[opendtv] Re: SINCLAIR TO AIR "A POW STORY: POLITICS, PRESSUREANDTHE MEDIA"

  • From: Craig Birkmaier <craig@xxxxxxxxx>
  • To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Fri, 22 Oct 2004 09:27:53 -0400

At 1:25 PM -0400 10/21/04, Bob Miller wrote:
>Well Craig I would like to see one where the lack of a waiting list can
>be verified.

Your response is a classic example of how the media can spread 
disinformation simply by proliferating a story that is not "exactly" 
true.
As I stated yesterday there WERE waiting lists for all national guard 
units, but not necessarily for pilots, who were subject to higher 
entrance requirements and in short supply because of the war.

Here is one source I found to verify this:

http://www.chronwatch.com/content/contentDisplay.asp?aid=9816

Answer to CBS
Written by Gordon Bloyer
Monday, September 20, 2004


       Dan Rather and CBS News has claimed that no one has rebutted 
their story that President Bush entered the Texas Air National Guard 
by using influence.  They also claim that President Bush can't prove 
he fulfilled his commitment in the Guard. Both of these claims are 
NONSENSE and LIES.  The news media purposely avoid interviewing the 
people who know the truth.  I have previously answered all the 
questions about President Bush's Guard service.  Since then some new 
evidence has also emerged that refutes the CBS story.

       CBS claims that President Bush bypassing several hundred men on 
a waiting list when he entered the Guard.  FALSE.  Three Guard 
officers have come forward to say that there was NO waiting list for 
pilots.  It is up to CBS to prove that these officers are lying.  Why 
can't CBS produce at least one man who says he was on a WAITING LIST 
to be a pilot and Bush bypassed him.  THERE WAS NO WAITING LIST FOR 
PILOTS.

       Col. Lively said this to E. D. Hill on Fox News:

     E.D. Hill:  ''One of the other claims is that President Bush, 
because of his connections, was able in essence to jump ahead of 
hundreds of applicants.  Now, you were the head of the Texas Air 
National Guard at that time.  Did a significant number of people meet 
the requirements for the physical, educational, and security needs to 
even apply for the specific position that President Bush took?''

     Lively: ''No, well actually, I wasn't the head of the Air 
National Guard, but I was the head of operations.  I was director of 
operations, and I oversaw and inspected all the units in Texas, flew 
with them, and the--there was no waiting list for this.  See, this is 
often confused with another thing, which was a waiting list to simply 
enlist in the Guard and do your service there rather than the regular 
military, and there were lots of people on those waiting lists. but 
those people weren't qualified to go to pilot training school.

Col. Walter Staudt told ABC News the following:

     Staudt told ABC that during his Guard service he never tried to 
influence Killian or other Guardsmen, adding that he also never came 
under pressure to accept Bush.

     ''No one called me about taking George Bush into the Air National 
Guard,'' he said.  ''It was my decision.  I swore him in.  I never 
heard anything from anybody.''  Staudt told ABC he came forward 
because he saw erroneous reports on television. Bush did not use 
political influence to get into the Air National Guard, he asserted. 
''I don't know how they would know that, because I was the one who 
did it and I was the one who was there, and I didn't talk to any of 
them.''  Staudt said he was in charge of deciding which pilots to 
accept.

       Will CBS call Col. Staudt a liar?  Col. Campenni has said the 
same thing on numerous occasions.  Will CBS call him a liar?  It is 
up to CBS to prove that Col. Staudt is lying.

        As to charges that President Bush did not fulfill his duty, 
there are several publications that have compiled the points he 
earned during his enlistment, and they all come up with enough points 
to fulfill his service. It is up to CBS to prove that Bush did NOT 
get enough points to meet his commitment.

       According to Byron York in The Hill:

     After training, Bush kept flying, racking up hundreds of hours in 
F-102 jets.  As he did, he accumulated points toward his National 
Guard service requirements.  At the time, guardsmen were required to 
accumulate a minimum of 50 points to meet their yearly obligation. 
According to records released earlier this year, Bush earned 253 
points in his first year, May 1968 to May 1969 (since he joined in 
May 1968, his service thereafter was measured on a May-to-May basis). 
Bush earned 340 points in 1969-1970. He earned 137 points in 
1970-1971.  And he earned 112 points in 1971-1972.  The numbers 
indicate that in his first four years, Bush not only showed up, he 
showed up a lot.

     So Bush stopped flying.  From May 1972 to May 1973, he earned 
just 56 points-- not much, but enough to meet his requirement.  Then, 
in 1973, as Bush made plans to leave the Guard and go to Harvard 
Business School, he again started showing up frequently.  In June and 
July of 1973, he accumulated 56 points, enough to meet the minimum 
requirement for the 1973-1974 year.  Then, at his request, he was 
given permission to go.  Bush received an honorable discharge after 
serving five years, four months and five days of his original 
six-year commitment.  By that time, however, he had accumulated 
enough points in each year to cover six years of service.

       What evidence does CBS have that this is not true?  It is up to 
CBS to PROVE that this is not true.

       In addition to these facts, there are six people that have come 
forward to say they saw President Bush in Alabama.  There are more 
and more facts that prove President Bush did NOT receive favorable 
treatment to get into the Guard and that he completed his service.

About the Writer: Gordon Bloyer has been called a Renaissance man by 
Ronn Owens of KGO radio in San Francisco. Rush Limbaugh read from a 
letter by Gordon on his national radio show. President Ronald Reagan 
invited Gordon to the White House to thank him for his support. He 
has appeared on numerous radio and television shows. The Gordon 
Bloyer Show can be seen at http://gordonbloyershow.com .


Here is another source:

http://www.militarycity.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1-AIRPAPER-357916

And another:

http://www.chronicle-tribune.com/news/stories/20041002/opinion/1341875.html

There was no waiting list for pilots at this time. Texas Air National 
Guard was even advertising for well-qualified pilots in 1968.


So it all comes down to a simple fact that is being ignored in order 
to keep this story alive. Both sides cannot be correct. There either 
was or was not a waiting list for pilots.

Let's be clear about something here. Both Bush and Kerry were 
privileged kids. Both obviously pulled strings while they were in the 
military. But it is Kerry that is running on his "war hero" record. 
This leaves him open and fair game to the attention he is now 
receiving about his actions AFTER his service in VietNam.

But the media is going out its way to suppress any discussions or 
news about those activities. They have become the "Third Rail" of 
this campaign.

Regards
Craig


 
 
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