Battle of the Bilge

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible, make violent revolution inevitable.” – John F Kennedy

Escalation on a Holiday

As the American press continues its coverage of the attempted terrorist attack on the Detroit bound airliner on Christmas day, which is something we should certainly be concerned about given the connections to Yemen and the increasing terrorist activity springing from that war, Iran has reached a historical point and is suffering tremendous upheaval.

Two blogs are covering the ongoing violence extremely well. Juan Cole is providing excellent insight into the happenings and ramifications of the uprisings in his blog, which can be found here. Additionally, you can find more details about the clashes from Andrew Sullivan’s blog The Daily Dish.

Sunday marked the escalation of the popular unrest that has been on the upswing since the disputed elections in the summer. Juan Cole points out that the significance of the newest round of violence is in the extent of the demonstrations outside of Tehran:

Another remarkable dimension of Sunday’s events was the sheer number of cities where significant rallies and clashes occurred. Some of those allegedly killed are said to have fallen in Tabriz, a northwestern metropolis near Turkey. Even conservative cities such as Isfahan and Mashhad joined in. Shiraz, Ardabil, the list goes on. The attempt of some analysts to paint the disturbances as a shi-shi North Tehran thing has clearly foundered.

The most ominous sign of all for the regime is the reports of security men refusing orders to fire into the crowd.

Dissent and Fascism

One of the leaders of the opposition party is Mohammad Khatami, who gave a speech on Saturday condemning the Ayatollahs and President Ahmadinejad. The speech was broken up by the arrival of masked men at the service of the government. If you want to see what true fascism looks like, here is the video:



When Sunday came around, which was a holiday for Muslims called Ashura, the protests exploded, and the government forces used brutal and deadly force to try and shut it down. From the New York Times:

The decision by the authorities to use deadly force on the Ashura holiday infuriated many Iranians, and some said the violence appeared to galvanize more traditional religious people who have not been part of the protests so far. Historically, Iranian rulers have honored Ashura’s prohibition of violence, even during wartime … Protests and clashes also broke out in the cities of Isfahan, Mashhad, Shiraz, Arak, Tabriz, Najafabad, Babol, Ardebil and Orumieh, opposition Web sites said.

One of the more significant victims of the bloodletting was the nephew of the defeated opposition candidate from last summer’s election, Ali Mousavi. Mousavi’s body was removed by the Iranian junta forces to avoid any type of martyrdom/burial demonstrations. With varying casualty counts coming from both sides, it is hard to tell how deep the government crackdown has gone. But one thing is clear; the violence is not stopping and the pace of the uprising is increasing. Riots and attacks on banks and other institutions continued into Monday. Many more deaths are in Iran’s future before this either calms down or a new revolution takes place.

Moving Forward

As horrible as these scenes are, it is impossible to know what is really going on inside Iran. Is the government’s grip on power fading or are we seeing the end of a revolt that started last year? Only time will tell how it will work out, but evidence is pointing towards this episode being the start of an increased effort to change the fundamental governing structure in Iran. Some commentors are calling the events of Ashura the start of an Iranian Intifada (resistance):

This is a battle that Khamenei will find extremely difficult to win. In fact, if developments continue in their current form, they can result in significant changes to the structure of his regime, or more drastically, lead to its total demise.

His decision to allow the Basij to mount an attack on mourners at Ayatollah Montazeri’s funeral was one factor leading to the spread of opposition in rural areas, faster and more efficiently than any campaign the reformist camp could have orchestrated. Yes, members of the opposition tried to take advantage of the mayhem, but also many genuine mourners had come to pay homage to a Grand Ayatollah. To Ayatollah Khamenei’s forces, they were all the same. To allow attacks against the residents of a holy city where the seeds of the 1979 revolution were planted was not just dead wrong from a religious perspective, it was politically counterproductive as well.

The part in bold and italics (emphasis mine) may be a bit too optimistic. Unfortunately, the power is still not really on the peoples’ side.

Discussion

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“The lowest form of popular culture – lack of information, misinformation, disinformation, and a contempt for the truth or the reality of most people’s lives – has overrun real journalism. Today, ordinary Americans are being stuffed with garbage.” – Carl Bernstein, “Guardian” (London)”, June 3, 1992

MediaMatters.org has named Fox News host their ‘Misinformer of the Year‘. Putting aside the fact that ‘Misinformer’ isn’t a real word, the article is worth a look, but also keep in mind that Media Matters is a left wing publication and very focused on Fox News. I only bring it to your attention because the article lists a good number of topics and issues that we’ve tackled on this blog this year, with an extensive list of supporting documents to support their ‘award’.

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“I love you, and because I love you, I would sooner have you hate me for telling you the truth than adore me for telling you lies.” – Pietro Aretino

Introduction

The end of the year gives everyone a chance to look back and see what we have experienced during the most recent trip around our star. In the grand scheme of things, human events over twelve months are microscopic when witnessed over the course of history. But they invoke passion and appear visceral to us while they are occurring. 2009 was a year of extreme passion, from the continuing wars abroad to the deepening divide at home; there was no shortage of memorable moments. These ten stories are ones that are better left forgotten, however.

In determining the top ten articles that we have tackled this year, we looked at comment rate, page views and most importantly, the durability of the issue. How many times we received the email in question and how long after the initial swarm of emails came in helped rank their saturation into the internet world. Not surprisingly, most of the stories centered on President Obama. Virtually all of the emails regarding the president that have been received and analyzed have been false, and this is a normal pattern in the electronic world. We saw some of the same rhetoric about President Bush and Clinton, and we don’t expect the onslaught to lighten anytime soon. It is inherently the nature of people to speak out in opposition rather than in support. But when that opposition is not exactly based on fact, we’re here to dispute it.

Without further ado, here are 2009′s top bilge articles, a month early because who has time to wait for the end of the year? The subject header links back to the original articles so you can see the full details.

#10 – Did the Pentagon Order Bibles to be Burned in Afghanistan?

A true event takes on a life of its own on the web, when the Pentagon ordered the destruction of a number of Bibles that were printed in languages native to Afghanistan and sent to a soldier by his church. The email came out just days after a damaging video was released by Al Jazeera showing a Chaplain urging soldiers to ‘hunt people for Jesus’ (a metaphor of course for souls). However, the events depicted in the email happened a year before it claimed, and was standard operating procedure. The email blamed President Obama, without mentioning the fact that this happened under President Bush’s tenure.

#9 – Military to Pledge Oath to President Obama?

This highly forwarded email cites a source that claims the Department of Defense is concerned about White House requests for military recruits and officers to make their pledge to President Obama, instead of the Constitution. However, the piece appeared in a blog entitled ‘Jumping in Pools‘, and was clearly stated as satire.

#8 – Tiger Woods Tribute to the Military

An excellent speech in deference to the military delivered by the notably a-political Tiger Woods at the inauguration of President Obama was twisted into an email that made it seem like he was against the president. Woods is the son of Colonel Earl Woods, who instilled a sense of pride and honor for the military in his son that carried through to his adult life, and that was more than apparent in his speech.

#7 – New Restrictions on Servicemen Speaking at Faith Based Events?

Presented as ‘Another freedom gone’, this story about a highly decorated U.S. Army Green Beret being denied the chance to speak at a fund raising event was spun as an attack on President Obama restricting military appearances at faith based events. While some comments pointed out that the restriction had rarely been enforced, there was no evidence that President Obama had anything to do with it, as the email reported.

# 6 – Fabricated Quotes About Obama and the Military

This one has had resurgence in recent weeks and we plan on featuring the email again soon, especially because the tone and introduction has changed enough that it can be classified as a new iteration of the original. The Obama quotes:

“Look, it’s an all volunteer force,” Obama complained. “Nobody made these guys go to war. They had to have known and accepted the risks. Now they whine about bearing the costs of their choice? It doesn’t compute.” “I thought these were people who were proud to sacrifice for their country. I wasn’t asking for blood—just money. With the country facing the worst financial crisis in its history, I’d have thought that the patriotic thing to do would be to try to help reduce the nation’s deficit. I guess I underestimated the selfishness of some of my fellow Americans.”

are directly from a 28 March blog post from John Semmons, whose column Semi-News — A Satirical Look at Recent News appears in the Arizona Conservative, a web community of bloggers. The quotes in question were made up, of course, and the writing is nothing but satire.

#5 – President Obama and the Eid Stamp

Still going strong, this email first appeared after the September 3rd re-issue of the Eid stamp, which was an update with the 44 cent first class mail designation. Re-issue is definitely the right word, because this stamp has been in existence since it was first released in 2001. This was one of several viral emails attempting to link President Obama with the idea of him being submissive to the Muslim world.

#4 – VA Screening Vets to Remove Concealed Carry Permits

Another viral email about President Obama taking away your guns, this time focused on veterans and VA screening. The earliest web indexed article regarding the email is from May 17, 2009 and it was the TruthorFiction article that clearly carried a ‘Fiction’ verdict.

#3 – The Curious Case of Major Stefan Cook

One of our most highly commented on articles of the year was the issue of Major Stefan Cook’s refusal to deploy to Afghanistan on the basis of his belief that the president was not qualified to be in office due to his supposed Kenyan birth. With time, it became obvious by looking at Major Cook’s actions (his deliberate request that he be activated for deployment, his association with ‘birther’ lawyer Orly Taitz, etc.) that this was a matter of publicity and in league with the thoroughly debunked issue of President Obama’s citizenship.

#2 – $50 Tax Penalty for Gun Owners

A recycled email myth that originally made the rounds in 2000 has been reformatted for a new Congress and a new President. The email states that you must act urgently to stop a bill that would levy a $50 tax on your 2009 filing for any handgun that you own. Additionally, the bill would make you list all handguns and, just for good measure, make you provide a sample of your fingerprint identification. Although it has long since been discredited, the myth continues to swirl around the internet and has generated a good number of comments far past its posting date.

#1 – The CBO/TRICARE Email That Won’t Die

The bane of the MSC’s existence since the first version of the email came out at the end of last year, this email centered on Congressional Budget Office recommendations to the president that would significantly cut military health care and possibly spell the end of TRICARE for Life. Although repeated attempts by MOAA and other organizations to end the fears generated by the email have been made (we’ve reported on the email in four separate articles), the circulation has not stopped. It is still received an average of ten times per day here at MOAA headquarters despite the fact that the president never included the recommendations in the budget and no part of the health care reform discussion has considered the CBO’s recommendations.

Discussion

Posts are not held for moderation so your comment will appear immediately, but may be modified or deleted if it is inappropriate.

The Military Officers Association of America is obviously shocked and saddened by the events at Fort Hood. MOAA extends its sincerest sympathy and condolences to the victims of this tragedy and their loved ones.

Update – 11/10

The Washington Post has obtained a copy of a lecture Major Hasan gave to senior Army officers in June, 2007. You can view the entire presentation on their site here. What is particularly striking is that the lecture was supposed to be on a medical topic and instead it was concerning the history of Islam and the dangers of Muslims in the military. A snippet of the report:

“It’s getting harder and harder for Muslims in the service to morally justify being in a military that seems constantly engaged against fellow Muslims.”

While this is curiously put into quotations in the brief, and while it may hold a certain degree of truth, it appears now that it was Hasan’s own feelings flowing out. Given his actions at Ft. Hood, the following statement, which was presented in the briefing as advice on how to deal with this problem is extremely disturbing:

“Don’t doubt their loyalty to the U.S. – God vs. Country”

Someone should have been doubting Major Hasan’s loyalties.
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“بدبختها ها سرخود یاد ميگيرند، خوش بختها سر دیگران میبینند”
“Unfortunates learn from their own mistakes, and the lucky ones learn from others’ mistakes.” – Afghan Proverb

As referenced in last week’s article, the Afghanistan war is at an extremely critical stage, especially on the political front. This article intends to lay the framework of this debate by providing essential history, political analysis and observations on the current state of the war and its regional and global implications. It is not meant to imply a formal MOAA recommendation to the administration on the way forward, only to provide background on the road that lies behind and in front of us. While this will not be an article for fans of brevity, it will strive to be as comprehensive as possible.
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