Reply #5: Those letters weren't written to families...

[BrotherBuzz]

they were part of an astroturf LTTE scam...

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/1011-08.htm

Published on Saturday, October 11, 2003 by The Olympian (Olympia, Washington)

Newspapers Around US Get Identical Missives from Iraq

by Ledyard King, Gannett News Service

WASHINGTON -- Letters from hometown soldiers describing their successes rebuilding Iraq have been appearing in newspapers across the country as U.S. public opinion on the mission sours.

And all the letters are the same.

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And here's a column written by one of our fellow DUers (a good read)

http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2003/10/17/editorial/rich_lewis/lewis01.txt


Faked letters typify approach to war

By Rich Lewis, October 16, 2003

I am well past the point of being surprised at government dishonesty. Almost every president in my lifetime has lied outright about matters large (Johnson, Nixon, Reagan) or small (Clinton).

Still, the present administration's disregard for the truth is astonishing.

The latest incident is especially infuriating to an old newsman like me.

I learned this week that newspapers across the country had received 500 letters praising the success of the American occupation of Iraq. Every letter was signed by a different soldier.

The problem is that every letter was exactly the same.

The reason, of course, is that the soldiers did not write the letters and some didn't know their names had been affixed to them.

The letters - or letter, since there was actually only one - was written by the staff of Lt. Col. Dominic Caraccilo, whose infantry battalion is stationed in Kirkuk. Carracilo personally edited the "message" and then gave it to the soldiers to send home.

But even that makes it sound far too legitimate.

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