That Didn't Take Long

Well, Jesse Macbeth, who made a video claiming that he was a member of the United States Army Ranger and member of the US Special Forces, and who witnessed all manner of war crimes including the slaughter of women and children, is a complete and utter fraud.

“Initial research by the U.S. Army Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg shows no Soldier with the name of Jesse Macbeth having ever been assigned to the Special Forces or the Army Rangers — which are, in fact, two separate disciplines. This appears to be some sort of hoax. No Soldier by that name at Fort Lewis to our knowledge, in the past, either. Of course, the line about “go into the Army or go to jail” is vintage TV script not heard since the 1960s. There are also numerous wear and appearance issues with the Soldier’s uniform — a mix of foreign uniforms with the sleeves rolled up like a Marine and a badly floppy tan beret worn like a pastry chef. Of course, the allegations of war crimes are vague, as are the awards the Soldier allegedly received.”

Where have we heard claims like this before? Oh yes, the Winter Soldier hearings where the participants were neither solders nor ever in Vietnam. It was simply a collection of anti-war types who pushed their agenda by any means necessary.

Macbeth had tried to cover up his tracks and was already in the process of removing service awards he claims to have received from the military.

The anti-war Left initially ate up this stuff without question, despite the fact that his appearance - the uniform and manner in which he wore it, the insignias, and other details immediately got the attention of folks in the know. Even now, the anti-war Left is backing away from Macbeth slowly but surely though some are clinging to the fake but accurate meme.

The whole nonsense about fake but accurate knows no bounds. It has no place in news, journalism, or history. It is either accurate or it is not.

Macbeth is a fraud. Pure and simple. His story is a hoax, concocted out of thin air, though heavily laden with anti-war spewage. The problem here isn't that someone is pursuing an anti-war agenda. That's your god-given right as a US citizen to express yourself.

However, you cannot do it claiming to be a US soldier when you are not. That is a criminal act, punishable by incarceration. And the damage done to the US diplomatic and military efforts is incalculable.

UPDATE:
Malkin has a roundup of reaction, including that Democratic Underground is turning on Macbeth.

UPDATE:
Others blogging the deconstruction of the Macbeth story: Just Citizens, QandO, Jeff Goldstein, Ace of Spades, The Sandbox, and The Politburo Diktat.

UPDATE:
Sweetness and Light notices that Macbeth has a couple of outstanding warrants.

Now there has been some interest in the fact that he's had a name change, although that happened in 1986. That would have happened when he was two years old. I'd be more interested and concerned with statements he made at a rally in Washington State earlier this year. He spoke at one such rally on February 4, 2006.

And one should really look at Randy Rowland, who apparently was behind the production of the video. He's got some questions that need to be answered as well.

Macbeth's outrageous statements and lies continue to be debated and debunked online. Others blogging: In Search of Utopia, Sister Toldjah, My Vast Right Wing Conspiracy, Stuck on Stupid, and Media Lies.

Technorati: fraud, hoax, jesse macbeth.