Latest * record indicates Killian memos a set-up

[Carolab]

Newly released documents from George W. Bush’s military personnel files lead new weight to the theory that the White House engineered the recent scandal regarding CBS’s use of the “Killian memos”. Acting under a court order, on Friday, September 24, the Department of Defense released 10 new pages of documents, including an official Texas Air National Guard memo which conclusively refutes the technological questions that were raised about the “Killian memos.”

And it can now be shown that these “new documents” were deliberately withheld by the White House when it released “absolutely everything” on February 13, 2004.

The document in question is a memo written to “First Lieutenant George W. Bush” notifying him of his promotion to First Lieutenant. The memo is dated Febrary 19, 1971, more than a year before the date on the first of the Killian memos. And, like the Killian memos, this document uses a “proportionately spaced font”, and has all the characteristics of a document produced on a modern day computer using “Microsoft Word”.

<snip>

With each day that passes, it becomes clearer that either the “Killian memos” are copies of true originals, or were retyped by someone whose purpose was to destroy the credibility of Bill Burkett. Burkett’s credentials as a source of confidential information were well established by USA Today in 2001, when he was the source for that paper’s series on “ghost soldiers” in the National Guard. Burkett provided USA Today with the proof that the Texas National Guard was receiving federal funding for the training of Guardmen who were not showing up for training, but were being signed in on rosters as if they had attended that training. Burkett subsequently disclosed (and was backed up by numerous witnesses) that he had observed Bush campaign officials in the act of purging Bush’s Texas Air National Guard files, and until the Killian memo controversy, Burkett’s account was considered highly credible.

The questions over the authenticity of the Killian memos has made Bush’s National Guard record a “non-story” for most major media organizations, despite the fact that the documents that have been released under a court order prove that the White House has been lying about what happened during Bush’s last two years in the Armed Forces. Evidence found in Bush’s flight records (when examined against evidence in the payroll records) indicate that he was ordered to perform four days of active duty training in March 1972 with an experienced co-pilot in a “general purpose” training jet (the T033). Either Bush was ordered to perform remedial flight training, or was attempting to qualify for another jet, and had failed to do so. (There is no mention of this training in Bush’s annual “Training Report” that covered this period.)

And evidence found in the “Historical Record of the 147th gives the lie to the White House’s contention that Bush did not resume flying when he returned to Texas after the November 1972 election because the F102 was being phased out and there were not enough jets to go around. The “history” shows that the 147th had a combined total of 18 F102s and TF102s (the training version of the F102) in 1968, and 21 such jets in February 1973. And, in 1973, the 147th had three more T033s in 1973 than it had in 1968 (5 in 1968, 8 in 1973) and that by 1973 the 147th had acquired eight of the F101s---the jet which would eventually replace the 147th’s F102s. Considering that the 111th Fighter Interceptor Squadron had only 30 pilot slots, there was clearly no shortage of F102s for Bush to fly when he returned to Texas.

(much more)

http://www.glcq.com/set_up.htm

[mhr]

1. Sounds Like, Looks Like, Smells Like A Rove Plot To Undermine

any new memos that would be officially released.

By tainting CBS with scandal, Rove makes all further memo discussions suspect in the public mind.

That man is devious to say the least.

[EndElectoral]

2. It's time to focus on Bush's current incompetence.....

I belive your story, but this is just not going to play to America or the media that enjoyed bringing Rather down.

Bottom line....we don't need this story...we just need to show Bush's record and failures...and Cheney's greed and stealth

[Julian English]

4. It is a waste of time but

Still here is the conclusion of a forensic examination that awol project cites:

Since current odds hold that the Bush memos are faked, the question of their authenticity turns to whether CBS should have known they were inauthentic – if, in fact, they are. In fact, there seems to be nothing in the memos that indicates they are faked. All evidence points toward a mechanical production process and away from a digital process. Furthermore, the mechanical process seems to be consistent with typewriters used in the military at the time in question. If I had been one of the experts advising CBS, I would have advised them that there is nothing physical in the memos implying they are not authentic. All indicators imply they are authentic. I would have told them that from my point of view, the memos are worthy of presenting to the public.

Se the document (a pdf) here: http://imrl.usu.edu/bush_memo_study/supporting_material/Bush_Memos.pdf

[Brotherjohn]

3. What's always bugged me is this: SO WHAT if the memos have...

... "all the characteristics of a document produced on a modern day computer using Microsoft Word"!

Microsoft Word is an incredibly flexible word processing program from the year 2004 that can produce a near infinite variety and combination of formats for documents! I know, I'm a technical writer and have extensive experience in layout and using Word.

Microsoft Word has nothing to do with this issue. It very likely could reproduce nearly any document from any typewriter used throughout the 20th century!

The relevant question is THIS: COULD the document have been produced on a typewriter circa 1970? That is a much harder question to answer (thus the controversy). But the available information seems to indicate that the answer is "yes".

[Julian English]

6. see the link I posted above

[Carolab]

5. Palast just released Burkett interview

THE REAL LT. COL. BURKETT
IN HIS OWN WORDS TO BBC TELEVISION
by Greg Palast
Tuesday Oct 5, 2004


Shooting the Messenger Doesn't Discredit the Message

When Dan Rather went down for airing a document he couldn't source, he did the courageous thing: blamed someone else.

In this case, Rather and CBS loaded their corporate guilt on a guy you’ve probably never heard of before, rancher Bill Burkett of Abilene, a retired Lieutenant Colonel from the Texas Air National Guard.

CBS did a no-no -- used a document on air without fully checking out its source. No excuses. Shouldn't have done it. They got the document from Burkett.

Once CBS hung out its source and painted a target on him, Rove-ing gangs of media hit men finished him off. Burkett's an evidence "fabricator," "Bush-hater," and even, suggests William Safire in the New York Times as he fantasizes a dark left-wing conspiracy, a felon ready for hard time.

http://www.gregpalast.com/detail.cfm?artid=378&row=0

(scroll down to bottom for the Burkett interview)

[On the Road]

7. Make Sure to Click Through to the Expert Study, Too:

http://imrl.usu.edu/bush_memo_study/

It is absolutely the best analysis of the memos I have seen so far.

1. The font is a common typewriter typeface invented at the beginning of the 20th century and in continuous use until the computer replaced the typewriter. The font’s name is “Typewriter.” ...

2. It is possible to find worn and damaged characters. The top left of the “t” is clearly worn to the extent that it seldom makes an impression....

3. Seldom used characters such as numbers, capitals, and the lower case “o,” “q” and “p” (and the other less used lower case characters) show no signs of damage.

4. Overall inconsistency of the characters goes well beyond what one would expect from photocopying and digitizing and indicates that they were produced using an inconsistent (i.e., “mechanical”) process.

5. There are indications of white “blisters” cause by a character typed on paper that was deformed by the impact of a previously struck character.

---snip

There is currently outside evidence indicating that the documents are inauthentic, but none of it exists in the mechanics of documents themselves. They are completely in keeping with typewritten documents of the period in question – early 1970s. Whatever the outcome of this kafuffle, I am convinced that in the end, it will be generally recognized that the documents CBS released to the public were typed – probably on an old, military typewriter.

There is much, much more. My only quibble with the original article is that I don't believe there's enough evidence to state that it was a setup. In fact, if it were a setup I would think that a document would be used that could actually be shown to be a forgery.

Regardless of whether the documents are authentic, I think the simplest explanation for what happened is that (a) freepers and uninformed "experts" with partisan agendas made false claims that the documents could not have been authentic. (b) the media repeated these claims without verifying them. (c) The resulting furor caused CBS to reexamine the memos and uncover the fact that Burkett lied about how he got them. The Republicans shook the tree enough to cause an unrelated problem to fall out.

[Carolab]

8. Correct

their main mission was to discredit Burkett and CBS as well as to divert attention from *'s record.

I wonder whether ANYONE will bring up this new information? Would Olberman dare after taking on Faux yesterday?

[ltn72]

9. re: records

The problem is the more people hit this issue, the more the Repubs hit Kerry's Form-180 issue. Lose-lose.

[Lerkfish]

10. What issue? Bush hasn't signed it, either.

eom