Almost prophetically, I published a diary entry called Zarqawi Jumps the Shark just one night before the Washington Post revealed that Zarqawi's identity was used as part of an elaborate PsyOp (Psychological Operation) by the Pentagon.
Now, I present the second installment in the two part series...
Late last night, there was confirmation from Washington Post that identity of Zarqawi was indeed used for a Psyop by the US Military.
A few days prior to publishing Zarqawi Jumps the Shark, I had published Zarqawi is a Hoax for the first time on Daily Kos.
How did I know it was a hoax?
I'm not a Arabic speaker and Middle-East expert like
Juan Cole
I'm not a weapons inspector and I've never been to Iraq like
Scott Ritter
I've never been to Pakistan like
Pepe Escobar of Asia Times
I have no access to scoops from inside the military like
Washington Post
I knew it because there were GOP talking points embedded in the rhetoric of the audio clips alledgely released by Zarqawi.
Secondly, I knew it because Zarqawi only released audio, never video, and every mention of Zarqawi allegedly by Bin Laden or Zawahiri was also audio or text.
Who else knew? What details? How long ago?
Juan Cole knew the Zawahiri Letter was fake. It was so obvious, I came to this conclusion independently of and prior to reading Juan Cole. Reading his Informed Comment further strengthened my conviction that the letter was fake.
Juan Cole
Zawahiri Letter to Zarqawi: A Shiite Forgery?
Friday, October 14, 2005
Scott Ritter knew Zarqawi was a "red herring" being used to mislead the US public about the character of the Iraqi "insurgency".
Scott Ritter on Al Jazeera
The risks of the al-Zarqawi myth
Friday 07 January 2005
Pepe Escobar recalls that the Zarqawi psyop began before the war started. Pepe Escobar reminds us that Colin Powell first used the Zarqawi Myth to make his case for the invasion of Iraq.
Pepe Escobar
Zarqawi - Bush's man for all seasons
February 2004
Jennifer Schultz knew.
Claim: U.S. Created al-Zarqawi Myth
Washington (UPI) Nov 10, 2005
What's true and what is misleading in the Washington Post article?
We've made a major step forward with the news from Washington Post, but the perception management by the corporate media still continues. This article reveals a lot, but it doesn't convey an entirely plausible narrative on certain aspects of this case.
Here I challenge specific claims by Army Col. James A. Treadwell in the Washington Post article.
From the Washington Post article:
"Some senior intelligence officers believe Zarqawi's role may have been overemphasized by the propaganda campaign, which has included leaflets, radio and television broadcasts, Internet postings and at least one leak to an American journalist."
"U.S. psychological operations soldiers produced a video disc that not only was widely disseminated inside Iraq, but also was 'seen on Fox News.'"
Washington Post doesn't specifically mention the audio clips. The audio clips, the Zawahiri/Zarqawi letter, and Bush's speeches are the reason I concluded it was a PsyOp.
From the Washington Post article:
"U.S. military policy is not to aim psychological operations at Americans, said Army Col. James A. Treadwell, who commanded the U.S. military psyops unit in Iraq in 2003. "It is ingrained in U.S.: You don't psyop Americans. We just don't do it," said Treadwell."
"With satellite television, e-mail and the Internet, it is impossible to prevent some carryover from propaganda campaigns overseas into the U.S. media, said Treadwell, who is now director of a new project at the U.S. Special Operations Command that focuses on "trans-regional" media issues. Such carryover is "not blowback, it's bleed-over," he said. 'There's always going to be a certain amount of bleed-over with the global information environment.'"
"The military's propaganda program largely has been aimed at Iraqis, but seems to have spilled over into the U.S. media. One briefing slide about U.S. "strategic communications" in Iraq, prepared for Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the top U.S. commander in Iraq, describes the "home audience" as one of six major targets of the American side of the war."
I challenge the assertion that it was "bleed-over".
I assert that it was a primarily a domestic PsyOp campaign.
This PsyOps campaign was obviously meant for the domestic audience because Bush and his friends kept hammering away on these talking points when a fake Zarqawi audio clip was released, each time, making references to the fake audio clips.
The denials from Army Col. James A. Treadwell just don't satisfy a reasonable observer.
What unique findings have I presented?
Hear me now and believe me later:
- Most if not all Zarqawi audio is fake.
- Remember the "October Suprise" audio clip allegedly from Bin Laden, in which he endorses John Kerry, right before the election?
- Remember the audio clip allegedly from Bin Laden, in which he claims Zarqawi and gives an endorsement of the Book Rogue State?
Both Bin Laden audio clips FAKE, obviously!
Now where's my Peabody Award?
On a side note,
I'd like to give a shout out to DHinMI who wrote these comments in response to my diary entry Zarqawi Jumps the Shark:
"Thus, to argue that Zarqawi is a creation of DC spooks ... [blah blah blah]... is preposterous."
"Some people have been saying all along that Zarqawi was a hoax. Some people also say Bin Laden is a hoax, that fluouride saps our nations precious bodily fluids, and that the moonshot was filmed on a Hollywood soundstage."
"Don't Fucking Lie, OK?"
"So, I'll apologize for accusing you of lying if in fact you're just too dumb to have ever noticed any press reports about Zarqawi."
"Jeeze, the more you type, the clearer it is that you really don't know much. Or, to quote you, 'were you paying attention to that?'"
To DHinMI , I responded with this:
"I guess you're a bit bent that you've been wasting a lot of keystrokes on Zarqawi as if he were alive."
"You disagree with 83% of the Kossacks who answered my poll and who believe Zarqawi is a hoax."