Cold War II: The Propaganda Front

This CBS News report gives more evidence that the War on Terror is designed to replace the Cold War in the hearts, minds, and bank accounts of a hypertrophied worldwide military-industrial-intellectual complex, yearning to pay off everyone to get them on board for a renewed campaign of American triumphalism that will be judged as a grand success just as long as the checks keep clearing.

The story begins:
"Pentagon officials are debating whether to use the military to conduct covert propaganda operations in allied nations, ten months after disbanding a controversial office that had the same goal.

Tasks could include such things as paying journalists in European nations to write favorable stories about American policies or secretly financing books or schools to counter radical Islam taught at some of Pakistan's madrassas, or religious schools, defense officials said Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity."

It's good the story mentioned the first time this idea was floated -- then allegedly scuttled. It reminds us that shot-down trial balloons often take flight later under cover of darkness. Keep your eyes peeled on the dim horizon for son of Operation: TIPS.

Comments

[Billy Oblivion]

There has been some...mutterings that the earlier proposal wasn't actually scrapped, but that the practices and procedures contained in it were distributed to various already existing departments within the DoD.

(Denizens of Doom, Day of Defeat)

[Dragoon]

Mutterings nothing. Found at plastic.com

http://www.fas.org/sgp/news/2002/11/dod111802.html

"And then there was the office of strategic influence. You may recall that. And "oh my goodness gracious isn't that terrible, Henny Penny the sky is going to fall." I went down that next day and said fine, if you want to savage this thing fine I'll give you the corpse. There's the name. You can have the name, but I'm gonna keep doing every single thing that needs to be done and I have.

That was intended to be done by that office is being done by that office, NOT by that office in other ways."

Thanks Rumsfeld, glad to see the federal government's up to its usual tricks.

[SQRU YOO]

The war can't make Bush a man? If I was Bush I would walk down there and punch your smug "hoodly doodly" silly shit smack talkin mouth. Filthy opportunist swine, crap content, snobby bitch ass haughty bullshit. Fuck.

[citizen Able]

If the Pentagon says "We're developing an office to manage the lies we want to propogate," then says, "No, we've changed our minds," make it easy on yourself and assume everything they say from that point on is a lie.