BREAKING NEWS! New TexANG Memo about Bush!

[johnb]

September 14, 2004, 9:15 a.m.
Newly Unearthed Bush National Guard Memo
WORLD EXCLUSIVE. MUST CREDIT NRO.



111th Fighter Interceptor Squadron
P.O. Box 34567
Houston, Texas 77034

01 August 1972

MEMORANDUM FOR ME

TO: Me (Lt. Colonel Jerry B. Killian)
FROM: Me (Lt. Colonel Jerry B. Killian)
SUBJECT: Bush, George W. 1st Lt. 3244754FG


1. I am writing this memo to myself so that I, Lt. Colonel Jerry B. Killian (commanding officer of 1st Lt. George W. Bush) will have a record of the secret thoughts of me, Lt. Colonel Jerry B. Killian.

2. I bet my wife thinks I don't know how to type. Ha! Typing is so easy with this new, top secret, experimental National Guard "Computer-writer"! Have to remember to send the guys in the secret National Guard Experimental Equipment Department a thank you note for letting me use this thing. "Superscript"! Geez, what'll these guys think of next?

3. Phone call from Bush. Discussed options of how Bush can get out of coming to drills from now through November. Says he wants to transfer to Alabama "with a banjo on my knee". I told him I didn't see relevancy of "banjo" reference. Bush told me to "lighten up old man". I told him I didn't like his attitude. He advised me not to "have a cow, dude". I told him to "straighten up and fly right — and that's an order!"

4. 1st Lt Bush disobeyed my direct order.

5. Bush's arrogance and what I call his "go-it-alone" attitude spell big trouble for this young man. God forbid he ever gets into any position of power!

6. My friends in the Navy tell me good things about this young swift boat commander, Kenny? Kermy? Something like that. They tell me he's so heroic that some of the other swift boat guys are jealous of him. Hey, at least he's serving in combat — not like that punk Bush!

7. 1st Lt Bush just walked by my office. He looked right at me and scratched his forehead — with his middle finger! Arrogant punk!

8. You know what might be a good idea for a TV show? Two brothers have to raise one of the brother's sons. Could be cute, lots of dating foibles, parenting stuff. Could call it "Two and a Half Fellas" or something like that. Boy, if that was part of a TV network's Fall line-up I'd sure watch it!

9. Love this proportional spacing! Those experimental guys are nuts!

10. That young reporter, Rasher? Ranther? Something like that. He's good.

11. Boy, if he ever got the crap beaten out of him by some nutcase demanding to know Kenneth's frequency or something like that, I'd believe him.

12. 1st Lt Bush just hit a baseball through my window. Doesn't even apologize for breaking the glass! Just stands there yelling "Hey, mister, little help here..."

13. That's it, I'm suspending his flight status! You're grounded, mister!


(signed)
JERRY B. KILLIAN
Lt. Colonel


— Comedian Dave Konig starred on Broadway in Grease! and won a New York Emmy as the co-host of Subway Q&A. Konig has written a novel, Good Luck, Mr. Gorsky. Konig is also an NRO contributor.

[johnb]

Rather, the Sequel
A parody. Or perhaps a premonition?

HEADLINE: CBS Stands By Claim of Bush National Guard Payoff

DATELINE: WASHINGTON

BODY:

Faced with the second major controversy this month about its reporting on President Bush's National Guard service, CBS News on Friday defended its report that President Bush had used $3 bills to bribe Texas Air National Guard officials in 1973.

The latest dispute erupted after the CBS News program "60 Minutes II" reported earlier this week that Bush had used several thousand $3 bills to buy the silence of National Guard officials who were questioning whether he had met his service obligations. The program featured color photocopies of some of the currency allegedly used to pay the bribes.

Conservative critics on the Internet immediately cried foul, claiming that there was no such thing as a $3 bill, and some news organizations later quoted "experts" as expressing doubt that such a denomination ever existed.

Claims were also made that the bills were "doctored" versions of recent $5 bills. Some of the bills, while containing 3's in each corner, bear the text "FIVE DOLLARS." The bills contain portraits of former President William Jefferson Clinton that appear roughly one centimeter left of center on the face of the bills.

The right-wing critics contend that the Treasury Department did not begin printing currency with left-of-center portraits until the mid-1990s. They also argue that Clinton's portrait would not have appeared on currency in 1973, 20 years before he became president.

The critics also assert that the copies of the bills were produced by color imaging and printing methods that weren't available three decades ago.

CBS has declined to say where the bills came from, but has said they came from "solid sources."

On Friday's "CBS Evening News," anchor Dan Rather said that "no definitive evidence" had emerged to prove the currency was not authentic.

"As with the earlier memos, if any definitive evidence comes up, we will report it," Rather said.

The show broadcast an excerpt of an interview with Terry McAuliffe, a currency expert, who said that the $3 bills were genuine. In Friday night's report, McAuliffe said, "I've handled a lot of cash in my life, and I can't say that I've never seen a $3 bill. These bills look real to me. But if they aren't real, then I'm sure Karl Rove had something to do with them."

The CBS report stated "with absolute certainty" that the disputed currency could have been produced by the government in the early 1970s.

According to CBS, its sources in the United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing had confirmed that the government had the capability of producing $3 bills in 1973. Rather said that "Treasury officials acknowledge that the government was able to print a '3' just as easily as it could print a '1', '2', or a '5.'"

Independent experts consulted by the Amalgamated Press appear to share this view. A leading practitioner of numerology said that "the number '3', like the other Arabic numerals, has been around a long time." According to the numerologist, who requested anonymity, the number '3' dates back to at least the 6th century AD, and perhaps earlier. "There's no question the United States government was aware of the number before 1973 and easily could have put it on legal tender," she said.

The CBS program also pointed out that several of the documents found in Bush's official National Guard files used the number '3'. The number appears, for example, in the date "1973," the year some of the documents were created.

"These documents demonstrate conclusively that the number '3' was available for use by the government in the early 70s," said CBS's Rather, who reported both the Friday segment and the earlier "60 Minutes II" piece.

Noting that Clinton was born in 1946, CBS's consulting experts also stated that it was entirely possible that the future president could have posed for a portrait before 1973.

Nevertheless, the network's right-wing critics continued to deny the possibility that the $3 bills were real.

One blogger's online post exclaimed: "It's RIDICULOUS that we're even DISCUSSING the possibility of a $3 bill. Haven't you ever heard of the phrase "queer as a $3 bill"? It only makes sense because there is NO SUCH THING as a $3 bill!!!"

Responding to this claim, a CBS spokesman said, "The credibility of our news organization should not be called into question by the homophobic rants of people in pajamas."

Reached by telephone late last night, the blogger declined to comment on whether he was wearing pajamas.

— George Conway is an attorney in New York City who is familiar with the default settings in Microsoft Word.

[johnb]

1972 Email Casts Doubt on Bush Guard Service

(2004-09-09) -- CBS reporter Dan Rather today released the text of a recently discovered email from then-Lt. George W. Bush's Air National Guard commanding officer which casts more doubt upon the military service of the man who would become the 43rd President of the United States.

The revelation of the email comes just hours after questions were raised about the authenticity of typewritten memos from the same officer, shown yesterday by Mr. Rather on 60 Minutes.

According to the previously unseen email message sent in May 1972 by squadron commander Jerry Killian, Lt. Bush phoned Col. Killian because "his internet connection was on the fritz and he couldn't IM me."

Lt. Bush apparently wanted to talk about "how he can get out of coming to drill from now through November."

According to Col. Killian's email, the young Bush wanted to go to Alabama to work as webmaster for a Republican candidate's website.

Mr. Rather said the authenticity of the 32-year-old email has been confirmed by several Nigerian officials who specialize in electronic funds transfer by email.

[johnb]

Stepping aside from the parody for a moment....Frank Abagnale has weighed in on this....if you've ever seen the movie "Catch me if you can" you know who he is....he was quoted on www.ratherbiased.com with this:

'Catch Me In Two Days'
September 14, 2004, 17:37:38 EDT

Another forgery expert has come out against CBS's claims that documents the network claims were written by a former Texas Air National Guard superviser of President George W. Bush.

Frank Abagnale, the inspiration for the 2002 movie, Catch Me If You Can, has now spoken out.

"Though Mr. Abagnale has not personally seen the documents or copies of the documents, from what he has seen on television he believes the documents are forgeries. He feels this should be evident to anyone of any knowledge of forged documents," Sarah Hammermill, an information officer at Abegnale's company, Abegnale and Associates said in an email to blogger Robin K. Juhl.

"I can tell you that he sent an e-mail to Neil Cavuto of Your World on Fox News Network (he knows him personally) that stated: 'If my forgeries looked as bad as the CBS documents, it would have been Catch Me In Two Days.'"

Contacted by RatherBiased.com, Kelly Welbes, executive assistant to Abegnale confirmed the message.

"The person who wrote it was just asking his opinion on it. Mr. Abignale did, in fact, send that email to Fox News. And it is the opinion of Mr. Abignale that, having seen the documents as presented by CBS on TV, it is his opinion that they are forgeries," Welbes said.

[johnb]

http://usera.imagecave.com/Swordmaker/Freerepublic/CBS-LOR.jpg

[Wuptdo]

JohnB - Last one was great! :) In the big sceme of things, it is closer to the truth (good v. evil) than most people realize.

What is your favorite Dan Rather moment?

Mine: Election night, 1996: The best moment was the look on Dan Rather's face when he had to announce that Sen. Jesse Helms had won re-election. It was priceless! :D

Wuptdo B-)

[johnb]

Wup,

I loved the bit where he told Bill and Hill on air they (CBS) was "pulling" for them...if memory serves me correctly it was in the mid-90s in the run up to the 96 campaign...

Rather has finally gone overboard....What's the frequency Kenneth?

Anyway....there is a legitimate document expert, the man who actually invented the underlying lazer printer technology and electronic typesetting, who has weighed in on this. His assessment is the matter is simply not controversial, the documents are complete forgeries. He has a long and technical discussion of why it would have been technically impossible for this document to have been created prior to 1991.

http://www.flounder.com/bush2.htm

The two "experts" CBS consulted are in trouble by the way, one has backed of his claim as he was nothing more than a typewriter repairman who was a contributor to a hard left blog, KOS. Odd that CBS has been ranting against blogs while 1/2 of their "experts" are blog contributors. LOL Also, the other....is an untrained scam artist who writes psuedo-technical books on "spirituality in handwriting". Oh boy.

[Brent]

"Courage!" :lol:

[Cathy]

Johnb!

I LOVE the picture!!!!!!
That is great!
Cathy

[Lurkie]

Preferential treatment in obtaining a slot in the the National Guard during the VN conflict is a given. It occurred in every State to some degree. Dan Quail is a perfect example and there are influential people in this State (NC) that benifited the same way. During that period almost all units had waiting lists to join. The trick was to get someone to move you up the list. There is no question that duty in the Guard was honorable service, the kicker is did some shmoo down the list get drafted and sent to VN and get killed or wounded while the list jumper stayed at home, attended his drills, or at least most of them, and received an honorable discharge. Granted there was always the possibility that a Guard unit would be called to active duty and sent to fight, however this was remote in that war. The the case of Dan Quail he got assigned to the Indiania State Headquarters Detachment which was manned by the Adjutant General and all the top State brass and wouldn't have been activated unless the country was invaded.

Because of reorganizations in the active forces and the reserve componets the roles have changed in the years since VN. The Guard and Reserve of today are taking an active part in supplimenting our fighting forces, without them we couldn't put an Army in the the field today for any kind of a sustained commitment, such as Iraq!

[johnb]

Actually, no it's not a given at all. In the minds of Kerry staffers and supporters it may be that their hatred of Bush has made them wont to accept any conspiracy theory that smears Bush but that can never be confused with truth/facts.

Bush's father was a Republican Congressman from Texas. In 1968 when Bush joined the Guard a Texas Donkeycrat was President, the Donkeys controlled the US House, the US Senate, the governor of Texas was a Donkey, the Donkeys controlled he Texas Senate and the Texas House. What "influence" was one junior Republican Representative from Houston going to have over the Texas Donkeycrat Party? That is simply a mystifying accusation. The man CBS now claims he got Bush in as a favor was a Texas state Congressman, he is currently a Kerry activist/fundraiser. He is also humping a book deal. The kicker is he has already testified that he did nothing of the sort and his daughter has come forward and claimed her father's new story is simply untrue because he had told her repeatedly that he did no favors for Bush and no influence/pressure was exerted in the matter.

This set of accusations lacks something quite necessary. That being proof. What's going on here is Kerry was burned by the Swift Boat Veterans, his campaign now seems to be out to "even the score" and will stoop to any level to achieve that end.

The problem here is Kerry wrote a book and testified before Congress in the early 70's accusing GI's of being rapists, murderers, and "war crimminals" then had the audacity to attempt to use his 4 months in Vietnam as evidence of his fitness for President. He was burned on that. The solution is to release his medical records and correct his story so that it is properly aligned with the historical record. Fabricating stories about Bush with documents forged in an Abilene Kinko's is expected, but not a solution.

Lurkie, "everybody knows" is not proof. Especially when "everybody" consists of a bunch of kooks on the Kerry campaign and over at the DNC.

[Lurkie]

Johnb, I for one don't buy your rational that, because the political hierarchy in Texas was Democrat, that a sitting US Congressman couldn't have gleaned a favor from a fellow politician. Happens all the time. Sounds like Rush Limbaugh logic.

[johnb]

What you are peddaling is paranoia Lurkie.

Theoretically it might have happened. Then again, an alien may have come down and pointed a death ray at the Governor's head and forced him to put Bush Jr. into that Guard unit. Neither has anything resembling verifiable facts to back them up. A crooked Texas politician who for years insisted he did nothing to assist/ease Bush into a TexANG slot signs on with the Kerry camp and suddenly changes his tune now seems to be all the "proof" you folks on the far left need to claim a prima facie case. So...what gives you the impression this Kerry fundraiser is now telling the truth? What facts are there? Aside from CBS' forged documents of course.

Like I said before Lurkie "Everybody knows" is not "proof". "Everybody knows" is the claim of wild eyed conspiracy lunatics. Good luck finding that shooter on the grassy knoll.

[johnb]

The hysteria of the left is quite amusing. It seems to finally be sinking in with them that Kerry won't be president. Of course, they were all supposed to move to France after their election loss in the 2000 Presidential race, so, no lefties would fulfill this UNCG student's prophesy either. They're too lazy to act on their own hate.

http://www.carolinianonline.com/global_user_elements/printpage.cfm?storyid=716078

OUT OF MY HEAD: Everything to Live For '04
By Joe Killian

I have friends who refused to watch, listen to or even read Bush's speech to the RNC last week -but I just had to see it. I was working that night, so I set my VCR and came home to the tape at around 1 a.m.

It's hard to describe the mixture of nausea and fear that gripped me as I watched this speech. I was offended at the use of the tragedy of 9/11 as political leverage - but, in a strange way, it was almost a relief. The Republicans have finally fully embraced the position they've been hinting at for months: "A vote for Kerry is a vote to dig up 9/11's victims, spit in their hearts and stomp on their brains."

This all turns my stomach - but what scares me is how effective this tact has been. Who would have dreamed that attacking the war record of a Vietnam hero who protested upon his return, trotting out the most moderate members of your party while adopting a right wing platform and all but ignoring the country's economic crisis would actually work? But - here we are, running neck and neck with a little less than two months left to go.

If I were Bill Clinton, I'd take to a hospital bed and recover for a month too.

Of course, the greatest strength of the Bush campaign is the weakness of the Kerry campaign. Yesterday I watched Kerry stumping on C-Span and noticed the dead silence when he came to an obvious laugh line. He can't seem to communicate to the audience when they're supposed to laugh, and though he's trying his damnedest to be charming his every smile looks exhausted, shy and desperate. The consequence: though he's making good arguments, calling the president on his record and presenting his own plan for the country, we're still made to feel as though he's not quite sure of himself, even not quite behind his own campaign.

Bush on the other hand is ignoring the economy, embracing his arrogance, spouting ideological catchphrases without anything to back it all up - but he does it in that charming, rakish frat boy sort of way. You almost want to pinch his cheeks and say, "You scamp! I want to boot your sorry *** out of office for dividing this country, costing us 1,000 lives in Iraq and trying to make us all march lockstep in your parade of Born Again Christians - but you're just so cute!"

I feel this way about our College Republicans sometimes. Even when they say things that disgust me, I can't quite believe they're serious. Recently one of them said to me, when I asked if he hated the moderates dominating the convention: "Well, they may not pass all the acid tests of being a republican, but they all agree on the most important thing: they don't mind the sight of dead Arabs."

This is the kind of awful, racist joke that you can imagine Bush sharing with Cheney as they watch Arnold and Rudy take the stage. But the awful truth is that it isn't a joke - it's the darkest and most awful part of this man reaching out to the darkest, most awful part of America. It's a campaign built on fear and hatred disguised as patriotism and piety - and I'm scared to death it's going to work.

I read recently that more than million people the world over take their lives every year - more than are murdered or killed in wars. The latest World Health Organization figures suggest a suicide takes place every forty seconds, somewhere in the world.

And so it's not hard to imagine that on November 3rd, if the election can be called by then, there might be a sort of grim mass exodus from this sad planet should Bush pull this election out. My generation may be particularly vulnerable to the urge to lay back in a warm bath and open up their veins as chants of "Four More Years" echo horribly from every 24 hour cable news station.

I remember the awful, knee-capped feeling on the day Al Gore finally conceded in 2000. What else could he do? Still - there was a feeling that we'd all, as a generation, had our first turn at bat and struck out. Or, rather, that a bad call had sent us back to the bench for four long years. We couldn't have imagined, then, how badly the game would go - or how much would be at stake when we next stepped to the plate.

But, though I finally have my own bathroom this year, you won't find me dead in my tub on November 3rd, no matter what happens. I'm casting my vote for Kerry, whether or not he makes me go weak at the knees. I'm praying to God, Jesus, the Holy Mother and whoever and whatever else is out there that it goes our way this time. But, if it doesn't, I'm going to stick around until we finally oust these *******s. And I'm going to dance in the street, drink till I'm sick and sleep for three days afterward. The thought alone will be enough to keep me going.

[Anonymous]

This Joe is sick in the head. Implying that people will commit suicide if Bush wins. He should write fictional novels like Dan Rather.

[Wuptdo]

The SeeBS (CBS) report is finally released for public viewing. Please check out the "Rathergate" blog on the left of the screen for details and summaries. It is a good day for the Bloggers of this county.

You know the old saying - "what comes around goes around."




You can read the entire 234 page monster here. We’re working through it, but here’s what we know:

* Mary Mapes: fired.
* Senior Vice President Betsy West: fired.
* 60 Minutes Wednesday Executive Producer Josh Howard: fired.
* Senior Broadcast Producer Mary Murphy: fired

(Actually, only Mapes was terminated, all others were “asked to resign.")


I just hope the Texas AG presses fraud charges against these clowns.

Wuptdo B-)

[johnb]

Don't cry for them, somewhere out on the lunatic fringe of the Donkeycrat Party there is a group getting ready to "honor" them with an award for their "courage" in the matter. They'll get plush jobs with some leftie outfit where they'll be accorded status for what they did. Even though it brought dishonor and ill repute on CBS.

[Wuptdo]

JohnB wrote:


They'll get plush jobs with some leftie outfit...

You mean like CNN, DNC, NY Times, or Washington Post. :-D

Wuptdo B-)

More likely DU, Daily KOS or CC's "The Daily Show."

[Wuptdo]

The former Queen of 60 minutes has written a book about "MemoGate:"

Truth and Duty : The Press, the President, and the Privilege of Power by Mary Mapes (http://newsbusters.org/node/1468)

Who want's this under their Christmas tree?

One critic's response to this book:
Still Crazy After All These Years by Rand Simberg (http://www.transterrestrial.com/archives/005786.html#005786)

Wuptdo B-)

[d4vendel]

Who want's this under their Christmas tree?


Only if a leg of the tree stand is broken and I need something to prop it up with. :)

- David F.