Beauchamps recants fables/Kos defends Solz

Well, I guess Michael Goldfarb of National Review Online has received confirmation from the Army that Scott Thomas Beauchamps has recanted his fantabulous tales of war;

Separately, we received this statement from Major Steven F. Lamb, the deputy Public Affairs Officer for Multi National Division-Baghdad:

An investigation has been completed and the allegations made by PVT Beauchamp were found to be false. His platoon and company were interviewed and no one could substantiate the claims.

According to the military source, Beauchamp’s recantation was volunteered on the first day of the military’s investigation. So as Beauchamp was in Iraq signing an affidavit denying the truth of his stories, the New Republic was publishing a statement from him on its website on July 26, in which Beauchamp said, “I’m willing to stand by the entirety of my articles for the New Republic using my real name.”

So, I expect that any moment now, he’ll be labeled a Karl Rove plant. Probably The New Republic will be fingered in the conspiracy, as well.

All the things I want to say about Beauchamps, but I’m too much of a gentleman (and my Dad reads this sometimes) can be found here at Absolute Moral Authority (h/t to Beth at My Vast Wing Conspiracy).

An Army Lawyer speculates on the charges and punishments but he neglects my favorite; failure to repair. Everyone is guilty of that one no matter what they do.

In other drivel, the Angry Rakkasan, ( at http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/8/5/3940/86488 sorry you’ll have to copy and paste the address into your browser, I’m not linking to that drivel) three days after the incident, more than two days after the internet had been running the video (um, we know what we saw Rakkie), tells the “real story” about Solz and the sergeant he mistreated for all of the world to see. Well after the obligatory “all of you right wingers should join the military if you love the war so much” chickenhawk crap, he explains that the young buck sergeant was at the convention the day before;

The sergeant immediately zeroed in on General Clark and engaged him in a conversation.  Eventually, I noticed Clark pull the soldier aside and move away from the rest of the crowd.  I could see that the General was getting agitated.  I later learned that the soldier had been lecturing him, telling him that the U.S. military should stay in Iraq and that General Clark should support the President’s policies.

Clark is said to have told the sergeant that, while he respected the sergeant’s opinion, political activism while in uniform was both inappropriate and illegal—and to do it at the much-publicized YearlyKos Convention would put the soldier in an unnecessary and precarious legal position.  He told the sergeant firmly but politely that it would be in the soldier’s best interest to leave.  And that was the end of it until the next day.

Rakkie goes on to call the young sergeant a “troll” and ends with another “chickenhawk” rant against Michelle Malkin and Matt Drudge. Now see here’s my problem with the story; there’s nothing that says what, exactly Little Mac Clarke said to the young sergeant – only second-hand hearsay and Rakkasan’s interpretation of facial expressions.

And I don’t give a tiny rat’s ass how Rakkasan, Clarke or any other number people interpret military directives on the subject, the sergeant said nothing political while in uniform, he didn’t say that he represented any official military policy or office, and the YearlyKoz, from it’s own website;

US-based (but globally focused and inclusive) non-partisan grassroots political action community that uses the Internet and blogs as primary tools for: expressing viewpoints, building consensus, acting to change the status quo, mobilizing huge numbers of people and informing each other and the world about current events, grassroots actions, networks, meetings, policy and more.

Get that? It’s a “nonpartisan, grassroots” convention. So what did the soldier do wrong?

Solz on the other hand, was completely wrong. No military leader would degrade and threaten a subordinate in public like that. If the soldier had been more of an asshole like I’m an asshole, he’d have made Solz either file charges against him or show him in public what he’d done wrong. I’m sure dorkboy’s head would’ve exploded on camera if it’s been me. Except that I probably wouldn’t have worn my unifrom to the event.

But what choice did the sergeant have? As you’ve read for yourselves, this pussy Rakkasan trotted out the chickenhawk meme twice in his piece. Once at the beginning and once at the end – as if he has some absolute moral authority over who is allowed to criticize the Left and who isn’t. (And suggesting Matt Drudge and Michelle Malkin join the military – c’mon. All Matt Drudge did was link to the story, and I’m not sure Michelle would do her unit much good – she’s barely the size of an ammo pouch) I’m sure the young sergeant wore his uniform as insulation against that intellectually vacant charge that I’ve had thrown at me whenever one of my posts get linked up to Kos or HuffPo.

And why did it take three days for this to published? The Right had been tired of blogging about the incident by the time Rakkasan trotted out this defense. Seems to me that Kos would’ve defended itself Friday night instead of Sunday morning. That tells me that they had to recon the net to see what was being said and then manufacture a defense.

A bad defense at that – full of gaping holes.

Rick Moran at Right Wing Nut House and Pajamas Media has an interview with young man now known to be Sergeant David Aguina, age 25, US Army Reserves.

Category: Antiwar crowd, Media, Politics, Society, Terror War