Right-wing bloggers

[struggle4progress]

FEBRUARY 28, 2007



Right-wing bloggers are going after Durham's Institute for Southern Studies and the L.A. Times for digging into the backgrounds of three "ghost pilots" based in North Carolina. They were among 13 Americans whom German officials ordered arrested in January for allegedly conducting CIA-sponsored extraordinary rendition flights, a euphemism for snatching up suspected terrorists to interrogate them in countries that allow torture. The three -— Capt. James Fairing, Eric Matthew Fain and Kirk James Bird —- were charged with kidnapping and harming a German citizen of Lebanese descent three years ago. They work for Aero Contractors, a Smithfield-based plane charter service that has worked for the CIA. Those aren't their real names, but reporters discovered their true identities and opulent lifestyles, found out their addresses—all within 30 miles of Raleigh—and knocked on their doors. None would comment, and the reporters did not reveal their actual names in print. But bloggers like Lorie Byrd at townhall.com say the outing is worse than the Valerie Plame case. Let's see: No names, no vice-presidential involvement -— no contest.

http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A45193

[Eric J in MN]

1. There is also the issue of motive.

Why was Valerie Plame outed?
a) an attempt to make a critic of Bush (Joe Wilson) look bad

b) to punish Joe Wilson and silence other Bush critics

c) to interfere with her work on Iranian wmd to make it easier to produce phony evidence of Iranian wmd and start a war

It's a or b or c or some combination.


Why did someone provide information on rendition pilots?

Probably to try to stop people from being kidnapped and tortured.