Kaloogian: Iraq/Tampa, Florida? What?

[Call Me Wesley]

I'm still confused about this one picture that is now in the 'redesigned' Kaloogian site under 'Howard in Iraq.' It's the picture showing the 'Honorable' Kaloogian with Brig. Gen. John Custer. The same picture that's on the main page with this caption:



Does 'on his way' mean actually Iraq? I don't think so. And then I found the diary of another member of his Iraq-all-is-wonderful-delegation, Martha Zoller, here:
http://www.accessnorthga.com/articles/afullstory.asp?ID=94277

Now the excerpt says this:

"We began at CENTCOM Headquarters in Tampa, Florida. After some bad press based on incorrect information, the brass in Tampa was a little wary of us and didn’t know what to expect. Our first assignment was to make sure that CENTCOM knew that we were going to be fair in our reporting and that we were focused on the mission. We began with a briefing by General John Custer, who reports directly to General Abaziad."

So, my question is, was this picture taken in Tampa, Florida or in Iraq, which 'Honorable' Kaloogian wants us to make believe?

[stop the bleeding]

1. Tampa would be my guess at this point

Anyone here work a Macdill in Tampa???

I live here but can not give any more light on this.

[Call Me Wesley]

7. Thank you.

Perhaps I'll find out more on this.

[MADem]

8. SEE POST SIX --it WAS Tampa n/t

[Call Me Wesley]

14. I'm pretty sure about it,

and Google doesn't show any additional pictures of the “Voices of Soldiers” Truth Tour ( http://www.voicesofsoldiers.com/ - Site's down also); and sure nothing from Iraq at all.

[MADem]

15. I posted a web address downthread that verifies it n.t.

[Call Me Wesley]

16. Yes, I saw it. Thank you!

I was just searching for any pictures of this delegation tour and could find absolutely nothing.

[flyarm]

2. first of all ..who paid for those who went to bagdad in this group?

who paid for them to go to Tampa from calif and then Iraq?? how did they get into Iraq?? when everything i have read is military planes have to go through all kinds of weird manuvers to land in Bagdad..so who paid for this obviously partisan group to fly into Iarq..and who paid for their security ( military i would assume)..and who of them went all around bagdad , when journalists can't move around freely without putting their lives on the line..i sure would want a $$$ audit of the trip of this group and to find out if taxpayers money was spent on this partisan group's trip to Iraq..

what curious minds want to know!!

fly

[flyarm]

3. oh and i want to know who all was in this group!!..n/t

[Call Me Wesley]

5. From Martha Zoller:

"Our group (Buzz Patterson of Rightalk, Melanie Morgan of KSFO in San Francisco, Mark Williams of KFBK in Sacramento, Michael Graham, WMAL in Washington, DC, Howard Kaloogian of Move America Forward, Brad Maaske of KMJ in Fresno and an expert on Saddam Hussein, Filmmaker Dan Hare, Navy and Commercial pilot and 9-11 family member, Producer Holly Williams, Nancy Alexander, Move America Forward Former Executive Director Sioban Guiney and me, Martha Zoller of WDUN and Rightalk)"

[Call Me Wesley]

4. Fun thing is,

that he, the 'Honorable' Kaloogian spoke of '100 of pictures' they took in Iraq. However, the first two he had posted on his site were debunked (one was from istanbul, the other one was one taken long before his trip), and now this?

At this point I just wonder if they ever were in Iraq ...

[MADem]

6. That same crap blurb can be found here, at their crappy website!

http://www.moveamericaforward.org/index.php/MAF/FullNewsItem/voices_of_soldiers_tour_arrives_in_iraq/

And, guess what--it LOOKS like that photo was taken at a CENTCOM BBQ!!!

See here:

http://www.moveamericaforward.org/index.php/DailyFile/photos_from_centcom_bbq/

On Friday, Move America Forward along with Stafford Hospitality, through a “Thank You BBQ” for U.S. Central Command and troops stationed at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. Over 600 members of the U.S. Central Command and troops based at MacDill Air Force Base attended the BBQ.

Here are some of the photo highlights from this event…

* Move America Forward Co-Chairman, Howard Kaloogian (left), along with the #2 official of the U.S. Central Command, Brigadier General John Custer (center):


...Howard Kaloogian Addresses the Troops:



Ya know, if I had to be involved in this fuckup of a war, I'd rather be doing it from MacDill than from Ramadi...the hours are about the same, but you can eschew the body armor, not worry about things going boom in the night (or day) and the air conditioning is more reliable...to say nothing of calling out for pizza when ya gotta work late.

[Call Me Wesley]

9. That's what I think,

no actual picture of their stay in Iraq yet, even 'hundreds of photos were taken.'

And I thought after the 3rd strike you're out. ;)

[stop the bleeding]

13. Great sleuthing n/t

[npincus]

10. I'm sure he's lying about the Truth Tour's 'trip to Istanbul'

wish we could prove it.

[stop the bleeding]

11. Public or Private money??? there has to be a trail to pay for the bills

I asked this the other day and it sank like a stone.

[Call Me Wesley]

12. If even that picture was taken by one of them ...

On the other hand, Istanbul is quite safe and has lots of tourist attractions to visit. And there are muslims, too. No big difference. :sarcasm:

[Catrina]

20. But they didn't take that picture, in Turkey ~ it was found on the

Internet and the original photographer was also located ~ I know that information is in one of the threads on this story from a few days ago ~ that's why I couldn't believe he is still saying his group took the picture.

I also would like to know whether they ever went to Iraq at all, and if they did, why no pictures?

I read that part of the bill for the trip was paid by the DOD ~ maybe a letter to them could verify that information ~ and if that's true, then they owe an accounting of what they spent, what countries they were in, airlines etc.

[Call Me Wesley]

22. The original picture they posted as 'Baghdad'

showed a suburb in Istanbul. A Turkish photographer took a picture of the same location from a different angle, but I don't think he took the picture Kaloogian had on it's website. Nobody came up with that yet, although I wouldn't be surprised if even this was stolen form some Istanbul tourist's photobucket account.

Kaloogian always said that 'they took hundreds of pictures', but nobody has seen any yet. You can search the whole 'delegation' that obviously went to Iraq and you won't find one single picture taken in Iraq.

And, additionally, they obvioulsy had a radio show going on on their trip. Funny enough, the location given said 'Middle East.' Not Iraq, just general 'Middle East.' Istanbul counts there in, too.

[Catrina]

27. Thanks, I thought I had read that they found the photographer, but I

probably misunderstood ~

He seems to have lied about the picture with the troops also. That appears to have been taken in Tampa Florida, at a Centcom barbecue.

I think there is definitely a question as to whether he was ever in Iraq now ~ maybe the others were, but as you said, where are the pictures?

[Ioo]

17. Please to be helping me with this... Use of Military for Polotics..

If I recall, after that GOP hack, I think in AZ, used Marines at a "Lincon Day Rally". The DOD then resent out the policy that stated that the military can not be used for political gain...

Does this whole thing here, this banner you posted and so on just SCREAM a break in this rule?

Has anyone thought of this?

[Call Me Wesley]

18. I don't know these rules,

but I hope another DUer knows more about it. If you can't use military personnel for political gain, this would break this rule.

[BuyingThyme]

19. I went to Iraq for a photo op, but forgot to take any photos...

...err, ummm, the other way around.


After Russ Feingold, Barbara Boxer, and Barbara Lee, and a few others, I think Lookagain Kaloogian is my favorite politician right now.

:rofl:

[Call Me Wesley]

23. Don't forget their famous Radio Show

Kaloogian won an award for it (he's not cited, though, but he sure won one, really) emerging from Iraq the 'Middle east.'

:rofl:

[matt819]

21. This doofus clearly has some trouble with the physics of time

I read one report about the photo which noted that he had just returned from Iraq, just meaning something like 6 months ago. So what does "on his way" to Iraq mean. I have no trouble with a briefing in Tampa. That's what PR staffs do. They brief visiting firemen. It's pointless, unclassified, PR BS. But how long after this briefing was he on the way? A week, a month, six months? And when in Iraq, did he go outside the Green Zone? or is he, like the rest of his party, a coward and a fraud?

[Call Me Wesley]

24. No dates given for the pictures.

The whole trip was from July 8 - 15, 2005.

The picture from Iraq he still has on his website, this one:



Was taken from the Rashid Hotel in the Green Zone. Pretty safe. And they have cold ice for the drinks there, too!

[matt819]

25. Quite a risk taker, hey?

Kind of lie * taking a look at Katrina from the window of AF One. What a clown.

[Call Me Wesley]

26. That's their politics.

Especially 'Honorable' Kaloogian's, who quotes himself as having 'keen and insightful analysis of current events.' You don't get it if you have to run because someone starts to shoot next to you or something like that. That's just distracting the whole picture. Looking out of a bullet proof window with a nice drink in your hand - that's the way to really make a 'keen and insightful analysis of current events.'