Comments on: A cemetery, not a “mass grave”; Update: NYT scrubs TNR editor’s “near certainty” that Thomas is a soldier; Update: Original quote restored; Update: MNF-I response added; Update: Yet another edit

By: FOB Falcon and the Soldier Calling Himself Scott Thomas from a Mother’s Perspective » Blue Star Chronicles

Sun, 12 Apr 2009 18:32:40 +0000

[...] are plenty of people on the internet taking apart Scott Thomas’ stories. I read on Hot Air earlier today that he suspects ‘Scott Thomas’ to be a Walter Mitty and that made sense [...]

By: Hot Air » Blog Archive » Breaking: Beauchamp signs military statement recanting TNR pieces

Tue, 07 Aug 2007 02:48:15 +0000

[...] I had just about lost interest in the Scott Thomas Beauchamp story, not because it’s not interesting, but because it was following the trajectory that I had come to expect circa July 24. I’d figured out that he was a real soldier in Baghdad, who was using his real experiences to fabricate stories to smear the military (the stratified children’s mass grave was really an amalgamation of a landfill on one part of FOB Falcon and a children’s cemetery that was on another part of FOB Falcon, combined into one location by the fabulist Beauchamp and then sprinkled with the grisly story of the skull crown implausibly worn inside a troop’s combat helmet, etc). I’d also decided that TNR wasn’t going to come clean, and was going to stonewall, obfuscate, misdirect and mislead, so that it could maintain a shred of credibility with its supporters on the left while slinging mud at its justified critics on the right. I figured we’d never get a satisfactory solution out of Franklin Foer, his bosses weren’t going to fire him, and I figured the Army might end up keeping its findings out of the public domain, so we’d never really have a “Wasn’t that swell!” kind of ending. The whole thing would just fizzle into yet one more left vs right fist-shaker. [...]

By: Left Flank

Left Flank — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 13:51:36 +0000

I Don’t Want to Pay for the Real Scott…

TFM tipped me about Scott Thomas Beauchamp. I’ve read enough for now. I have to admit I’ve not read as much TNR since this scandal has arisen, and I even emailed the magazine about its refund policy (thanks, TNR, at least you consistently …

By: Hot Air » Blog Archive » Scott Thomas revealed; Update: So is his blog

Hot Air » Blog Archive » Scott Thomas revealed; Update: So is his blog — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 16:00:29 +0000

[...] Update (Bryan): Not to break my arm patting myself on the back or anything, but after making the mental connection between the landfill, the children’s cemetary and Beauchamp’s stratified “mass grave” the other day, here’s what I said. I now think that what the TNR has on its hands is not a fraudulent soldier, but a Walter Mitty. He’s there, he’s bored, and he’s using his real experiences as a basis to make stuff up. [...]

By: Mojave Mark

Mojave Mark — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 00:03:52 +0000

Swinehound on July 25, 2007 at 9:35 AM

ahem… forged but accurate.

By: Fuzzilicious Thinking

Fuzzilicious Thinking — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 14:50:18 +0000

Scott Thomas and Semiotics…

The “Scott Thomas” brouhaha has been thoroughly analyzed (and largely debunked) from the military/conservative point of view, via veterans’ BS detectors. But how about the Liberal, Manuscript Reader, “Doctorer”-of-Books, and Semiotician points of …

By: Swinehound

Swinehound — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 13:35:07 +0000

I’ve solved it. Scott Thomas is really Dan Rather!

Fake but accurate!

By: BohicaTwentyTwo

BohicaTwentyTwo — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 12:47:29 +0000

I am still thinking that some soldier told some stories to some writer, who then weaved this little tale. There is some hint of underlying truth to these stories, but they way they were written betrays the author’s prejudices against the military. It also shows his lack of basic knowledge, like the square backed glock ammo. Platoon was supposed to be “semi-autobiograpgical” based on Oliver Stone’s experiences in Vietnam, but its not a true story. Its a mishmash of various stories, some truth, some based on rumor, some pure fiction. Good movie, but not truth, movie. That’s what this story reads like. Not truth, movie script.

By: BadBrad

BadBrad — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 10:04:07 +0000

I’m pretty sure they monitor all electronic communication from Iraq. The only exception might be if he is using a local national “internet cafe”. I highly doubt he is stupid enough to send it from a work or government MWR (morale, welfare, rec) computer… but we can always hope.

By: DANEgerus

DANEgerus — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 05:08:45 +0000

I just dug up this picture of Scott Thomas when he was held hostage by al-Qaeda. Who doesn't remember that? I think we all owe TNR their due.

By: Limerick

Limerick — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 04:20:05 +0000

At Presidio San Francisco in 1979 we had an underground newspaper…….it just sorta ‘appeared’ once a week at key locations……

It was called the ‘Red Revenger’…….only one ‘fact’ was ever produced…..it was copied for distribution on the Provost Marshall’s personal copier in the middle of the night. Difference is the ‘Red Revenger’ was Sad Sack. ‘Thomas’ is Jane Fonda on a AA battery.

Not that I know anything about ‘rogue’ reporting or anything.

The guy is a disgruntled ’short-timer’…..
based on what he has written he is a desk jockey, hanging out in the e-clubs and workout rooms picking up ‘facts’. It wouldn’t surprise me that he wears a pair of ‘Code Pink/KOS is my friend’ shower shoes.

By: forest

forest — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 01:42:26 +0000

You have got to be kidding me? What journalistic ethic allows for published stories to be constantly changed on the fly without disclosure? This practice must be exposed and stopped.

TheBigOldDog on July 24, 2007 at 5:20 PM

I’m completely sick of papers stealth-editing their on-line articles. I think it’s unethical – even on minor stuff. I joked about about it yesterday in another H.A. discussion and I’ll take the narcissitic step of quoting myself:

If Allah (pundit) worked for the NYT or Reuters he could just go back and stealth-edit it…

Good bloggers have more integrity and balls than the MSM. They just fess up if they make a mistake and/or eat the criticism if people don’t like what they posted. The MSM tries to hide stuff – weak.

By: TheBigOldDog

TheBigOldDog — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 01:40:19 +0000

Splunge on July 24, 2007 at 7:30 PM

Fascinating. Thanks for the link.

By: JustTruth101

JustTruth101 — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 00:58:54 +0000

I have a friend in the military that predicted how this would all play out in the soldier’s unit (if it really is a soldier in theater) when they find out who it is: he will be dishonorably discharged (as he should be – the rules are CLEAR that this is impermissible conduct: traitorous to his unit, unbecoming, aiding and abetting the enemy through propaganda op, etc.) but right after it leaks to his unit but before he is taken away by the MP’s, he will ever so gently be placed under a blanket while he gets the lies beat out of him – severely. We’ll never hear about it, of course, but it’s satisying to know he will feel some retribution for the pain he has caused.

By: baldilocks

baldilocks — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 00:56:49 +0000

Only if you are using a NIPR account from your unit – if you use your AKO (Army Knowledge Online) account, it will be a generic firstname.lastname@us.army.mil (with maybe a number or middle initial for common names.

Ah hah. Thanks for the correction.

By: major john

major john — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 00:32:32 +0000

Does the Army though have unit descriptions as part of the email contacts?
Yes (as do the other services).

baldilocks on July 24, 2007 at 3:36 PM

Only if you are using a NIPR account from your unit – if you use your AKO (Army Knowledge Online) account, it will be a generic firstname.lastname@us.army.mil (with maybe a number or middle initial for common names.

Oh, and

Killed by a roadside blog

was really quite good.

By: MikeZero

MikeZero — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 00:29:22 +0000

profitsbeard said:

…every fresh (vaguely-plausible, but decidely anti-American) tidbit is jihadi web-sited (then al-Jazeera’d) overnight into renewed fuel for Muslim Ummah outrage.

Actually, I was thinking of our esteemed colleagues over at D-Kos, DU and their ilk.

By: baldilocks

baldilocks — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 00:23:00 +0000

I found this analysis of the Scott Thomas writings fascinating. It’s by an admitted lefty who consumes massive amounts of writing for a living, and whose interest is in, to oversimplify, pattern-spotting. He thinks he’s got Thomas’ general background pegged, as deduced from his stylistic cues.

Splunge on July 24, 2007 at 7:30 PM

As the man, said “read the whole thing.”

By: georgej

georgej — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 23:59:49 +0000

There is no “Walter Mitty” REMF-type here. There isn’t even a soldier’s story, here. I’m calling BS on this whole story.

This is, I have no doubt, a quack story being told by the same genocide-loving, liberal, monsterous allies of Pol Pot,

The rag that allowed Glass to run as long as he did is hoping to get America to fall for their BS line. Why? It makes the military look bad. It puts pressure to cut and run. And it’s another shot at Bush.

TNR is a PROVEN lie teller and supporter of mass murder. No amount of spin from the NYTimes changes this.

By: Pablo

Pablo — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 23:55:06 +0000

Splunge, that is an excellent piece. Thanks.

By: Attila (Pillage Idiot)

Attila (Pillage Idiot) — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 23:41:08 +0000

Anyone going to answer that or have the two sides reached a mutually satisfactory agreement?

I’m “absolutely certain” no one will answer that.

By: profitsbeard

profitsbeard — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 23:32:09 +0000

Freelancer-

Our enemies don’t need ANY truth to hate us…

True, but every fresh (vaguely-plausible, but decidely anti-American) tidbit is jihadi web-sited (then al-Jazeera’d) overnight into renewed fuel for Muslim Ummah outrage.

Best to let them make up their own b.s. than give them any freebies.

By: Splunge

Splunge — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 23:30:25 +0000

I found this analysis of the Scott Thomas writings fascinating. It's by an admitted lefty who consumes massive amounts of writing for a living, and whose interest is in, to oversimplify, pattern-spotting. He thinks he's got Thomas' general background pegged, as deduced from his stylistic cues.

By: Freelancer

Freelancer — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 23:13:45 +0000

The fact that there is any truth to this at all is troubling to me. A little truth is all our enemies need.

MikeZero on July 24, 2007 at 2:03 PM

Ahh, chill out. The “kernel” of truth is nothing more than that a children’s cemetery existed and was unearthed during the preparation of an FOB, in the approximate location of the bogus story. That doesn’t make any of the questionable behavior represented by the Scott Thomas nutbag’s story any closer to real.

And our enemies don’t need ANY truth to hate us, or hadn’t you noticed?

By: see-dubya

see-dubya — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 22:58:36 +0000

Ah, so Bryan thinks it’s more like a case of Spc. Jeff “Whiskey Pete” Engelhardt. “Transcript” here, sorry about the weird characters.

There were two possibilities with Jamil Hussein as well: that he was a figment of the AP’s imagination, or that he was an actual Iraqi cop who exaggerated everything and gave dubious reports without any indication of how he might possibly have known all the things he claimed.

I think we’ll probably find Scott Thomas is a real dude in Iraq, and one with a flair for drama.