that he wouldn't be flying any more.

9 posted on 09/21/2004 10:01:09 PM PDT by Hugin
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To: neverdem

Just a bunch of excrement....once AGAIN.


10 posted on 09/21/2004 10:06:29 PM PDT by SolomoninSouthDakota
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To: neverdem
This from the newspaper that brought us Jayson Blair. If any one watched Law And Order: CI and the episode "Pravda" you know what I mean. It just seems to be for what passes for journalism these days. There is indeed no truth in Pravda.
11 posted on 09/21/2004 10:10:08 PM PDT by goldstategop (In Memory Of A Dearly Beloved Friend Who Lives On In My Heart Forever)
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To: goldstategop

The Times has transformed itself into just another tabloid ... this editorial is absurd in the extreme.

Buncha derned flat-earthers, that's what they are ... when facts and beliefs collide, throw out the facts.

Simply pathetic.


12 posted on 09/21/2004 10:23:14 PM PDT by jwfiv
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To: neverdem

The NON FACTS as NYT sees them:

1. President Bush's United Nations address and John Kerry's foreign policy speech in New York were the two big campaign moments of the week, and it's a relief to see both the candidates and the electorate focusing on the major issues. WRONG...the CBS deal is still scooping the news, IMHO.

2. It was sad that Mr. Kerry's commendable war record was clouded by the more outrageous of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth's attacks WRONG...clouded is a pretty mild word, considering the hit in the polls Kerry took

3. Voters had pretty well figured out four years ago that the future president's family pulled strings to get him a berth that would keep him out of Vietnam WRONG...falsehood, plus you might have hoped that voters figured this out, but they did nothing of the sort

4. The evidence that Mr. Bush had been at best halfhearted in fulfilling his duty to the Guard was also clear. WRONG...Uh, to you maybe, since you and CBS seem to believe that forged docs are evidence

5. An unexpected casualty in the past few weeks' strangeness was CBS News, which broadcast an exposé on Mr. Bush's National Guard service that turned out to be based on inadequately vetted documents from a highly questionable source WRONG...inadequately vetted should read forgeries, and highly questionable from "unimpeachable" now who's fault was that

5. The controversy that ensued was hugely embarrassing to both the "60 Minutes" staff that produced the report and to Dan Rather, who served as the on-air correspondent. WRONG...hugely embarrassing? try the words "journalistic suicide", I think they fit better

6. CBS has rightly gone public with its own doubts about the validity of the documents and commissioned an independent investigation. WRONG... CBS has gone public, not rightly, but after it was backed into a corner like a cornered rat

7. Having been down a similar road, we know exactly the kind of pain CBS journalists feel to be working under this kind of cloud. We can also say with some confidence that they will find that their organization will come out the other end stronger and more committed than ever to the highest standards. WRONG...this implies NYT have recovered from the Jayson Blair issue, when in fact the NYT's readership and subscription rates are tanking.

8. We hope we'll be able to say the same thing about the conduct of the rest of the campaign and look back on its beginning as a sort of aberrant Biographygate. WRONG...too bad, so sad...the Swifties will continue to run ads, and CBS with their lies has neutralized ANY discussion of the President's war record!


I've never seen one editorial with so many lies in such a short piece.


13 posted on 09/21/2004 11:23:12 PM PDT by dawn53
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To: neverdem

WHEW! What's that smell?!!

I thought Toby must have been mucking out the barn and had come into the house without hosing off first.

Then I realized I had opened something from the New York Times editorial pages..

Somebody ought to take a hose to that place!


14 posted on 09/21/2004 11:48:32 PM PDT by John Valentine ("The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein)
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To: John Valentine
WHEW! What's that smell?!!

Don't worry about the smell. Maybe you need to get your peepers checked. It said: Meathead Editorial without the bold print.

15 posted on 09/22/2004 12:13:57 AM PDT by neverdem (Xin loi min oi)
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To: neverdem

Hey, I wasn't blaming YOU for the smell! I saw the meathead notice...

No, that particular smell is unique to the New York Times - and the hog barn.


16 posted on 09/22/2004 12:27:25 AM PDT by John Valentine ("The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein)
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