« The Country Quiz | Main | Comic strip divination »
June 21, 2003
Operation Best Do What We Tell You
The Orange County Weekly has a rather interesting article today about how Donald Rumsfeld's staff has been calling cities that have applied for fireworks permits to suggest to them how best to include tributes to our troops in the festivities. Note - it is Rumsfeld's staff that is calling the cities - the cities have not requested assistance. No, our Secretary of Defense has decided that his staff needs to spend its time making sure that cities get their Fourth of July tributes "right" - at least according to what he consder's "right".
Maybe Rumsfeld’s just looking out for his boys, helping to make sure the troops get the thanks they deserve. But it’s not as if our servicemen aren’t already swamped in bunting, praise and patriotic country songs. Do they really need Washington to orchestrate the public mood for them?Gee. I wonder why they might think they need to do that? Perhaps because people are starting to get a bit upset about having been sold the war under what, right now, at least, appear to be false pretenses?Apparently. The project even has a name: Operation Tribute to Freedom, putatively overseen by Air Force general Richard B. Myer. Check out the website at www.defendamerica.mil/otf/photos/index.html. Therein, it is claimed that Pentagon officials had been "inundated" with requests from communities asking how they could show support for the troops. Another press release remarks on the "spontaneous" displays of support for the military. And there doubtless have been many.
So why, then, does the Department of Defense deem it necessary to cold-call cities to sell them on a military salute?
"It seemed pretty obvious they were just trying to manufacture more public support for their war," said the city official.
I have a feeling - and I hope I'm right about this - that it's going to take more than a few stratigically designed "Oooohs" and "Aaaaahs" to get people to forget about the questions that have been raised lately in regards to why we went to war in the first place. It's too bad for them that some of us don't get distracted nearly as easily as we used to.
[Link via Eschaton]
Posted by thorswitch at June 21, 2003 08:53 AM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.differentstrings.info/mt/mt-tb-ds.cgi/844
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Operation Best Do What We Tell You:
» More Right-Wing Manipulation from Shock and Awe
A couple days ago I told you about apparent efforts to set Dean and Clark supporters against each other. Now, Nathan Newman tells us about a Freeper attempt to stuff the ballot box in the Move On.org primary: The big [Read More]
Tracked on June 21, 2003 01:31 PM
Comments
Let's see if we can figure out some way to drive more pets and PTSD vets under the bed.
Posted by: Christopher Key at June 21, 2003 02:50 PM
Hey Lady, (this isn't on subject) Just wanted you to know that one of your 'hits' was me. I'm just wandering the 'blogs by pagans' ring.
:) Hope things are going well for you.
Posted by: witchy at June 21, 2003 03:23 PM
Good thing that I like to watch all the fireworks displays from a distance. Never have to listen to all the propaganda that way.
Posted by: Joel at June 22, 2003 11:31 AM