New York Times Care Package to Deployed Troops – Big Box of White Sheets
by Greg Scott | View comments |
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It’s one of those things you “can’t not know.” The New York Times, Don of the Media Hit Squad, despises the Bush Administration and on a more stealth (but more longstanding) level, loathes the U.S. Armed Forces. The latest ugly example came July 7 in what is more accurately described as a press release for a far Left organization than a news story.
The sole source for John Kifner’s piece, “Hate Groups Are Infiltrating the Military, Group Says,” is a sloppy document released by the Southern Poverty Law Center. The obnoxious report, the title of which is a gratuitous slap at my beloved Corps, concludes that our fighting forces have devolved, with Pentagon complicity, into a breeding ground for the white supremacist “movement.” Kifner dutifully reports that the reason recruiters have given sloppy kisses to the neo-Nazis is “recruiting shortfalls” brought on by the “unpopularity of the war in Iraq.” For a newspaper that goes out of its way in every story about tax cuts to find the one “Republican” in the country that opposes keeping his hard-earned paycheck, it’s amazing that the Gray Crone could not find one person to dispute the report. So, none of those ubiquitous and infallible “sources” whose contributions begin, “Critics say…” were available? Kifner didn’t even bother to even look. After all, the SPLC report told him all he wanted to know, so he went with it. So did his editor.
Allow me to provide the rest of the story.
An office was established by the Army in 2002 (you know, before the “unpopular” war in Iraq could have caused recruiting ills) to investigate the presence of gang members in the armed forces. Since 2002, the one man cited in the Times story, also the single source for the study, reported that he’d found 320 active duty troops with gang ties. Most of these gang members, according to the investigator, were from “black and Latino” gangs. You wouldn’t know this from the Times article, but a simple web search produces a May 1 Chicago Sun-Times article which provides a bigger picture.
A scandalous July 7 New York Times article uncritically repeated some outrageous claims by a Southern Poverty Law Center "study," managing to paint the entire US Armed Forces as a training ground for the "White Supremacy" "movement." The article is no more than a press release for the radical SPLC, as the SPLC "study" is the only source used by the writer.Not that the race or ethnicity of gang members matters to most Americans. If gangs are infiltrating the military, most would say root them out, color is no matter. Race, however, means a lot for central casting at the Times. This story recalls some of the most tragic Clintonian bumbling – insisting that the gravest threat to our nation was to be found in Idaho basements while jihadists attacked the “Paper Tiger” again and again. That SPLC, in constructing its latest existence-justifying windmill, ignored the findings of its sole source in order to produce its slanderous report is not surprising. You’d expect a “journalist” to have a shovel at the ready.
As the very source of the report notes, the number of gang bangers he’s found is but a tiny fraction of our 1.4 million-strong active duty armed forces. Many enlistees admittedly come from tough neighborhoods and a very few do have gang ties. Even fewer follow a lunatic “white power” ideology. So why tar with suspicion our gallant young men and women in uniform? Why, with no real evidence, advance the claim that the Pentagon is purposely allowing this “infiltration” to occur just to make numbers?
What about those claims of recruitment shortfalls anyway?
This is exactly where the story becomes an irretrievable farce. The cries of “recruitment shortfalls” are so, like, yesterday. Yes, the Army missed its recruiting goals for 2005. No other active duty branch fell short for the year, despite triumphant soothsaying across the Fossil Media in the spring of 2005, which was unanimously certain that the numbers would remain bleak. This year, the Army is on track to hit its goals once again after a short down blip. And, no it’s not because all the skinheads are flocking to local recruiters.
Not only is every branch ahead of its recruiting goals for FY06, re-enlistment remains high. I guess the men and women who are actually fighting this war, despite being “stretched thin,” aren’t quite convinced by the defeat-at-any-cost campaign of the Times. Anyone that follows these things knows that mass reenlistment ceremonies where dozens of re-uppers recommit are not uncommon. Many occur in Iraq. Are we to believe that these are platoons of young SS preparing for the imminent “race war?”
Like the aggressively anti-troop, guilty-until-proven-innocent agit-prop A1 stories on Abu Ghraib, Haditha and volumes of other coverage, this latest lazy libel is part of the Times’ relentless campaign to Vietnamize our efforts in Iraq. This time, instead of branding the troops “baby-killers,” they’ll tattoo them with swastikas.
But don’t you dare suggest they don’t “support the troops” and don’t ever, I mean ever, “question their patriotism.”
gmscott73@hotmail.com
Read more articles by Greg Scott
"..0300 bullet catchers." I don't think you know any Marines. I don't think you know anything about bullets. I do think you know a lot about "catching." I think you confuse "bigots" and "racists" with "straight" and "patriotic". You confuse "blithering idiots" with profanity-laced tirades after a sordid offer of yours. I think you think their "brave" because they have those manly chests you love, but mostly a HEART you, in a thousand lifetimes, could never fathom.
Comment by Joseph | July 25, 2006
Dan and Joe are both ridiculous, blathering fools. However, I have known several Marines in my life. I have known most before entering the Marines. Many have returned as racist, angry, confrontational people that have difficulty carrying on normal relationships after their stint in the Marines. To me it seems extremely possible that there is an increase presence of Neo-Nazi/White Supremist types in our military.
Now, I must ask Greg why he "believes" we are at war in Iraq. Also, why is it unpatriotic to disagree with what our government does? Why is it considered not supporting the troops if we state our desire for the war to end ASAP? One more for the military vet…..How do you wage war against a TACTIC?…..which is what terrorism is.
Don't let the (necessary) brainwashing of the military blind you from the truth Greg. Don't close your mind to other points of view.
Comment by LyonBrave | July 25, 2006
I do confess that, at times, but never when addressing Dan, I resemble your remarks. However, we must support our troops and ad hominem anecdotal attacks on their character are unwarranted and unnnecessary. If Marines come back needing more supports, let us by all means, give them what they need. The United States Marine is the greatest fighting man the world has ever known. I would be willing to wager there are more mental health issues among the liberals "Hate/Blame America First" crowd than Our Nation's Finest!
Comment by Joseph | July 25, 2006
Dan, I would be more cautious in labelling people, especially ex-servicemen. I am hoping that one of those people you know personally takes exception and pays you a visit to discuss it. I certainly would.
As for LyonBrave, people have and will continue to die for your right to be critical of our government. I suspect, however, that you are a person who believes that America is always wrong, and that nothing is worth dying for. Please go back to reading the DailyKos or Huffington Post. Both of us will be happier.
Comment by Robert N. Anderson | July 25, 2006
PATRIOT: a person who loves, supports, and defends his country and it's interests with devotion.
Above is Webster's definiton of a Patriot, thats why you are called unpatriotic.
Comment by Gary McClure | July 25, 2006
As a former U.S. Marine with service during the first Golf War (89-92) and with an MOS of 6311/6312*; Aircraft Communications/Navigation/Weapon Systems Technician (Harrier AV-8B. The Harrier II was the first Marine Corps tactical strike platform to arrive in theater, and deployed from various basing postures. During the ground war, AV-8Bs were based as close as 35 nautical miles (40.22 miles) from the Kuwait border, making them the most forward deployed tactical strike aircraft in theater. The AV-8B flew 3,380 sorties for a total of 4,083 flight hours while maintaining a mission capable rate in excess of 90%. Average turnaround time during the ground war surge rate flight operations was 23 minutes.) I'd like to invite LyonBrave and Dan perhaps, to sit down with eachother and put some of that in their pipe and smoke it.
*For those readers/ contributors/ PATRIOTS/ and yes, even the backsliders unfamiliar with the '0300' nomenclature (and other Military Occupational Specialties) our misguided sailor has so casually used- please visit:
http://1stbattalion3rdmarines.com/mos-discription-folder/03.htm
and/or
http://www.marineparents.com/usmc/usmc-mos.asp
and/ or
http://www.answers.com/topic/military-occupational-specialty)
Having been one of the first battallions ever to undergo mandatory Marine Combat Training (MCT)- after the regular 13 week Basic Trianing program- that was administered in conjunction with the School of Infantry (SOI)/ Marine Combat Training Battalion (MCTB)- I KNOW FIRST HAND what the culture, atmosphere and methodoligies are like, and none are racist.
You'll find no more pure form of meritocracy. If you can't hang, it doesn't matter if your skin is blue (well- somtimes
for the white boys anyway- it did actually turn blue from the cold/ cold water) or chartreuse; if you don't have what it takes (erstwhile known as 'can't hang', also known as 'can't hack it'…) then you're considered worthless. Period.
Do you really want 'affirmative action' personnel defending you against the likes of Nick Berg's murderers? Or do you want the most well -trained, dedicated, aggressive, effective fighting professionals under the sun?
Mental, emotional and physical toughness (being 'hard' as in 'battled hardened' or as in 'one hard core mother-f***er 's, stamina and resiliency can come in many colors, and when you're in The Suck and the excrement has hit the fan, frankly it doesn't matter…
"The more you sweat in peace time, the less you'll bleed in war.
"Get hard or die"
"Discipline IS: Instant willingness, obedience to orders."
May a refer everyone to the monologue Jack Nicholson's character (and I do stress CHARACTER) gave while being cross-examined by Tom Cruise's charcater in the movie "A Few Good Men"? It's encapsulated there so well… Like it or not, Republican or Democrat, without war and without good warriors, there can be no peace and no safety for its corollaries.
But speaking of Republicans and Democrats for a moment, and with regard to this 'racism' and the
'recruitment of racists' the Southern Poverty Law Center is so concerned about it might be helpful for them and for all those pink-and-and-brown jacketed journalists/ editors at the n. y. times (and others) NOT to foregt that:
Founded by abolitionists, the Republican Party has had a 150 year history of fighting for Civil Rights. In contrast, the Democratic Party's active opposition to Civil Rights gave rise to the Ku Klux Klan, Black Codes, Jim Crow Laws and other repressive legislation which resulted in the multitude of murders, lynchings, mutilations, and intimidations (of thousands of black and white Republicans). On the issue of slavery, Democrats gave their lives to expand it while the Republicans gave their lives to ban it.
While Democrats were busy passing laws to hurt blacks, Republicans devoted their time to passing laws to help blacks. Republicans were primarily responsible for the following Civil Rights legislation:
1. The Emancipation Proclamation
2. The 13th Amendment
3. The 14th Amendment
4. The 15th Amendment
5. The Reconstruction Act of 1867
6. The Civil Rights of 1866
7. The Enforcement Act of 1870
8. The Forced Act of 1871
9. The Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871
10. The Civil Rights Act of 1875
11. The Freeman Bureau
12. The Civil Rights Act of 1957
13. The Civil Rights Act of 1960
14. The United States Civil Rights Commission
They also gave strong bi-partisan support and sponsorship for the
following legislation:
15. The Civil Rights Act of 1964
17. The Voting Rights Act of 1965
18. The 1968 Civil Rights Acts
19. The Equal Opportunity Act of 1972
20. Goals and Timetables for Affirmative Action Programs
21. Comprehensive Employment Training Act of 1973
22. Voting Rights Act of Amendment of 1982
23. Civil Rights Act of 1983
24. Federal Contract Compliance and Workforce Development Act of 1988
The Democrats have in one way, shape, or form- opposed ALL of the above, and to this day refuse to acknowledge their shameful past. Charges of racism against The Republican Party, our great nation's military (SEMPER FIDELIS), and/ orThe American Government in general are unwarranted, unsupported, and foolish!
History speaks for itself. Labels have changed, but Republican Party ideals have not. As noted writer Thomas Sowell once said, "If you have always believed that everyone should play by the same rules and be judged by the same standards, that would have gotten you labeled a radical 50 years ago, a liberal 25 years ago, and a racist today."
For additional information about what those mean-spirited Marines are up to:
http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/0AAA6D07B63B5709852571B500319C15?opendocument
http://www.usmc.mil/marinelink/mcn2000.nsf/main5/7292623868888685852571B5004E9EFC?opendocument
As far as recrutiment:
http://usmilitary.about.com/od/joiningthemilitary/a/recruitquality.htm)
Thank your lucky pacificator stars for those who have willingly VOLUNTEERED to learn (and apply) the ways & means of warfare ('angry and confrontational' with the likes of Y OU perhaps…'YOU' know who you are….) else you'd not have the freedom and prosperity you currently abuse with such rants of 'racism' and 'ending the war ASAP'…
Comment by Paul Josph | July 25, 2006
I was on Active Duty with in the Corps for ten years. While I have met racist (white, black, & latino), the vast majority of Marines consider themselves one color - green. While we are different shades of green, all Marines are green.
The worst case of racist I saw in the Corps was from a dark green Marine. He 'worshipped' Malcom X. On his answering machine he had as he message, "If you're a brutha, leave a message. If you're a white cracker, hang up." It was brought to the attention of the command and was deal with. My own feelings - it was dealt with a lighter touch than if it would have been a light green Marine. That said, it was still dealt with.
The NYT and their ilk are the Civil War Copperheads re-packaged. Anti-War, wishing for the good ol' days when they had power. Completely oblivious to the changing world around them. It's a shame that as humanity we have to relearn the lessons other generations learned by blood and sweat.
Comment by Sgt Dan - USMC | July 26, 2006
I was on Active Duty with in the Corps for ten years. While I have met racist (white, black, & latino), the vast majority of Marines consider themselves one color - green. While we are different shades of green, all Marines are green.
The worst case of racism I saw in the Corps was from a dark green Marine. He 'worshipped' Malcom X. On his answering machine he had as he message, "If you're a brutha, leave a message. If you're a white cracker, hang up." It was brought to the attention of the command and was dealt with. My own feelings - it was dealt with a lighter touch than if it would have been a light green Marine. That said, it was still dealt with.
The NYT and their ilk are the Civil War Copperheads re-packaged. Anti-War, wishing for the good ol' days when they had power. Completely oblivious to the changing world around them. It's a shame that as humanity we have to relearn the lessons other generations learned by blood and sweat.
Comment by Sgt Dan - USMC | July 26, 2006
Nice way to lay down personal attacks and dodge around my questions. Typical Republican/Conservative MO.
"I would be willing to wager there are more mental health issues among the liberals “Hate/Blame America First” crowd than Our Nation’s Finest!"….Joe….you are ridiculous.
Mr. Anderson…you are wrong. I do believe that this administration has lied to the American people and has abused its position in countless ways. As for…."Please go back to reading the DailyKos or Huffington Post. Both of us will be happier."….Your words reveal you to be a COWARD. How can we learn anything, or grow, or become better without engaging a different point of view?
Mr. McClure…..so according to the "true" definition of patriot, only those that love, support, and DEFEND are patriots. So there are 295,ooo,ooo people who are not patriots(the population not in the military). Also, to be a patriot we must support our country….no matter what it does??? I will never support the killing of tens of thousands of innocents for a LIE. I will never support the killing of thousands of our Military personnel for a LIE. SO, I guess I will never be a Patriot…..oh well.
Paul, I really don't get your point at all. I could care less what you did in the GUlf War. It has nothing to do with anything. However, I would like to thank you for your service. No matter how I may sound I do respect the job our Military personnel does.
Comment by LyonBrave | July 26, 2006
Sgt. Dan and Paul, thank you for your service, gentlemen. We are grateful for and honor your courage. The only finer fighting men in the world are your brothers who made the Ultimate Sacrifice. "…There is no greater love than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.." Every Memorial Day I take my daughter to the Forest Lawn cemetary honoring our area's Finest. Every year my daughter has tears in her eyes when I tell her that the only men who love her more than her father are Christ and everyone with a flag on his grave. We spend an hour fixing flags on graves, say tearful prayers, and bless God and the blood of Our Fallen who preserve and protect the greatest country that has ever yet existed. You deserve every benefit and commendation. God Bless you both.
Comment by Joseph | July 26, 2006
I love the Corp! G-D Bless'em.
Comment by Randy Middleton | July 26, 2006
What the US forces are up against protecting us, from Mullas, where is the leftist NOW, or maybe some of the Lesbian rights groups, oh, this was just some dark skinned woman in Iran. Leftists are bigots, and racists.
EXCLUSIVE JUSTICE IRAN STYLE: SICK GIRL EXECUTED BY JUDGE SHE DEFIED Her crime? She had sex with an unmarried man
By Susie Boniface
IT WAS exactly 6am and the start of another blisteringly hot summer day when 16-year-old Atefeh Rajabi was dragged from her prison cell and taken to be executed.
Every step of the way the troubled teenager plagued by mental problems shouted "repentance, repentance" as the militiamen marched her to the town's Railway Square.
The Iranian judge who had sentenced Atefeh to death was left unmoved as he personally put the noose around her neck and signalled to the crane driver.
Kicking and screaming, Atefeh was left dangling for 45 minutes from the arm of the crane as the crowd sobbed and - under their breath - damned the mullahs.
Atefeh's crime? Offending public morality. She was found guilty of "acts incompatible with chastity" by having sex with an unmarried man, even though friends say Atefeh was in such a fragile mental state that she wasn't in a position to say no.
But Judge Haji Rezaii was determined she should hang, regardless of the rules of international law which say only adults over 18 can be executed, and that the courts have a duty to children and the mentally ill.
The brutal end to Atefeh's short life has shone a new light on Iran's Shariah law, where adultery, theft and rape all carry the same punishment - death. Officially around 100 people - some just children like Atefeh - are executed each year. But human rights groups say the true figure could be much higher in a country where only half of the women can read, only one in 10 have a job and two-thirds are beaten in their homes.
Life was never easy for Atefeh, who was brought up in the industrial town of Neka, 250 miles from Tehran and close to the Caspian Sea. Her mother died when she was a child and her father Ghasseem, a heroin addict, left her grandparents to bring her up. She suffered from bi-polar disorder, which led to severe mood swings from hyperactivity to depression. Worried parents told their children to stay away from her - something many regret now. "Perhaps we should have helped her instead," said Hamid. "I think the death of her mother had a devastating effect. Before that, she was a normal girl. Her mother was everything to her. After she died, there was no one to look after her."
Mina, a childhood friend, said Atefeh was abused by a close relative. "She never dared talk about it with an adult," said Mina. "If she had told her teacher they'd have called her a whore. Tell the police? They lock you up and rape you." Atefeh first appeared in court, accused of having sex with an unmarried man at 14. Over the next two years she was accused of the same crime with different men.
They denied it and were sentenced to the lash and then released. But Atefeh pleaded guilty and each time received 100 lashes and a prison term. Mina said: "Atefeh sometimes talked about what these 'moral' Islamic policemen did to her while she was in jail. She still had nightmares about that. Atefeh said her mood swings made it easy for men to take advantage of her, and that most of her lovers were in the security force."
Two of them were members of the anti-vice militia. They encouraged other men to sign statements saying Atefeh had engaged in vice, and even claimed she had AIDS.
It was when Atefeh appeared before Judge Rezaii for a fourth time that she lost her temper - and also her life. In a rage she tore off her hi jab - a headscarf - and told the judge she had been raped and it was his duty to punish her tormentors, not their victim.
Rezaii told her she would hang for her "sharp tongue" and that he would put the noose around her neck himself. It became a personal crusade as he travelled to Tehran and convinced the Supreme Court to uphold his verdict.
Two petitions by her friends, saying she was mentally unwell, were ignored. Her father produced her birth certificate proving she was 16. Yet the judges "decreed" she was 22.
Atefeh also wrote to the Supreme Court: "There are medical documents that prove I have a weak nerve and soul. In some minutes of the day and night I lose my sanity. In a society where an insane person can be serially raped it is no wonder that a person like me is the victim of such an ugly act."
The day before she died she wrote again, saying: "Repentance, repentance, repentance." In Iranian law anyone who shows remorse has an automatic stay of execution and a right to appeal, but she was ignored.
A local pharmacist watched Atefeh's execution on August 15, 2004. "She looked so young standing there," he said. "Rezaii must have felt a personal grudge against her. He put the rope around her neck himself. I looked around and everyone in the crowd was sobbing and damning the mullahs." The family's lawyer has now filed a suit of wrongful execution against the judge and is preparing a murder case. Her life is also the subject of a secretly filmed documentary, Execution of a Teenage Girl, which will be screened on BBC2 on Thursday.
One of Atefeh's teachers said the authorities wanted to make an example of her: "She wouldn't take injustice from anyone, but the mullahs equate these qualities in a girl to prostitution and evil. They wanted to give all the girls and women a lesson."
Amnesty International UK director Kate Allen said: "The killing of Atefeh is a catalogue of the most appalling human rights violations. The public hanging of a child, believed to be mentally incompetent, totally beggars belief. To hang a child flies in the face of all that is humane."
Comment by Julie | July 26, 2006
I didn't mean to imply you had to be in the milatary to be a Patriot, I was just pointing out that if you hate this country, wish it ill and bad mouth it, don't complain when someone rightfully calls you un patriotic, because you are.
Comment by Gary McClure | July 26, 2006
The Southern Poverty Law Center is an absolute joke and nothing they say, do, or write, should be taken seriously. I have seen and read their far left magazine, "Intelligence Report" and it is despicable. You can find articles about how Ronald Reagan was homophobic and so is Bill Clinton because of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. I don't know why the New York Times is respected at all. Anyone who subscribes to that trash should immediately cancel their subscription because communist propoganda should not be funded by the American public.
Comment by Josh Satterfield | July 26, 2006
I have known many racists in the Marine corps. I was the minority race in a shop that was heavily lopsided aganst me.
Some troops displayed radical clothes with displays of anti american slogans.
Oh by the way those troops were black and hated white people.
Comment by b metz | July 26, 2006
So, Gary, should I take your opinion as being…we should accept everything our government does as being the right thing to do and just shut up about it?
Comment by LyonBrave | July 27, 2006
It is in our countrys interest to win in Iraq if we just pull out we will lose and Iraq will be a terrorist operating base. If you want to pull out you are either stupid or you want the US to lose, it is that simple.
Comment by Gary McClure | July 27, 2006
Thank you Joseph for the kind words, and God Bless you for raising your daughter the way you do (well, what do I know- but I'm just referring to the PATRIOTIC aspect of what you do, and that you've made her aware of her Savior, I'm sure you're a good father).
If your Prius hybrid isn't running right one day, do you get a mechanic who has experience with sort of a vehicle or do you take your Toyota to the florist?
The details of my service may not apply in an highly accute/specific way to each individual component of the article,
but what sort of a cashier are you if you've such difficulty with the correlation between: Those who've actually
served and would know personally whether or not racism truly is a condition of the military/ a particular branch,
and those like John Kifner who simply heard about it [from the Southern Poverty Law Center] or caught a glimpse
of some footage from CNN?
Furthermore, the viewpoints and positions held by many (if not most) from the Democratic party, or those with a certain 'left of center perspective' contradict much of what history shows to actually have been 'their party's' official position WITH REGARD to RACISM/ RACE from as far back as the Civil War…
Re-read my first comment.
Take some time to research them (the points) a bit too perhaps, and see then that the socialist mentality
of the SPLC AND the n.y.times that leads them to make the claims they do, and write the articles they write
is not based on facts or hard data or actual historical evidence, but rather emotions and feelings. ~propaganda~
FOR were the many items I've outlined to things they could point to (or the
that Democrats/ Politicians they so often rally around could point to) and say:
"See, look how we acted concerning this issue here, or there, or back then…" or whenever, you know- refering to a
precedent their party or 'their side' had set instead of the self-serving make believe they're so fond of.
Comment by Paul Joseph | July 27, 2006
This story is as old as the hills. I was in the military from 1966-1970 and heard about gangs “taking over” the armed forces then. I’ll wager that the NYT reporter never spent a day in the military (at least not the US military) because if he had, he would realize that gang members joining in droves is highly unlikely if not impossible. Street gang members invariably have long arrest records and felony convictions. The military does not take people with felony convictions for (at least) several reasons. First, you are taking on a high-maintenance individual, one who will be fighting the discipline of military life, and his productivity will be negative. In short, you are asking for trouble. Second, in combat, you want to be able to trust the person next to you in a foxhole, so to speak. Few things break down discipline faster than lack of trust, and gang members have already proved by their records that they are untrustworthy. And, heaven help us, liberals lately have been demanding lots of discipline from our armed services members.
As far as minority racism is concerned, such as the answering machine message described in “Sgt Dan’s” post above, I would wager that much of it is a result of what I call an elevated “ethno-sexual consciousness” that the military (an all government, for that matter) is forced to hype ad nauseum as part of political correctness, again forced by liberals.
Comment by G of Sedona | July 29, 2006