[CLUE-Talk] The military takes a cue from Microsoft

[Dennis J Perkins]

> I'm sure that just about everyone on this list has heard of
> "astroturfing" -- sending out fake letters or having real people send
> form letters with exactly the same message, usually instigated by a PR
> firm, in an attempt to create the illusion of popular, grass-roots
> support. (Hence, astroturf.)
> 
> Microsoft may not have done it first, but they certainly brought big
> attention to the practice when they started doing it.
> 
> Now, the military is doing it too:
> http://www.dissociatedpress.org/article.pl?sid=03/10/11/1458202&mode=thread
> 
> They're sending out letters under various names, to "hometown"
> newspapers, that are all identical. They all end like this:
> 
> "The fruits of all our soldiers' efforts are clearly visible in the
> streets of Kirkuk today. There is very little trash in the streets, many
> more people in the markets and shops, and children have returned to
> school. This is all evidence that the work we are doing as a battalion
> and as American soldiers is bettering the lives of Kirkuk's citizens. I
> am proud of the work we are doing here in Iraq and I hope all of your
> readers are as well."
> 
> Some of the soldiers haven't even seen these letters -- some admitted to
> signing a letter like this, and some say they agree with the sentiment,
> but hadn't seen the letter previously nor had they signed it. 
> 
> When you hear about things like this, it really brings into question
> whether you can trust anything coming from the Bush administration. 
> 
> Zonker
> -- 
> Joe 'Zonker' Brockmeier
> jzb at dissociatedpress.net
> http://www.dissociatedpress.net
> http://www.corante.com/openmind
> 

I haven't trusted them for a long time.  And the abuses coming from the Patriot 
Act make me dislike them even more.  It feels like the Pentagon is in collusion 
with Bush too.  Remember some short-lived TV show where the media murdered the 
president and siezed control because they felt the country was coming apart?

Slashdot had a posting where the FBI is using the Patriot Act to make a 
journalist retain all records regarding contact with someone.  The law they are 
using pertains to ISPs.  I suppose they feel since he is an e-journalist that 
the law can apply to
him.