Posted on 10/17/2004 6:56:37 AM PDT by Phsstpok
The earlier thread about the October Surprise "Mutiny" hit piece on this mornings Today show prompted me to do some Googling to try to see if there were any connections of note. I felt that even the little evidence I found warranted a quick heads up and (forgive me) a separate thread as a call to action. I have no particular standing to do this, but this concerned me enough to fire off a flare.
It looks like the extreme left is orchestrating an October Surprise propaganda campaign against the war in Iraq and President Bush by staging a "mutiny" of reserve troops (appears to be 5 of 'em, when you get down to it) and playing it the way they played Abu Gharib.
First, the basic story. Reports surfaced on Friday, the 15th, that troops in Iraq had refused a "suicide mission" and were under arrest and held in close guard. A small handful of "frantic" family members began reporting "unfair practices" and "unsafe conditions," desperately calling on (the usual suspects) politicians to save their loved ones from cruel fate.
Some excerpts:
Daily News, October 17, 2004:
Calls, E-mails explain troops' alleged mutiny
The military has begun punishing some of the 19 Army reservists who balked at what they called a "suicide mission" and a "death sentence" in Iraq last week.
Some members of the South Carolina-based 343rd Quartermaster Company refused to transport fuel between the Iraqi cities of Tallil and Taji Wednesday morning, saying they had no protection for the dangerous trip.
now here's the kicker from the Daily News piece:
Citizen Soldier, a New York-based, nonprofit military rights group, has offered ... its help.
Citizen Soldier is not a "military rights group." It is a virulently anti-American and anti-Military extreme left front group. Their motto on their web site is: "Prepared to Challenge U.S. Militarism in the New Millenium."
Citizen Soldier also has close ties to John Kerry, as it's director Tod Ensign, was one of the organizers of Kerry's discredited Winter Soldier propaganda event in 1969, along with Jeremy Rifkin. This connection is the one that set off my alarm bells.
I couldn't figure the Mississippi angle till I found this in The Clarion-Ledger of Hattiesberg, Mississippi:
Platoon with Mississippi soldiers defies orders 17 soldiers placed under arrest in Iraq
A 17-member Army Reserve platoon with troops from Jackson and around the Southeast deployed to Iraq is under arrest for refusing a "suicide mission" to deliver fuel, the troops' relatives said Thursday. The soldiers refused an order on Wednesday to go to Taji, Iraq - north of Baghdad - because their vehicles were considered "deadlined" or extremely unsafe, said Patricia McCook of Jackson, wife of Sgt. Larry O. McCook.
and again, buried in the piece, is the clue to the source and spin:
U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson said he plans to submit a congressional inquiry today on behalf of the Mississippi soldiers to launch an investigation into whether they are being treated improperly.
Bennie Thompson is one of the more radical members of the Black Caucus. He is a leader in the "fair play for Fidel Castro" movement in Congress. He is often the designated "hit man" in attacking minority members of the Bush Administration, particularly Dr. Condoleezza Rice. He was a rabid Deaniac, but shifted his loyalty to Kerry when Dean fell on his own scream.
The Salon hit piece ties this squarely to the Washington/DNC/Carville slime machine:
The inside story of the Army platoon that refused to carry out a "death sentence" mission.
is by Mary Jocoby, Salon's Washington Correspondent. Jacoby is one of Salon's "reliable" writers who can always be counted on to spew hate at George Bush, in particular, and Republicans in general. She rates Seymour Hersh as a "crack investigative reporter" and has authored anti-Bush hit pieces such as "The Dunce," "George W. Bush's Missing Year" and "Swaggering toward Election Day."
What is truly amazing about these pieces on the "mutiny" is that they appear to have been ready to go before the incident took place. These folks had their stories straight and remarkably consistent in record time, even before the news had reached the regular news cycle on CNN, who jumped on this in record time.
Folks, this is a set up. But it's a set up that, like many of the Kerry camps dirty tricks, they've had to fire off prematurely to try to distract the news media from a Kerry gaffe. Pulling the trigger on this was timed to try and keep the disastrous Mary Cheney attack off of the Sunday morning talk shows. These soldiers are pawns who were told that they would be used to unseat a sitting President (with undoubted hints of vast rewards from a Kerry administration) but they are being sacrificed, just like pushing a pawn, to protect the dims' king.
But Teresa Hill, of Jackson, Miss., played a desperate message from her daughter Amber McClenny in which McClenny asked her to contact her congressman and "raise pure hell."
the first one is from indymedia.org.uk the second from nydailynews.com
Probably not important but might be needed for search purposes. Probably just a typo.
FReepers are THE BEST ... BTTT
BAGHDAD, Iraq - The U.S. Army will study protective measures for supply vehicles and add steel plating to vehicles if necessary, a general said Sunday, after members of a Reserve unit refused to deliver supplies down a dangerous route in Iraq partly because they were concerned their vehicles were in poor shape.
Brig. Gen. James E. Chambers, commanding general of 13th Corps Support Command, said all soldiers involved in the incident had returned to duty and it was "too early" to determine whether any of them will face disciplinary action.
Chambers told reporters the command will "assess armor" on supply vehicles, which are often subject to insurgent attack, and add steel plating if necessary.
He denied claims by some of the soldiers to their families that the fuel they were to deliver was contaminated.
The Army announced last week it was investigating up to 19 members of a platoon from the 343rd Quartermaster Company based in Rock Hill, South Carolina after they refused to transport supplies from Tallil air base near Nassiriyah to Taji north of Baghdad.
On Wednesday, the 19 did not show up for a scheduled 7 a.m. meeting in Tallil to prepare for the fuel convoy's departure a few hours later, a military statement said.
The mission was carried out by other soldiers from the 343rd, which has at least 120 members, the military said.
Chambers has since ordered the 343rd to undergo a "safety-maintenance stand down," during which it will conduct no further missions as the unit's vehicles are inspected, the military said.
The platoon has troops from Alabama, Kentucky, North Carolina, Mississippi and South Carolina.
I'll bet you're right - makes it sound like it was well planned out in advance.
It's interesting that the AP (via the Austin Statesman) chose to use a mugshot-type photo of McCook in the story. Even though he's an employee, not an inmate, it doesn't have a positive association....
It has been said that it was a lawful order. Proper channels were not used. They refused an order & while they were being questioned about it, one of them called "home", asking for help & the parent's Congressman was called in.
Follow the "tainted fuel" aspect to this story.
Just my thoughts--since this is a MS unit, I believe Mr. Thompson and co. may have orchestrated it by suggestion, inuendo, etc., thus getting the desired results without bribing or doing something so overt as to leave a connectiong trail. However, the background of Citizen Soldier and therir involvement should be news (but won't be to MSM) and maybe some of the conservative media or even the swiftboat vets could get involved to get this out, as it is obvious it is the same type of anti-war stuff the VVAW put out. If the MSM really grab it, like they seem to be doing, with a few pushes by DNC operatives, it has a couple of weeks to work up to the full-throated hew and cry of Abu Graieb. And I have an idea they have other surprises in store, too. Our election process is in trouble on all fronts thanks to the compliance of MSM and the viciousness of the DNC.
We simply cannot afford to ignore this. I just wish I could do more, but am hopeless at internet research. Thanks for posting this. I can sure connect the dots.
vaudine
I don't think they have to "pin it on Bush." All they would have to do is to make it look like Iraq is a mess, and having troops on the ground commiting mutiny would do that. Even it if isn't a setup, look for Kerry spokemen to bring this up as evidence of a "quagmire".
The disgusting Scott Camil lives in my town, Gainesville, FL, where he is now a well-known Dem activist. Does he have any other connection with this incident other than his participation in this "Call to Conscience" stuff? I'm curious because of the local connection.
In church this morning, an elderly woman stood up during the prayer requests and announced that her great grandniece is one of the 17 reservists (her sister's granddaughter). The reservist's name is Amber and her mother is supposed to be on the Today show Monday or Tuesday.
The elderly woman said the 17 reservists had just attempted to deliver fuel to another base. The fuel delivery was refused because it was contaminated. Upon their return to their base, they were told to make another fuel delivery to another base. The reservists allegedly refused. She said their equipment was old and they would have to travel through a hot spot. She also said that they were held under armed guard despite news reports to the contrary. She said she was there to tell the rest of the story.
Did anyone else get to hear a similar story in their church today? Our belief is we got to hear the DNC talking points in church today.
Mississippi ping
U.S. general promises to review protective measures for supply vehicles after reservists refuse mission in Iraq
I'm going through both versions to see if there are any other "editorial" changes, other than the titles.
Oh yes. He is the one who pulled together the Vets for Kerry. He was involved with Kerry in the anti-war activities in the 70's. He is the one who called for the assassination of the Senators (the Phoenix Project). He has quite a history that is easily examined on the web.
Any potential mutineer who'd buy that would get excited over an email from Nigeria. Do we really think our troops are that dumb?
I read that it was helicopter fuel contaminated with diesel fuel, not water.
In another thread, the story is being spun to say they are acting like heroes for refusing to deliever the stuff, potentially saving other's lives.
Their story is two pronged, mission too dangerous & the fuel taint angle.
I saw that too!!
It's a South Carolina unit, I believe. Only one or two of the folks I've ID'd so far are from Mississippi (I had to sing the song in my head as I spelled that...).
We need to work outwards from the 5 "ringleaders" to the 17-19 platoon members and find out who they are and what their connections are.
I'm building and updating a list with the names, connections and quotes as I identify them.
McCook, from Mississippi, is a prison guard in or near Thompson's district. Thomspson has been riding conditions in institutions, particularly juvenile detention and prisons, as a political issue. I'm trying to research any political connections there.
My first question when I heard this story. . .
Thanks for the info. Thought I read or heard the dissidents in the unit were MS guardsmen.
vaudine
bump
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