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« Everything's Light and Spivey | Main | Memo from Kabul »

January 25, 2010

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Before the flood

By Greyhawk

Wow - growing evidence that multiple identical letters appearing in multiple different newspapers under multiple names implies some sort of astroturf campaign. I'm shocked, shocked I tell you, at this development.

The story of "Ellie Light" was exposed in the Cleveland Plain-Dealer and Politico, but from there it has really taken off in the blogosphere and Facebook - with the numbers of "Ellie Light" sightings now above 60, and new examples of similar campaigns being identified fast and furiously.

Just wait 'til the even bigger news sites discover this story. I don't have to wonder what will happen - I know - and whoever launched these various letter-writing campaigns should be well aware of what's coming, too. After all, it's happened before, and not long ago... (screen wavers, fades out... and...)

*****

...back in, to 2003:

The letters appeared in roughly 12 newspapers across the country. From Massachusetts to California, and many places in between, family members and local newspapers received letters from soldiers of the 2nd Battalion of the 503rd Infantry Regiment detailing their successes in northern Iraq.

Each letter was signed by a different soldier, but the words were identical...

Here's a surviving copy of the infamous letter. It was huge news in October, 2003. That quote above is from ABC News, but here's coverage from CBS, the New York Times, and even the BBC (and we could go on).

The story (remarkably identical in original numbers to our news of today) of this earth shattering fraud was blown open in USA Today, when a sharp-eyed reporter "found identical letters in 11 newspapers."

It's not clear who wrote the letter or organized sending it to soldiers' hometown papers. If they are part of an organized effort to sway public opinion, it could raise ethical questions for the military, whose officers are trained to refrain from partisan politics.

Ultimately in an e-mail to ABC news a battalion commander in Iraq confessed that the letter-writing initiative was all his idea, but claimed he just wanted to give his soldiers "an opportunity to let their respective hometowns know what they are accomplishing here in Kirkuk." Fortunately the real plan in which he was participating (willingly or not) - to destroy the very foundation of American democracy - failed as a result of the heroic efforts of the global mainstream media watchdog.

The commander was unapologetic, ABC reported, "saying that the letter perfectly reflects what each of these brave soldiers has and continues to accomplish on the ground." In fact, in their story ABC even acknowledged that "Kirkuk has seen improvement over the past several months, and is far less violent than other areas of Iraq" - and even the original USA Today story acknowledged that the soldiers they contacted "directly or through their families said they agreed with the letter's thrust." But the evil intent behind the campaign was made clear - and it went far beyond the level of a lowly battalion commander: "The Bush administration is engaged in a broad campaign to boost what polls show is sagging public support for the occupation in Iraq" - and obviously they were willing to stoop so low as to use the troops in Iraq to do their dirty work for them.

"Firm endorsements of the letter's description of the situation in Kirkuk have since been re-registered by most of the soldiers who were supposed to have written letters," explained the editors of the New York Times, "but that matters little to anyone who ever marched in the military command system." I shudder at the thought of what we owe those courageous reporters, of how close we came to the end of freedom as we know it, and the complete destruction of all that we hold dear.

And I'm sure that soon enough we're going to see a similar response to this latest outrage. With over 60 "Ellie Light" letters identified, multiple "Mark Spiveys," and who knows how many additional discoveries over the past week I'm certain the dam is ready to break - the identical letter from 11 GIs in their hometown papers seems to pale in comparison. For now the only further "mainstream media" coverage is in a blog on the website of the LA Times. But hell hath no fury as a news reporter who discovers he - and his entire profession - has been duped - used even, by the evil machinations of the powers that be. And I'm certain that the explosion is coming.

Any minute now.

Update: if the Chillicothe Gazette and the Green Bay Press Gazette have addressed the story, can the New York Times, ABC, CBS, and the BBC be far behind?



Posted by Greyhawk / January 25, 2010 6:36 PM | Permalink

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TrackBack URL: http://www.mudvillegazette.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/17264

Color Guard from Mudville Gazette on January 29, 2010 3:07 PM

I don't pay much attention to Statehouse campaigns here, so I hadn't noticed (until today - thanks to all you folks who made this an issue!) that recently-elected Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell is a veteran, too:McDonnell is a United States Army veter... Read More

It seems you can't read (or watch) a news report on Afghanistan lately without encountering something new and different - radical, even - about our approach to war. Like this unusual example of advertising in the Washington Post:NATO ministers, command... Read More

16 Comments

I ain't holding my breath...

You are gonna turn blue waiting if you do.

(We might be pleasantly surprised by the press responding appropriately, but I doubt it.)

The name Ellie Light has caused not a small amount of pondering....

If viewed like this:

L E Lite

and you add a pause between the L and the E, it comes out like this:

L Elite

What "L" word do we typically associaate with a term using the end word "elite"? Maybe:

Liberal Elite

So is a letter from Ellie Light a propaganda piece, to help prop up their puppet, composed and signed by the liberal elite?

There's another way to 'unabbreviate' the sig..

Ellie could be short for "Intellect"..

so... Intellect Lite?

How about the definition of "Spivey"...

A proper name or nickname variation of the British slang term spiv, which is defined as a slacker who lives by his wits or one that shirks responsibility. First heard in a Dances With Wolves scene, when Kevin Costner's character is called "Spivey" by a soldier.
That guy tells his boss he is working from home, but is really out riding his Buell motorcycle or watching baseball, what a Spivey!

The scandal isn't that the letter was sent, it's that it was printed in so many newspapers. Anyone that has sent a letter to even a medium sized newspaper knows that it is very rare for it to actually be printed. The stellar success rate of Ms. Light's missive is somewhat suspicious considering that the letters weren't all that special.

Heh - you noticed that too?

I was wondering whether Ellie's middle initial is "D"....

From Ellie,

I think my letter was printed because it was fairly coherent, as political letters go. If you can hold you nose and ignore the content for just a momment, and look at the letter's structure, you'll see that it holds together somewhat logically. Keep in mind that most news editors are English Majors who've probably not seen a cognitive piece of writing since they left school, much less regarding an emotionally-charged topic like Obama's first year. Compare that letter to the other posts I've left on blogs, more or less expanding on my theme, or defending myself, etc. Notice that those are fairly sloppy by comparison, more like the dreaded BLOGSPEAK that every English teacher wishes she could rid the world of, and, more like the stuff that lands on every editor's desk, by the boxful. Also, as Mr. Koff from the Cleveland Plain Dealer pointed out, most of my submissions were to smaller papers, where, I'm told, the chances of getting printed are higher. I think if you guys all sat down and wrote a letter that didn't begin with the line "Obama is a socialist pig," for example, and didn't say dribble like, "Obama has abandoned the Founding Father's vision of a free America..." etc. Explain what he has done that is so darn communist, etc. Raise the deficit? Well, so did Bush, so you'll have to do better than that. You see? It takes some thought. Yah. Thinking. Try it. It'll hurt at first, but it gets easier.

Ellie Light

This is another astroturfed letter. Here, it's dated today. However, I read the exact letter YESTERDAY on a *different* site.

Actually "Ellie," this post isn't about you.

I can't help but wonder why you think the "but George Bush did it" argument is a winning gambit. I think you fail to realize that unlike the sheeple on the left, we don't reflexively endorse everything George Bush or any other person did. I supported Bush because of one issue: The GWOT. On nearly every other issue, from the budget to immigration and beyond, I rate him an unmitigated disaster.

And yet somehow you deem to come here, lecture us on letter writing and then disappear like a fart in a wind tunnel. I'd say one big mark to your detriment is that you can't even avoid little white lies like where you reside. So, on larger things, why on Spongebob's green Earth would anyone believe anything you say?

That should have been "deign" not deem.
Sorry, running slow today in the grape.

Man, you Hoosiers during Super Bowl week...

Goose. Gander. Sauce.

Not that the MSM will ever admit to being bamboozled, let alone knowingly collaborating.

every time i've had a letter printed i have had to provide contact information and was, indeed, contacted by the paper to verify. how could this 'ellie' (or her husband who has allegedly revealed himself) have got all those letters printed in so many places if there wasn't some complicity on the part of the newspapers?

Leave a comment

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July 19, 2010


Dawn Patrol 07/19/2010
[Greyhawk]

Welcome to the Dawn Patrol, our ongoing roundup of information on war and other topics - from the MilBlogs and other sources around the world.

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Always updating - refresh for updates.

AFGHANISTAN

Prospects for stability in Musa Qala: challenges and possible solutions -- [Bill Ardolino /Long War Journal - in Afghanistan]
Part 3 in a three-part series on Musa Qala. For Part 1, see The checkered history of Musa Qala; for Part 2, see US Marines battle the Taliban for control of Musa Qala.
..."To the west, there are more 'little-t Taliban,' mostly in it for the money and drug smuggling," explains McDowell. "The farther east of the line you go, the more you see 'capital-T Taliban,' the ideologues who are affiliated with the Qetta Shura."
...A third, nebulous category of enemy also exists: violence is often tied to inscrutable local business interests, politics, and simple crime, especially in cases of Afghan-on-Afghan violence.
"Here in the District Center ... it's really strange, it's hard to characterize what is happening," explains H&S Company Commander First Lieutenant Joshua Hartley, who regularly leads patrols through Musa Qala...
Positive factors at present include...

Exploding Culverts -- [Kandahar Diary - in Afghanistan]
The ambush was initiated with a large IED, planted in a road culvert...
The initiation was followed up by sustained and accurate small-arms and RPG fire to the front, middle and rear of the convoy from the high ground on both sides of the MSR. My guards de-bussed and returned fire...

Arbaki -- [Free Range International - in Afghanistan]
It looks like the new boss has convinced President Karzai to reverse his position on using tribal militias. The new name for these soon to be created Arbaki is Local Police Forces (LPF.) This is a plan which has been tried before with minimal success... I'm not sure what is being modified to make this cunning plan more effective than the last time around but I do know this much - the plan is going to fail.

Weather -- [A Major's Perspective - in Afghanistan]
Its hot here right now...but not a hot like you would think...
The wind is something to describe though. Starting in late spring it starts to pickup and everyday around 230PM until Midnight it blows. All of the sand / dust gets picked up by it turning into a swirling maelstorm of junk and dirt.
For the guys in Kandahar and the eastern portions of the country it is different. Kandahar is hot, very hot, reminds me of Iraq hot. The east of the country is hot but also mixed with humidity...

Fête Nationale -- [Field Notes: One Soldier's Perspective - in Afghanistan]
July 14: This morning we had a brief ceremony to recognize and celebrate "Fête Nationale" or French National Day. It is the official national day of France. While it is also known as Bastille Day (anniversary of storming the Bastille in 1789), it actually celebrates the anniversary of the Fête de la Fédération that occurred on 14 July 1790 (one year after the storming of the Bastille)...
This morning's ceremony featured the raising of the French flag over the ISAF Headquarters...

Goodbye "FaST" Food (and good riddance) -- [FaST Surgeon - in Afghanistan]
...I am completely for the elimination of places like BK and Pizza Hut from military installations. Not only in theaters of war, but in ALL military installations. I simply don't believe there is any reason for their existence on our bases / camps / or posts...


IRAQ

On The Iran, Iraq Border -- [J.D. Johannes - in Iraq]
In the 1980s Iran and Iraq fought to a bloody stalemate on a thin strip of desert over access to a waterway, the Shatt al Arab, that had been in dispute since the days of the Ottoman Empire.
The war was a pure fire-power battle resembling the trench warfare of World War I and the set piece charges of the American Civil War.
The tension over the Iran/Iraq border still lingers making border security one of the key missions of US Forces in Iraq.
I spent a day at the Shalamcha Port of Entry, a bustling entry point for Iranian tourists and transhipment point east of Basrah, Iraq...


WAR ON TERROR /TERRORISM

Senators Look For Smoking Gun In BP-Lockerbie Link -- [AP]
...Soon after al-Megrahi's release last year, BP acknowledged that it urged the British government to sign a prisoner transfer agreement with Libya, but stressed it didn't specify his case. It reiterated that stance this week when four U.S. Democratic senators asked the State Department to investigate whether there was a quid pro quo for the Lockerbie bomber's release.
"The evidence here may be circumstantial but if I were a prosecutor, I'd love to take this case to a jury," said New York Sen. Charles Schumer...

No Link Between BP And Lockerbie Release: UK Envoy -- [NPR news blog]
Many people for obvious reasons are more than willing to believe the worst about BP.
So when stories circulated this week that the company had lobbied for Scotland to release convicted Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi in order to secure an oil deal with Libya, many BP haters were perfectly ready to believe that.
But the United Kingdom's ambassador to the U.S., Nigel Sheinwald, says BP played no such a role in the al-Megrahi affair.
The envoy explained in an open letter to Sen. John Kerry, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee...

UK's Cameron: Releasing Lockerbie Bomber Was Wrong -- [AP]
"As leader of opposition, I couldn't have been more clear that I thought the decision to release al-Megrahi was completely and utterly wrong," Cameron told the BBC before leaving Tuesday on his first visit as British leader to the United States, where he is expected to face questioning about the case.
In fact, Cameron's political party did more than just condemn the former Libyan intelligence agent's release. In the weeks following, Britain's Conservatives called for an inquiry into whether trade considerations played any role in the decision.
The party has changed tack, however, since taking control in May of Britain's government in a coalition. Cameron's Downing Street office said a government-commissioned inquiry was "not currently under consideration."
Cameron emphasized that the final decision to release al-Megrahi was made by Scotland's government, which holds some limited powers within the United Kingdom, and not by the previous British government headed by Prime Minister Gordon Brown.


U.S. AND OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD

As Cameron and Obama Meet, BP Will Be Top Issue -- [NY Times]
On the eve of a White House meeting with President Obama, Prime Minister David Cameron on Monday stepped into the furor over BP's lobbying for a prisoner-transfer agreement between Britain and Libya by saying he considered the release of the convicted Lockerbie bomber from a Scottish prison last year to be "completely and utterly wrong."
Ten weeks after taking office, Mr. Cameron is making his first visit to the United States as prime minister. He and Mr. Obama have a ledger of issues to discuss, including the Cameron government's decision to set an end date of 2015 for Britain's combat role in Afghanistan...

Afghanistan tops agenda for British PM's visit -- [Washington Times]
The White House on Monday said the war in Afghanistan is "first and foremost" on the agenda for Prime Minister David Cameron's first Washington visit with President Obama, but the new British leader will be walking a political tightrope over the release of the Lockerbie bomber amid questions from Congress about whether BP had a role in the decision.
The meeting Tuesday comes as operations in Afghanistan are at a pivotal point...


WELCOME HOME

Homecoming -- [Rajiv Srinivasan - home from Afghanistan]
..."All 5th Brigade Personnel bound for Joint-Base Lewis-McChord, we'll be boarding you at Gate 4 in five minutes," announced an airline representative over the intercom. A smile broke across my face. I was heading home. I was almost done. This war was over for me, and I could wash my hands of it for at least a year or two. I jumped up from my seat, gave one last grin at the run way, knowing I'd be on it in just a few moments.
"Hey Raj," called out my friend James, a West Point classmate in the brigade.
"What's going on brother?! Ready to kick this pig?!" I slapped him enthusiastically on the back.
"Rajiv...something's happened." James voice became quiet...


STRATEGY & TACTICS

ISAF, SCR Address Military ROE and Tactical Directives -- [ISAF]
"Our rules of engagement are solid, and they have not changed," said Blotz. "They are based on international law and are standardized across 47 nations, and describe the circumstances and limitations under which forces will begin or continue to engage in combat. This defines the"right and left limits" of what we will allow our forces to do as they fight."
...He added that the tactical directives tell troops what they should do while the rules of engagement instruct them what they can do. In an example he describes the difference between the two directives.
"If our troops are fired upon from a compound, under the laws of armed conflict...international law, that compound is a legal target," the general said. "However, the current tactical directive will ask our troops to consider the minimal level of force that's required to handle the situation."
...At the moment, the application of the current tactical directive is being reviewed to ensure it is consistently being used across our force.
"It is important to remember that [ISAF] military forces always retain the right to self defense, if commanders believe their forces are in danger they are required to make decisions to protect themselves," said Blotz..


SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Raytheon's pain gun finally gets deployed in Afghanistan (update: recalled) -- [Engadget]
t's been six long years since we first got wind of the Pentagon's Active Denial System, and four since it was slated to control riots in Iraq, but though we've seen reporters zapped by the device once or twice, it seems the Air Force-approved pain gun is only now entering service in Afghanistan...
Update: Sorry folks, false alarm -- a Air Force spokesperson just informed us that though the pain gun was indeed sent to Afghanistan, it's now being returned to the US without ever seeing use.


Pain Ray Recalled From Afghanistan -- [Noah Shachtman/Danger Room]
...The system's tactical advantages are far outweighed by the strategically-massive propaganda boost that the pain ray would've given the Taliban.

The Active Denial System: the weapon that's a hot topic -- [The Telegraph (UK)]
In 2007, with the situation in Iraq at its most volatile since the invasion, US forces requested the presence of the ADS. It was never sent. Indeed, The Daily Telegraph has learnt that it has now been recalled from Afghanistan, without being fired in anger...
...Other problems come from the limitations of the device itself. Rain, snow and fog hamper its effectiveness, and it can be blocked by highly reflective materials such as aluminium foil...
Yet even if the ADS falls short, the ongoing pressure to keep the civilian body count to a minimum has made the development of similar weapons a top priority for Western forces. The ADS is only one of a raft of new non-lethal measures the US has been developing, under varying levels of secrecy...

World's Fastest Helicopter Boosts Battle Against Insurgents -- [ISAF]
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...The aircraft's value in the battle against insurgents lies in its versatile performance. The Lynx crews can track insurgent movements and watch over vulnerable areas with its sophisticated surveillance camera. This "overwatch" capability helps in the protection of the massive convoys used to re-supply front line troops in the forward operating bases.
The convoys can be vulnerable to attack as they track across vast swathes of desert from base to base but with the Lynx and its formidable weapons systems circling above, the insurgents stay away...




POLITICS

Is it time for a real GI Jane? -- [CNN]


HUMOR/SATIRE

-- []


(Need more? Dawn Patrols Archives are here.)



, , , , , , , ,


Posted 2:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)


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The Mudville Gazette is the on-line voice of an American warrior and his wife who stands by him. They prefer to see peaceful change render force of arms unnecessary. Until that day they stand fast with those who struggle for freedom, strike for reason, and pray for a better tomorrow.
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  • Greyhawk: Actually "Ellie," this post isn't about you. read more
  • el polacko: every time i've had a letter printed i have had read more
  • Greyhawk: Man, you Hoosiers during Super Bowl week... read more
  • RebeccaH: Goose. Gander. Sauce. Not that the MSM will ever admit read more
  • Greyhawk: How about the definition of "Spivey"...A proper name or nickname read more
  • ked5: This is another astroturfed letter. Here, it's dated today. However, read more
  • TSO: That should have been "deign" not deem. Sorry, running slow read more
  • TSO: I can't help but wonder why you think the "but read more
  • Ellie Light: From Ellie, I think my letter was printed because it read more
  • AuricTech: I was wondering whether Ellie's middle initial is "D".... read more

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The Mudville Gazette is written and produced by Greyhawk. Unless otherwise credited, the opinions expressed are those of the author, and nothing here is to be taken as representing the official position of or endorsement by the United States Department of Defense or any of its subordinate components. Furthermore, I will occasionally use satire or parody herein. The bottom line: it's my house.

I like having visitors to my house. I hope you are entertained. I fight for your right to free speech, and am thrilled when you exercise said rights here. Comments and e-mails are welcome, but all such communication is to be assumed to be 1)the original work of any who initiate said communication and 2)the property of the Mudville Gazette, with free use granted thereto for publication in electronic or written form. If you do NOT wish to have your message posted, write "CONFIDENTIAL" in the subject line of your email.

Original content copyright © 2003 - 2009 by Greyhawk. Fair, not-for-profit use of said material by others is encouraged, as long as acknowledgement and credit is given, to include the url of the original source post. Other arrangements can be made as needed.

Contact: greyhawk at mudvillegazette dot com

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