MoveOn decides to make a commerical decrying the fact that American soldiers will be overseas for the holidays, and accidentally use footage of nothing but foreign soldiers:
The liberal political group MoveOn.org has yanked a video ad from its website after being criticized for using images of British soldiers to represent Americans in Iraq.
The 30-second ad, which also began running on CNN and cable stations during the Thanksgiving weekend, stated that “150,000 American men and women are stuck in Iraq” this holiday season.
But the ad showed soldiers who were “not wearing U.S. uniforms,” according to a Pentagon spokesman who was interviewed by Cybercast News Service Wednesday, approximately two hours before the Internet version of the ad was pulled from the MoveOn.org website.
“Some folks won’t be home this holiday season,” the 30-second spot declared before showing a video pan of a group of soldiers getting military rations. The narrator then stated that “150,000 American men and women are stuck in Iraq.”
Todd Vician, a spokesman with the U.S. Defense Department, told Cybercast News Service after viewing the ad that none of the men featured in the photograph was wearing U.S. uniforms. “We don’t have that style of desert camouflage,” he said.
Vician noted that combat fatigues worn by the Marines and the Army have “a pixilated design,” and Air Force BDUs (Battle Dress Uniforms) have a different pattern than the uniforms shown in the spot.
In addition to the men wearing foreign uniforms, Vician stated that he had never seen U.S. soldiers using meal containers like those shown in the ad.
Hehe. In their defense, I doubt many military guys would know their way around a “No War for Oil” sign or could tell the difference between gigantic protest puppets, so I can’t blame the MoveOn folks for not knowing what our guys in uniform, you know, ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE.
Steve S
I can’t defend MoveOn.org… They’re pretty st00pid. Sorry.
Although I’d still trust them more than Focus on the Family, or any of the other right-leaning activist st00pid groups.
smijer
Don’t forget the st00pid Cybercast News Service, who apparently has nothing better to do than stay up on military dress fashion and make sure a commercial uses only the most stylish American uniforms.
Steve S
Oh oh…
sfgate.com/n/pictures/2005/11/30/academy2.jpg
Apparently Bush’s speech wasn’t so exciting after all… everybody fell asleep!
Sojourner
The POTUS thinks G-d is telling him what to do. That concerns me a whole lot more than whether the wrong soldiers were used in a television commercial.
jaime
I laughed so hard at MoveOn’s mistake of using foreign troops, I completely forgot that 150,000 American troops won’t be home for the holidays. *sigh* I guess that was the entire point of the story.
…but then I get to thinking, the uniforms are worn by English troops who won’t be home for the holidays which upsets me even more.
Since when did you become Brent Bozell’s stenographer Cole?
ppGaz
Good point. If it’s true, he’s mad.
John Cole
If it is true, I am HOPPING mad. I voted for him, after all.
John Cole
WET.
BLANKET.
Lighten up- this is funny and just light-hearted ribbing.
Jeebus.
ppGaz
I told my brother — big time Republican — back in 2000, maybe Bush will be a good change for the country.
I have rethought that position …..
TallDave
The best part was that they later photoshopped it to make it look more real. Priceless.
You couldn’t sell this stuff as fiction. They’d say it wasn’t believable enough.
ppGaz
You got that right. You couldn’t sell it, because nobody would give a shit.
Jack Burton
Well, since those particular soldiers were British, they won’t be too bumbed as they don’t celebrate Thanksgiving. Get back to them for Christmas.
It’s does speak volumes about how little moveon actually knows about the people they seem to speak for, as it takes about two seconds to realize those aren’t our BDU patterns.
Has anyone called their corporate office and asked them to page Amanda Hugankiss?
jg
D’Oh!
Jack Burton
I wonder if Moe answers the phone there?
John
“I can’t blame the MoveOn folks for not knowing what our guys in uniform, you know, ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE”
As opposed to, say, the College Republicans who have stormed military recruitment offices begging to enlist.
Otto Man
Good God, do I hate the giant puppets. What exactly are they supposed to prove? That papier maché hates George Bush?
Jack Burton
Go ahead and back that last statement up with some facts. I know you have some, obviously, to make such a sweeping statement.
I’ll wait.
Jack Burton
Not the giant puppet statement. I don’t like them either.
Bobonthebellbuoy
Wow John, you’ve got more straw men here than 40 takes of the Wizard of Oz. I don’t think many are from Kansas though.
Jody
Well, since those particular soldiers were British, they won’t be too bumbed as they don’t celebrate Thanksgiving. Get back to them for Christmas.
If I may educate for a moment, virtually every society celebrates Thanksgiving in some shape form or fashion as Thanksgiving is really just a harvest festival. In fact, in Britain, it’s called the Harvest Festival.
Steve S
It reminds you of that Bush campaign video where they photoshopped in all the soldiers pretending to listen to him.
Kimmitt
This sort of foolishness is why I don’t give money to MoveOn.
neil
It’s does speak volumes about how little moveon actually knows about the people they seem to speak for, as it takes about two seconds to realize those aren’t our BDU patterns.
But they won’t be home for the holidays, now will they?
nyrev
See, this is why the smart st00pid groups run their ads by someone in Public Affairs before they air them.
Al Maviva
>>>As opposed to, say, the College Republicans who have stormed military recruitment offices begging to enlist.
As opposed to say, actual military members, who run around 80% Republican.
Krista
ppGaz Says:
And the Understatement of the Year award goes to our very own ppGaz! Congrats, darling!
Vlad
Personally, I like giant puppets. Not necessarily just for the political connotations, either.
Vlad
I think they trigger the same part of my brain that enjoys watching robots fight to the death.
Sojourner
How interesting, then, that virtually none of the Repub leadership are veterans. You know, the leadership that makes the decision to send in the troops but had other priorities when it was their turn to serve.
BIRDZILLA
Looks like the wackos at moveon will try any dirty trick in their little black books lets make them eat their little black books without catsup
Jane Finch
This might actually be worthy of noting if the Other Side didn’t do exactly the same thing.
Jay
Why isn’t MoveOn making ads about all the troops deployed in Bosnia, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Portugal, Turkey, the UK, Japan, South Korea, Qatar, etc who won’t be home for the holidays either?
There are over 250,000 troops/sailors afloat or overseas. Those numbers don’t include those in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Twits.
Pb
Al Maviva,
Er, no. Officers, maybe. Enlisted men, not even. National Guard and Reserve, even less so.
Retief
Oops is about all you can say after a silly mistake like this one. BTW does anybody know if MoveOn is doing anything for the Superbowl this year. That one with the nine year-olds working to pay off the deficit that they didn’t get to run was pretty fantastic.
RTO Trainer
Would tend to kick the “we’re going it alone” meme square in the head, don’t you think?
Mac Buckets
Sarge, I think Jay’s talking about US troops around the globe, but the left’s depiction of British soldiers in Iraq certainly should put the lie to their own “unilateral” meme, anyway.
BIRDZILLA
Thats strange sonce liberals being the socialists they are dont beleive in christmas or any other religious holidays