MoveOn.org Didn't Invent BetrayUs- The Troops Did!

[kpete]

MoveOn.org Didn't Invent BetrayUs- The Troops Did!

.....

.....the origins of the nickname "Betrayus".

Many people are falsely assuming that "Betrayus" was a clever rhyme made up by Moveon.org for the New York Times ad. Which I think is a key assumption for this ad controversy to work for the republicans.

And that assumption is false. The nickname did not originate with Moveon.org.

I clearly remember reading Petraeus's nickname on various military forums/comment threads over two years ago. I remember it so because I thought it was very clever and suitable nickname. In the past couple of months, I have also started seeing the nickname used on progressive blogs and comments.

.....................

Here's a comment from 2005:

FromBLACKFIVE: Generals of yesterday and today
http://www.blackfive.net/main/2005/11/generals_of_yes.html

I don't know GEN Petraeus personally...but when I was in the "Devil Brigade" folks called him "Colonel Betrayus". He came up with things like the "Devil button" (button your BDU collar up to the top when on jumps) and the "Devil grip" (special name for keeping your trigger finger out of the trigger well) which sounded hokey to most of the troops at the time.

Can any other All American paratroopers out there expand on my comment?

Posted by: TBone | November 19, 2005 at 10:52 AM

..............

Update: Terre in the comments has a great find:

From the Times Online

Americans doubt ‘General Betraeus’ over troop surge (8/19/07):

AFTER being hailed as King David, the potential saviour of Iraq, the US commander General David Petraeus is facing a backlash in advance of his report to Congress in September on the progress of America’s troop surge.

Critics, including one recently retired general, are privately calling him "General Betraeus" on the grounds that he is too ambitious to deliver a balanced report on the war.

Lawrence Korb, a defence official under Ronald Reagan who is now at the Center for American Progress, a Democratic think tank, said Petraeus was regarded as "the most political general since General (Douglas) Mac-Arthur", a reference to the second world war hero who was touted as a possible president.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article2284289.ece?Submitted=true

and more at:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/9/18/215826/698

[The Vinyl Ripper]

1. Here you go..

http://balkin.blogspot.com/2007_01_07_balkin_archive.html

Incidentally, I offer the following sidenote about General Petraeus, by almost all accounts an enormously accomplished man: A student of mine at the UT Law School, who had had combat experience in both Afghanistan and Iraq, referred to him as "General Betrayus" because of what was thought to be his inordinate interest in good publicity (and presumed self-promotion) rather than concern for his troops. I have no idea whether this is fair, but I do know that this is what my sober and thoughtful student told me.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

2. Re Korb talking about Patraeus being the most political general.. I heard Patraeus a few months

back and couldn't believe the political rhetoric he was spewing.

Meanwhile! Kpete!!! Welcome back!!! You've been missed!!!!! :) :hi:

[Skittles]

36. I Googled Patraeus when I first heard his name

did not take long to find he is a repuke whore who serves bush and not the American people

[mmonk]

3. Excellent work.

[Justice]

4. Pleased to be 5th recommend! This is an extremely important find

The republicans are hammering Democrats with this ad over and over. This information needs to get to the Democratic Presidential Candidates.

A RW columnist in Today's Globe focuses his column on the ad - and how all the presidential candidates are responding to it. I'd love for all of them to be able to point to the origins of the nickname. Also, I heard on the radio yesterday that an FEC complaint was filed against the NYT and MoveOn for the ad. Knowing where the name came from originally changes the complexion of the entire situation.

Here is what McCain said about the Ad and the Dem's response:

"If you are not tough enough to repudiate a scurrilous, outrageous ad such as that, then I don't know how you are tough enough to be president of the United States." So said an indignant Senator John McCain the other day. You don't have to be a Republican to feel the same way."

Read the column and see how much they plan to hammer Democrats with the ad. We've got to take back the discussion.

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/09/19/pandering_on_the_left/

Taking McCain's words, I'd love to say to Rudy, Mitt, Fred and the lot of them:
If you were not tough enough to sign up or not avoid the Vietnam draft for military duty yourself, I don't know how you are tough enough to be president of the United States." So said an indignant the other day. You don't have to be a Democrat to feel the same way."


Edit to correct typo

[populistdriven]

5. k&r!

[progressoid]

6. Hmm, How come I didn't see this on CNN?

Oh.

Never mind.

[fenriswolf]

7. i can attest

I can attest with that, we were calling him that before the war, I was with the 101st airbourne before iraq started and we started calling him that the day we had the base welcome him with the initiation ceremony. I called him that then and I call him that now because he is a syncophatic little twit, actually now that i think of it when i was in basic we were visited by some four star and I think i saw him their as well as his secratary.

[arendt]

15. Welcome to DU, fenriswolf...

Thanks for your first-hand report. I love the internet. It so blows away
the corporate media. Quite a background, airbourne.

What's your status? Are you up for recall, re-posting to Iraq?

arendt

[fenriswolf]

17. I am IRR (inactive reserve)

I joined in august of 00' and i am out of IRR in aug 08' i will tell you though if they try to call me back up i'm bringing my best friend and lying through my teeth trying to convince them i'm gay.

[me b zola]

8. Clearly the Dems should apologize for the troops who have called him Betray-us

And clearly those troops acted like children with their name calling, they make us all look bad.


















This is of course :sarcasm:

[Poiuyt]

9. Kick

[me b zola]

10. LOL, Richardson was just on with Wolfie

Wolf lead with the flap over the Move-On ad and Richardson said that Move-On was wrong to say what they did.



:rofl:

[Just-plain-Kathy]

37. Yesterday I got an e-mail from Richardson's campaign...

Here's a taste of what it said...

...."Please stand with me again today by making your special contribution of $50 or more to my campaign. I'll use your contribution to help in our efforts to communicate my Richardson Plan for ending the Iraq war and bringing all our troops home."


I e-mailed it back changing the subject line to...

You don't need $50 to "communicate"...what a con artist...end the war and then I'll help you.

[MiniMe]

11. I remember it being used here when they had the confirmation hearings.

[The Count]

12. I knew I heard that before! Thanks!

[Tunkamerica]

13. anyone who heard his name called him that

it's an unfortunate name for a general.

[fenriswolf]

20. lol

funny story we used to have a drill instructor named srg faggert, no joke and it was kinda funny cause he was kindof an a******. well anyways one day we found out his first name and it was..........KIMBERLY. could not take him seriously after that.

[Tunkamerica]

31. HA!

I might be immature, but I think that's pretty funny.

My granddad was a drill sergeant after WWII.

[MethuenProgressive]

14. not surprised n/t

[Jed Dilligan]

16. I had this feeling that was the case

It sounds like military black humor

[Disturbed]

18. Dems that say it was wrong for Move On to question are

wrong. Move On didn't call him Betrayus. They asked a question. That question has now been answered. Yes, he is Gen. Betrayus. He is an ass kissing, chicken shit, just like his boss Adm. Fallon described his as being.

[sailor65]

24. You do realize

that's a lie, right?

[goodgd_yall]

19. I'm not surprised at all

that BetrayUs has an earlier origin than just these past weeks. It's easy to come up with the clever little play on his name. Even when you say "Petraeus" it sounds like "BetrayUs."

[Solly Mack]

21. true - long before the add - I heard it used

and I live on an army post

[KamaAina]

22. Why do repukes hate the troops so much?

Just sayin'.

[ChiciB1]

23. Anyone Around During Viet Nam & Can Stand To Tell The Truth

SHOULD know that it was the "troops" who FIRST began the uprising. Being drafted really hurt many, but as things started going down hill, the soldiers started a thing called "fragging" which if you don't know, was a tactic where the "grunts" actually started throwing grenades at their Officers.

I was an army brat back then and my father was stationed at Ft. Hood, TX, home of the 1st AND 2nd AD (Armored Division)! A very large Army post with the largest group of soldiers in the country at the time. I remember well how "the soldiers" felt because my father used to invite them home to our house on the week-ends! This was at a time before it got REALLY bad and even then they "knew" something!

Soon the town began to see Demonstrations by the soldiers against the war and Jane Fonda even came there! At that time, Jane Fonda was someone they respected. Today, as time has passed, I know that many HUGE lies have been told about what REALLY happened! Do we NEVER learn ANY lessons???

But now, with the people running the country, Repukes curry FEAR all the time, and the Democrats are AFRAID to DO ANYTHING for FEAR of any back-lash!!

It SUCKS!!!

[TahitiNut]

30. Fraggings have been done in every war we've been in. (Probably other countries, too.)

The notion they were 'invented' during the Viet Nam War is sheer revisionism.

Officers (and NCOs) that're more of a danger to their own troops, usually due to reckless, arrogant ineptitude, have always (afaik) gotten this treatment ... when the chain of command didn't act to relieve them.

'Life' in a combat zone is brutal.

[ChiciB1]

41. Sorry... Had To Go Out Of Town Today... But I Do Admit That I Was

unaware that fragging was done in every war. My knowledge is obviously limited because of my "own" experience, but I do thank you for providing me with your perspective. I've always be one of those people who gets up every day thinking that I have something to learn each day.

There have been times when I'm torn between watching documentaries from WWII and Viet Nam and choose the latter. Trying to keep abreast of all the minute by minute information of today leaves little time to delve into the past. Plus taking care of a family and my mother-in-law who has Alzheimer's.

But thank you, anyway... my father never talked much about WWII even though he did get wounded then.

[Cha]

25. Stick that in cornyn pipe and

let him smoke that instead of that other stuff he's got a hold of.

[CoffeeCat]

26. I said it on Feb 7, 2007...

I shoulda trademarked it! I'd be rich, I tell you! :)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=148888

[spag68]

27. Wasn't he the one in charge of training the Iraqi troops?

That job went really well didn't it? Methinks that he is an ass-kisser and climes over others to get "the job"Now we have to listen for our scalps to be taken,this admination has been one screw-upafter another. impeachment and trial is too good for thesepolitical cowards. Line bush and his choir boy cowards Cheney.Addington,Ari FliesherALberto and Scooter.Give then an M-16 and a senior citizen and send them ouy to find BinLauden. I am 65 and i'ld jump at the chanse,althoughI could not rule ouy fraggin SPAGS EM2USN59 to62 I wasn't there, but I have heard this petraeus would not have lasted in the nam war. He may have real soldier skills,but alnost 4years and honestly where are all the trained soldiers that are readyto go.renenber two years and verry little to show for itAny way {
petraus so failled at organixing.

[PianoBlack]

28. NOW this...I like

[EFerrari]

29. You can't make this stuff up. Good for them. n/t

[leveymg]

32. MoveOn should have made that point earlier -

like in the original newspaper ad.

Would've saved a lot of grief, and pulled the talking points out from under the RWNM.

Actually, I'm sure the General's been called that and a lot worse.

[B Calm]

34. Hopefully they will learn

[Gman]

33. We should stop defending this

as there is nothing wrong with it. And, the polls didn't shift one bit after the dog and pony show last week.

If you feel you must tell anyone anything, tell them about Betrayus being an "ass-kissing little chickenshit". I think that story alone reveals volumes more about Betrayus than MoveOn's ad.

[Eagle_Eye]

35. I just want to thank MoveOn.org for bringing this to the forefront

They had the courage to say what other people were thinking and what the republicans know is true.

They have hit a raw nerve in the Bush Administration, and we all should take note. We can see outright political manipulation of the military by the republicans strictly for political gain of the republicans.

MoveOn.org is taking the slings and arrows for bringing this to national attention. We should pay them back by continuing to press this issue until the republicans are voted out of office and the Democrats can fix this mess.

Thank you MoveOn!

[MsMagnificent]

38. A LONG time ago

American Servicepeople christened him with that!

Oh, but he MSM won't let THAT be known! How else would they portray them as mostly upstanding, loyal Repukelicon and still exhort us to "Support" them
--in their own, special, narrow idiom, that is. :eyes:

[Macchendra]

39. I don't care if it was Johnny Cochran...

Remember the scorn that "If the glove doesn't fit, you must acquit." generated? The use of BetrayUs was very ill conceived.

[Junkdrawer]

40. .