Are the editors of The Cincinnati Post illiterate? Incredible as it may seem, they are still discussing the “Bush National Guard Documents” proffered by “Sixty Minutes” as if there were no forgery allegations against them. And their article is datelined today?! Anyone who subscribes to that newspaper should ask for their money back.
It’s not entirely fresh information that President Bush skipped a 1972 medical exam needed if he was to keep flying fighter jets for the Texas Air National Guard, but CBS’ “60 Minutes” has turned the heat up on this skillet.
The White House had previously acknowledged that Bush had his flight credentials stripped because of failure to take the exam. What’s new in the documents CBS has obtained is information that he had a direct order to show up — and just plain did not.
Other documents make it sound as if there were efforts from on high to have Bush’s superiors do unearned favors for the young man.
None of this reflects well on Bush, and those opposed to his re-election say the evidence is mounting about his character flaws.
It will be interesting to see how long the buffoons at The Cincinnati Post leave this up on their website. (On second thought, it’s not quite funny enough to be The Onion. It needs a little tweaking.)
UPDATE: Oops… now it’s Time Magazine that’s gone in competition with The Onion. I knew the newsweeklies were in trouble in the Internet Age but…
MORE: Five hours later and the comedy team at The Cincinnati Post still has their SNL audition up. Time for a rewrite.
EVEN MORE: Another SMASH VICTORY for the blogosphere. The Cincy Post has taken down their silly editorial.
Like John Edwards on Friday (when he challenge the President to discuss these fake memos), The Cincinnati Post didn’t get the memo from the DNC not to take the memo at face value. They also were rather busy this weekend watching NFL, so they didn’t catch the developements…
WoW.
I am rather embarrassed by the Post….but to be fair they are known in Cincy as the red-headed stepchild of papers. The Enquirer is much better, although I have to admit I haven’t checked their site for this info.
As for Cincy itself….we always lagged behind the current cycle no matter what it is (fashion, news, conventional wisdom). So it doesn’t surprise me.
I believe it was Mark Twain who said: “When the end of the world comes, I want to be in Cincinnati because it’s always twenty years behind the times.”
The article as a whole may not be up to Onion standards, but I think the sentence “It’s not entirely fresh information that President Bush skipped a 1972 medical exam needed if he was to keep flying fighter jets for the Texas Air National Guard, but CBS’ “60 Minutes” has turned the heat up on this skillet” deserves an honorable mention in The Annals of the Unintentionally Hiliarious (a publication I just invented).
I had the misfortune of living in Cincinnati for a couple of years. Don’t waste your time trying it, and don’t waste your time reading their papers.
Just across the river from downtown Cincy is Covington Kentucky. On a visit there, I talked to a lady who was very helpful to me: “You’re the first person in 6 months who’s had a civil word to say.” I said.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with those people over there.” she said, “I just don’t cross the river.”
Great work lately, Roger, and you’ve really stimulated a swarm of good commenters. I was unable to get through China’s firewall via Typekey until today….dunno what that’s about.
We now know where Les Nessman went when “WKRP in Cincinnati” closed shop.
No matter the little bugger in a bubble at the Cincinnati Post trying to make a point for the team, I trust headlines will soon read mini-Moore Rather has been canned. Do I trust too much?
If I may ask a question, what is The Onion?
The Onion is America’s Finest News Source™.
I used to think they were joking about that…
Mark Poling様,
Thanks for the link. Now I understand, but it took me a minute (I must confess)–The Onion is a news parody outfit! Of course the rest of the world’s Cincinnati Post-like press won’t understand this and will use it as source. If they haven’t already. Heck they use CBS without a second thought.
Mongai
It occurs to me that I haven’t yet seen anyone come forward with other memos written by Killian who’s provenance can be firmly established – say something in the posession of his family or still in military records – that was also typed in the manner of these memos. If you could find something (preferably a lot of somethings) that looks the same bearing his signature, that would indicate something. Likewise, if none of them use this typeface, that would also indicate something. Or are these the only memos the fellow ever wrote…?
Solomon, that’s because you’re not paying attention. Search for my name here in Roger’s blog and you’ll find a bunch of links.
You may be on to something there!
C’mon, Roger, DNC Productions is just a little slow in getting script revisions out to some MSM bit players. Shoot, you’re a script writer, have a little sympathy, I mean this thing was never going to get to Broadway anyway. Look who they cast in the lead. A has been who’s been over the hill for 10 years. Diva Dan can barely read the part with the DNC script in hand but at least he didn’t write it. The Cincinnati Post and TIME are just spear carriers in the DNC/MSM chorus. You can’t blame them for a stupid idea being poorly executed. It’s not like they write it. They just publish it.
Roger,
The Cincy link has been 404 for the last couple of hours. Thanks for the excerpt.
My nightmare? What if the forgers had taken the extra five minutes to locate an actual typewriter? This story, with obvious forgeries, continues to have legs. Selectric-typed hoaxes (heck, any typewriter)? I don’t think talk radio or the blogosphere could have shouted it down.
Nopundit,
It wouldn’t have even been necessary to use a typewriter. Simply selecting a typewriter-like font (Courier New) and NOT using autocentering and taking 10 extra seconds to fight off superscripts would have put them under the radar screen and I doubt anyone would have said boo.
The records of many of the fighter pilots in th Battle of Britain would not stand such puritanical scrutiny,yet no one can gainsay their valour,why expect those of later generations to be any different? If one was never young and wild one was never young,it is better to have a man in charge who got over the foibles and follies of youth at the approprate time than one who never grew up.
Incidentally,whilst he is an important man now, President Bush, at the time of his service,was just one of many thousands of young people in the armed forces,his records would have as much significance as an old utility bill,why would his commanding officer keep them when he retired,anyone got the phone bill from 1972?
What continues to amuse me is the notion that Bush’s ANG service matters a whit to the American people. There are two questions that voters are asking themselves:
1. Has George W. Bush done a good enough job as President to deserve reelection?
2. If not, is Kerry an acceptable substitute?
The ANG story has nothing to do with either question. On the other hand, the second question allows in just about anything from Kerry’s past. May not seem fair, but that’s life for you.
“The page you are looking for might have been removed,
had its name changed, or is temporarily unavailable.”
Or it might have been run over by blogospheroids!?!
“What is best in life: Crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of the journalist girlie-men!!!” — Conan “Jammies” Barbarian
Hey, here’s a screen shot I took of the piece yesterday. I figured it would get yanked down pretty quickly:
http://www.pixeltrip.com/whoknew/images/early_bird_cincinnati.gif
Finally the Post gets on the grovel train, from today’s Post:
http://www.cincypost.com/2004/09/24/editb092404.html
“The Post’s editorial page was embarrassed by this, in as much as we published an editorial Sept. 13 asserting that the CBS report did not reflect well on Bush and that it provided ammunition to those who say “the evidence is mounting about his character flaws.” We compounded the damage by failing to note that questions about the authenticity of the CBS documents had been raised.
In a speech Wednesday at Vanderbilt University, according to the AP, USA Today’s editor, Ken Paulson, said the entire news industry will suffer damage to its credibility because of the CBS story. It’s an astute observation — one, we promise, that is not lost on us here at The Post.
Publication Date: 09-24-2004