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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWSJ op-ed writer Elizabeth O’Bagy fired for resume lie
By MACKENZIE WEINGER | 9/11/13 12:49 PM EDT
The Syria researcher whose Wall Street Journal op-piece was cited by Secretary of State John Kerry and Sen. John McCain during congressional hearings about the use of force has been fired from the Institute for the Study of War for lying about having a Ph.D., the group announced on Wednesday.
The Institute for the Study of War has learned and confirmed that, contrary to her representations, Ms. Elizabeth OBagy does not in fact have a Ph.D. degree from Georgetown University, the institute said in a statement. ISW has accordingly terminated Ms. OBagys employment, effective immediately.
OBagys Aug. 30 op-ed piece for the Journal, On the Front Lines of Syrias Civil War, was cited by both Kerry and McCain last week. McCain read from the piece last Tuesday to Kerry, calling it an important op-ed by Dr. Elizabeth OBagy. The next day, Kerry also brought up the piece before a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing and described it as a very interesting article and recommended that members read it.
But the piece had also come under fire for misrepresenting her affiliations. Originally the op-ed only listed OBagy, 26, as only a senior analyst at the ISW, later adding a clarification that disclosed her connection to a Syrian rebel advocacy group.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/09/wall-street-journal-elizabeth-obagy-fired-96637.html
uponit7771
(90,339 posts)liberalhistorian
(20,818 posts)thing to do nowadays given how quick and easy it is to verify credentials and how quickly a lie can be discovered. It's actually always been a really stupid thing to do, but there was a time, before the internet and a lot of our uber-modern technology, when it was harder to verify and took more time and effort, so companies often just trusted what was stated on resumes.
But I know some HR and recruitment people and you would NOT believe how common it still is, especially among supposedly educated, "smart" people who should damn well know that they WILL be found out quickly, possibly even before starting work, and that it's a much darker blot on their records than if they'd just tried to get a position with their own, valid credentials. Truly amazing.
lumpy
(13,704 posts)as stated in the article.
Eleanors38
(18,318 posts)I've seen this in universities, school districts, govt. agencies, and corps. Whoosh! Right on through the Dept. of Human Racehorses, someone with an M.A. from Rumblegut College.
leveymg
(36,418 posts)Hmmmm . . .
Her opinion piece basically makes 3 propositions. I wonder which parts got Kerry and McCain's interest up:
1) "Moderate opposition forces" are protecting Syrian minorities
Moderate opposition groups make up the majority of actual fighting forces, and they have recently been empowered by the influx of arms and money from Saudi Arabia and other allied countries, such as Jordan and France. This is especially true in the south, where weapons provided by the Saudis have made a significant difference on the battlefield, and have helped fuel a number of recent rebel advances in Damascus.
2) The rebels are getting inadequate weapons because the US wants it that way:
At this stage in the conflict, barring a major bombing campaign by the U.S., sophisticated weaponry, including anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapon systems, may be the opposition's best chance at sustaining its fight against Assad. This is something only foreign governments, not jihadists, can offer. Right now, Saudi sources that are providing the rebels critical support tell me that they haven't sent more effective weaponry because the U.S. has explicitly asked them not to.
3) The Jihadis are effective at holding territory because they have "won over local population" through charity
HooptieWagon
(17,064 posts)We've seen this movie before... an Administration using a bogus "authority" to gin up the case for war, and suppressing information/intelligence that doesn't support their case. I'm quite surprised that a number of DUers are so gullible to fall for it again.
leveymg
(36,418 posts)But, unlike Judy, Judy, Judy, I wonder how much influence she really had? I've never heard of her before. Why were both Kerry and McCain spreading her writing around, like gospel?
Are there really so few American sources who have been inside Syria? Even some of the well-combed network TV celebrity correspondents have been claiming to be broadcasting from rebel-held territory, and their "reporting" has been at least as transparently one-sided.
No. I think this may have to do with either something this women has conveyed before or was in the process of planting. There's nothing in this particular article that really stands out as really extraordinary.
leveymg
(36,418 posts)video that's been taken down:
Fox News-Expert on Syrian politics, security speaks out
Aug 29, 2013 - Elizabeth O'Bagy
- See more at: http://www.understandingwar.org/press-media/webcast/fox-news-expert-syrian-politics-security-speaks-out#sthash.OFIREWOf.dpuf
I'll try to find that.
leveymg
(36,418 posts)Message started by Courdeleon02 on Sep 3rd, 2013, 10:00am
Title: Syrian Rebels not controlled by Al Qaeda
Post by Courdeleon02 on Sep 3rd, 2013, 10:00am This is the most detailed information on the structure of the Rebel forces in Syria. It contradicts the false information that the main stream media is backing that Al Qaeda is controlling the Rebel movement.Moderate forces are the prevailing influence and we need to back them up with military action that will be effective.
http://www.understandingwar.org/press-media/webcast/fox-news-expert-syrian-politics-security-speaks-out
leveymg
(36,418 posts)Last edited Wed Sep 11, 2013, 02:46 PM - Edit history (2)
It's interesting that McCain is stroking the notion that the major opposition groups are "moderate" and "secular" and "would never agree" to an Islamic state, while Kerry agrees with that assessment, "for the most part" and gives the impression that al-Nusra and others are really only a problem in the north.
grasswire
(50,130 posts)leveymg
(36,418 posts)Houston we have a problem!!!
KoKo
(84,711 posts)surely they have people on the ground in Syria. They should have many ME experts with verifiable degrees and backgrounds already in service there.
Why would Kerry and McCain through this out there for people to read assuming that people would take this woman's word writing for the WSJ and only 27 years old over a more seasoned diplomat from the US State Department.
Why use the same kind of "plant" like Judith Miller when everyone remembers she was fired for propaganda. How could they think we wouldn't find out?
Cut off from the people? Living in a Bubble? Too lazy to pay attention to what's going on around them? No sense of history of the past decades when they served in Government?
leveymg
(36,418 posts)Stranger things have happened.
KoKo
(84,711 posts)I don't see him getting the Heinz Fortune engaged (at his age) with some battle..
But, then ..stranger things have been seen with our Politicians...these past years.
STILL...he should be better Mentoring his Staffers on the "Morality Issue."
leveymg
(36,418 posts)Right-thinking girl. That devoted to the cause, she might overlook a lot.
Naw. Just a little free association.
karynnj
(59,503 posts)Kerry commented on the quote that McCain read - and said he agreed with the part read for the most part. That is NOT using it as a source. He then mentioned the article as interesting -- the same thing he has said of many op-eds = written by many people. Neither comment "uses it as a source of information".
karynnj
(59,503 posts)McCain quoted the article to Kerry, who commented on it. How is this the State Department planting anything? I see many posts suggesting articles as insightful by people without specific qualifications.
GreatCaesarsGhost
(8,584 posts)leveymg
(36,418 posts)Marr
(20,317 posts)is to say what the 1% wants to hear.
The opinion market is driven by demand, too.
dreamnightwind
(4,775 posts)Mojorabbit
(16,020 posts)Maybe I am just getting old but that seems awfully young to have much in the way of world experience.
lumpy
(13,704 posts)educated young people in the US who are interested in world affairs. I don't personally know any of them.
Blue_Tires
(55,445 posts)a.k.a., "We're a real, legit institute and totally NOT a front organization!"
Catherina
(35,568 posts)Cliff Kincaid September 9, 2013
As President Obama prepares to speak to the nation on his desire for war in Syria, critical attention is being focused on the conflicts of interest and hidden agenda of an influential writer for The Wall Street Journal who has argued for U.S. military intervention on behalf of the Syrian rebels. The writer, an attractive young woman by the name of Elizabeth OBagy, has appeared on CNN, Fox News and PBS, but her controversial connection to one side in the Syrian civil war had been carefully concealed during these appearances.
...
For example, McCain, who has praised Al Jazeera and also appeared on the channel, has called the Syrian rebels moderates, openly citing OBagys work.
...
Her views, for example, were featured prominently in the USA Today article, Syrian rebels said to seek Islamic democracy, depicting the opposition to the Assad regime as desiring an American experiment in democratic government for their country. The article said, Many Syrian opposition members she [OBagy] has spoken to compared what they want [in Syria] to the United States.
...
One leading Catholic thinker told Accuracy in Media that while Obama is coming across as indifferent to the suffering and plight of Christians in Syria, Russian President Vladimir Putin is looking like a potential good guy by speaking up for the rights of persecuted Christians in the Middle East and elsewhere.
OBagys most influential article appeared in The Wall Street Journal, titled, On the Front Lines of Syrias Civil War. In the article, she claimed that Contrary to many media accounts, the war in Syria is not being waged entirely, or even predominantly, by dangerous Islamists and al-Qaida die-hards. Commentary magazine called the article a very good place to start in understanding Syria.
...
Before that, on June 22, 2012, she appeared on Al Jazeera, the television channel serving as the mouthpiece for the Muslim Brotherhood, as an expert on Syria. This appearance seemed to also make her an expert in the eyes of many others in the international and U.S. media.
...
http://www.aim.org/aim-column/scandal-over-brainchild-behind-war-policy/
[font size=3]WHAT! ACCURACY IN MEDIA CALLS AL JAZEERA "the mouthpiece for the Muslim Brotherhood" Say it ain't so! [/font]
Moustafas Twitter account currently describes him as working for the Libyan Revolution, and now Syrian Revolution good times.
It would be funny if it weren't so sad.
orenbus
(44 posts)These are the types of sources that John Kerry our Secretary of State uses as part of the argument to take military action against another country? No wonder most of the people in our country have a lack of trust in our own government, it gives an indication of what information our government officials will use to support whatever their arguments may be without proper vetting, unbelievable.
KoKo
(84,711 posts)are relying on her for "intelligence info" then it seems that proper vetting isn't being done while average Americans are being tracked 24/7 and pawed over at Airports along with the other "security measures" anticipated in the coming years.
Do not of them remember Judith Miller and Curveball? Are the people we elect these days BrainDead?
leveymg
(36,418 posts)KoKo
(84,711 posts)But, hopefully her exposure will make them think twice and carefully vett the next person who is cited for reference when appearing before a House or Senate Committee hearing of such importance.
karynnj
(59,503 posts)At most, she wrote an article that he thought the parts cited by McCain as interesting.
Jesus Malverde
(10,274 posts)Tom Ripley
(4,945 posts)MisterP
(23,730 posts)to reroute public discourse: now "without the credible threat of strikes Assad would have no motive whatsoever ... to negotiate a diplomatic solution" is not just acceptable but official for "lefties"
Vashta Nerada
(3,922 posts)lumpy
(13,704 posts)fire in every one's fireplace.
Bluenorthwest
(45,319 posts)might wonder why anyone listens to them about anything. Rubes, patsies, marks for every spinner of tales that comes along.
KoKo
(84,711 posts)tabasco
(22,974 posts)Thanks!
tabasco
(22,974 posts)Thanks.
KoKo
(84,711 posts)WorseBeforeBetter
(11,441 posts)Octafish
(55,745 posts)Tailoring the intel to fit your war plans.
How very imperial.
A doctorate, no less.