Fact Checking for Mother Jones

| March 6, 2009

Someone sent me an article from Mother Jones entitled “Zip it, Soldier” which celebrates the bravery of the IVAW members who go against the grain of the military. Of course, they include two of our favorites, Army Sergeant and Adam Kokesh both of whom visit here from time to time.

The author, Justine Sharrock, goes on proudly about Adam Kokesh and the way he stood up for his right to wear the uniform at protests a few years back. She also claims that Kokesh wasn’t under the jurisdiction of the UCMJ – although he had a valid military ID card in his pocket at the time. Sharrock, also fails to recognize that one reason Kokesh was called before an administrative board was because of the profanity he used in the email in response to the notification of the investigation against him.

But what made me dredge all of this ancient history up was Sharrock’s last paragraph in which she wrote;

[Kokesh] testified before Congress last May about his experience and has participated in numerous IVAW events—in uniform.

Like he was brave for continuing to wear his uniform even in front of Congress. Well, unfortunately for Ms. Sharrock, me and my camera were at the testimony, too;
DSC_0015
What military uniform is that?

Other protests she might have been talking about;
Ron Paul 060
Shoe Bush 033
DSC_0091
Oh – a hat. That must be what she’s talking about. He wore his hat without fear. At least she didn’t call him Sergeant Kokesh.

Category: Antiwar crowd, Iraq Veterans Against the War, Phony soldiers, Usual Suspects

8 Comments
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J3

Great job – of course, the delusional paranoid loons who read Mother Jones won’t be interested in the truth, but still –
I DID have a momentary smile from the last photo. Many years ago, a middle aged couple from Belarus lived next door. They were showing me pictures of their family and there was a little boy of about three, wearing a floppy fedora. So I mentioned that he was cute. The man smiled and said, “Ah, yes – that is little Jakov in a hat.”
And so is that final photo.

proof

Congratulations for getting “fact” and “Mother Jones” in the same sentence!

Justine

Hi,
I’m the journalist who wrote the article. Just saw your post—and thanks for pointing out the errors! I’m going to talk with my editor and make these changes. Since Kokesh has been at so many protests, I thought that he wore his uniform at only some, but I will obviously have to double check that.
Thanks again

-Justine

usnretwife

They sure do use the word ‘journalist’ loosely, don’t they?

Raoul

IVAW uniform is a dirty t-shirt.

Frankly Opinionated

I must be a total wingnut. Until today I have never heard of Mother Jones. I have seen a couple of issues of Mother Earth News. And for a time wrote for the “Mother Trucker News”; but Mother Jones? Never heard of that one. Learn something new every day……………
nuf sed

Ray

I’m with you Frank. None of the Left Wing whackos I’ve met used the word “Jones” after they said “Mother”

Frankly Opinionated

In re-reading the post, I noticed that this Justine said: “the way he stood up for his right to wear the uniform at protests”. What right to wear his uniform at Protests? I have never heard of that right. Perhaps he chose to be an ignorant ass and wear his uniform at a protest; and that is his right, (being an ignorant ass, I mean), but that is it. Makes me wonder If this Justine has any military knowledge at all.
Fact checker?, we don’t need no stinkin’ fact checker. We have the right to be as erroneous as we want to, we be a left wing, Koolaiders Rag. Facts are just more bumps in the road, and who likes a rough ride?
nuf sed