Topic: Michael Yon on Canadians, Menard, (violating) OPSEC [merged]

[milnews.ca]

When he's had good hits, he's been good, but Yon does not add to his "do your homework" cred with e-mails like this to the National Post:

"National Post" is a relatively small Canadian paper that has inserted itself into the subject of the Tarnak River bridge attack by publishing a story from Canwest News Service. "National Post" appears to provide the latest example of the shoddy war reporting that is contributing to the erosion of MSM.

Two questions ar...e posed to "National Post" Editor-in-Chief Mr. Douglas Kelly:

Mr. Douglas Kelly,

Have read the recent National Post story regarding the Tarnak River bridge that was blown up on 01 March 2010 in Kandahar.

Would you kindly clarify for readers approximately how much time journalists, under direct employment from National Post, have spent in Afghanistan?

Do you have someone here now?

Thank you,


Michael Yon

I guess he missed the "Kabul" placeline in the story he's dissing.

[hamiltongs]

The investigation will reveal  if anyone is at fault,hey sometimes the bad guys get lucky.

Exactly. So what grounds does Yon have for demanding Menard's resignation?

In any case, the replacement bridge is already in place. This is by no means the kind of setback Yon is trying to make it out to be.

And, for the record, I've always thought he was a douche.

[leroi]

The investigation will reveal  if anyone is at fault,hey sometimes the bad guys get lucky.

Well, the bad guys sure got lucky with this hat trick: killed an allied force member, took out a bridge and successfully sowed discord between Allied nations ... no doubt they' re having a rip-snorting, hash-smoking good ole' time laughing at the lack of cohesion/solidarity amongst so-called "Friendlies;" beyond the question of who's at fault, the larger malaise seems to be loose lips in theatre disseminating (to blogger/journalist) OPSEC--Gossiping--about internal problems that should not be publicly aired until facts of the incident are established.  Mr Yon's blogging dislike and put-down of Canadian troops is an affirmation of enemy success.

I agree with recceguy; Yon goes too far with the inference that the CF neglected doing their job because of a hockey game. That is completely disingenuous of him.

[Teeps74]

Been a long time since I posted... This subject tho, damn...

Yawn is an opportunistic, jingoistic douche of the highest order. He lacks credibility as he goes off half cocked like a drunk in a bar. He lacks the integrity to represent anyone other then Michael Yawn. And everyday he digs his little hole ever deeper.

As he is a blogger, no one needs say anything more then "pound salt" to the half wit, dishonest hack Michael Yawn.

[milnews.ca]

Well, I'm sure an apology from Yon is forthcoming

It may be coming sooner than one thinks - this, from FaceBook as of around 9am Eastern:

Summary of meeting with (RC-South Director of Ops) Brigadier General Ben Hodges: The result was unexpected. General Hodges courageously accepted full responsibility. My respect for him doubled in about 30 seconds. Henceforth, Strykers will "own" the bridge. Bottom line: problem solved. BREAK. Something very important came up tonight, so will ...give accounting Friday. The accounting will include an apology from me to General Menard.

[Journeyman]

People are going to give themselves ulcers by getting worked up at this type of reporting -- blogging or official news releases.

A quick survey of history showed the exact same thing occurred in 1917 when the Americans finally decided to join WW 1, and again in 1942 when they showed up for WW 2. Everything done previously was screwed up, and now that they're on-scene, the war begins for real.

Don't lose sleep over it.

[MarkOttawa]

As for the Canwest News story, Matthew Fisher is actually one of the few decent Canadian war correspondents, who actually understands the military (he was also embedded with US Marines during the 2003 Iraq invasion).
http://www.cdfai.org/rossmunromediaaward2007.htm
He last year persuaded Canwest News that they needed someone stationed in Afstan for a substantial, continuing period of time and has basically been there since last spring:
http://toyoufromfailinghands.blogspot.com/2009/04/cf-to-clear-and-hold-near-kandahar.html

Mr Yon might bother to Google.

Mark
Ottawa

[Colin P]

I enjoy reading Yon’s blog and although I don’t agree with everything he says, I respect that fact that he gets out there to try to cover the stories that rarely get told. He does seem to have a blindspot regarding the Canadian Forces, I suspect that something didn’t go well there. To be fair he has criticized just about everyone at some point, but I also note his blogs nowadays are a bit quick to sling mud. I suspect that constant search for funding, trips in warzones with minimal support and dealing with the various military bureaucracies is wearing him down. I think also he see what is to him clear solutions and is frustrated by what he perceives to be inaction or wrong actions that might cost NATO a victory in Afghanistan.

[Journeyman]

...frustrated by what he perceives to be inaction or wrong actions....

Google any one of: narcissistic personality disorder, god complex, or Scott Taylor   

[Jim Seggie]

Google any one of: narcissistic personality disorder, god complex, or Scott Taylor   

Scott Taylor. Why we recieve his "publication" at Minto is beyond me.

[Colin P]

I don't think I will throw Micheal Yon into the same boat as Scott Taylor.

[Journeyman]

I don't think I will throw Micheal Yon into the same boat as Scott Taylor.

Why not?
In Yon's own words, "If a writer wants to make money, he should avoid truth and tell people what they want to hear."

Yon's writing for the American troops; Taylor's writing for the Canadians.
Both apparently believe they're "the only ones who know the true story," therefore both think all officers, especially those in command, are idiots. Both believe they're the only ones "out there with the troops." Neither has illusions about giving a balanced appraisal. Neither has the military experience to judge strategy or operational art, yet that doesn't stop them.

Peas in a pod.

About the only difference is Yon knows what sells.
Michael Yon. "Little Girl."

In 2005, Yon took a picture of U.S. Army Major Mark Bieger cradling an Iraqi girl, named Farah, wounded by shrapnel from a car bomb.....that it "provoked a flood of messages and heartfelt responses."

Gee, sounds like he was looking for, and got, the same response in USAF Nurse Comforts Wounded Canadian Soldier

[mariomike]

Maybe this generation needs another Ernie Pyle:
"Their life consisted wholly and solely of war, for they were and always had been front-line infantrymen. They survived because the fates were kind to them, certainly — but also because they had become hard and immensely wise in animal-like ways of self-preservation."

[Colin P]

The choice is your to believe what you want and the same here. I suspect the if making money was Yon's main thing, he has ample skills to make more with less effort and risk. As opposed to certain magazines that used that picture without credit, permission or compensation.

[ArmyVern]

Sorry t6, not everybody. He's an opportunist of the worst kind.

Yawn may have the odd moment of clarity, but he's still a jerk. Maybe I'm the only one that thinks so. An attack on Menard is one thing, it's why he makes the big bucks. To give the impression the Canadian troops would rather watch hockey than do their jobs is unforgivable, especially when he implies a soldier died as the result.

Say what you want, but there's only one person that can change my mind on the subject and so far he's not doing a very good job.

Bang on post.

What a load of bullshit with the "Hockey game" crap; There's NO way in hell that this 'reporter' wasn't aware of this little pot calling kettle oversight of his either:

In Afghanistan,

troops will have to gather at 4:00 a.m. to watch the big game. According to the Pentagon, soldiers not required to be out in the field will be able to watch the Colts take on the New Orleans Saints at places like a makeshift tent at Kandahar Air Base or a dining hall at Forward Operating Base Ghazni. The game will be broadcast by the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service, and be free of the lucrative advertisements all of us in the United States are accustomed to watching on Super Bowl Sunday. Instead, servicemembers will get encouraging messages from President Obama, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, and even Saints and Colts players.

Apparently, what's good for the gander isn't good for us Canada geese. Funny how that works eh?

...
Obama is taping his Super Bowl message today. Gates, who is traveling in Europe, already has recorded his 60-second video, in which he expresses appreciation for the troops overseas and recognizes the hardship of being away from home, especially during special event like the big game, said Paul Waldrop, chief of the AFRTS radio and TV production office.

In addition, AFRTS taped shout-outs from 22 players -- 11 Saints and 11 Colts, including Peyton Manning and Drew Brees, the two quarterbacks – to air throughout the game. All expressed thanks and encouragement to the troops overseas, Waldrop said.

AFRTS also will broadcast promotions for its other programming. It also plans to roll out several new spots on topics on the upgraded AFN decoder box used to unscramble the AFN TV signal for overseas viewers, as well as a new service that will enable troops to ask questions about their benefits, then get the answers aired on TV.

The early morning showings and lack of commercials don’t appear to have dampened any enthusiasm about the big game. Signs popping up at the new International Security Assistance Force Joint Command headquarters in Kabul advertise a big Super Bowl party in the command’s new morale, welfare and recreation tent. The festivities will kick off at 4 a.m., and will feature prizes, souvenirs and other treats, reported Navy Capt. Jane Campbell, the command’s public affairs officer.

To the south, at Kandahar Air Base, the Army Corps of Engineers’ Afghan Engineer District South is readying its own tent for what it’s billing as a “town hall” during the big game.

Unfettered by the nine-and-a-half-hour time difference from Miami, and with access to computers so they can continue working throughout the game, participants will feast on breakfast foods rather than hot dogs, and they’ll imbibe with coffee and orange juice rather than long tall ones, said public affairs officer Pat Ryan. Many of the staffers developed a deep fondness for New Orleans while working there after Hurricane Katrina, she noted, so they’re expected to root heavily for the Saints.

Meanwhile, the dining facility at Forward Operating Base Ghazni, in Afghanistan’s mountainous eastern Ghazni province, is setting up “something special” for Task Force White Eagle members who want to watch the game despite the “o-dark-thirty” kickoff time, reported Air Force Master Sgt. Sarah R. Webb troops, the provincial reconstruction team public affairs officer.

And at Balad Air Base in Iraq, viewing areas are being set up around every large-size TV around, a defense contractor at the base reported. Although General Order No. 1 – which forbids troops there from drinking alcohol – remains in effect, he said he expects fans to tap into a big supply of nonalcoholic beer and to chow down on other readily available munchies.

Troops overseas have been treated to live Super Bowl broadcasts since the first big game in 1967, initially through short-wave radio broadcasts, Sichter said.

Televised Super Bowl coverage was limited at first to videotape copies of the game distributed after the fact to overseas outlets, unless AFN outlets contracted with commercial networks to get the game live. That all changed in 1982, when AFRTS stood up its satellite network, enabling it to provide live Super Bowl broadcasts to all troops overseas.

Jeff White, the AFN Broadcast Center’s executive director, expressed thanks to the National Football League, CBS and Westwood One Radio for granting AFN the rights to broadcast the game again this year.

“We’re delighted to be able to deliver the Super Bowl to the AFN audience,’ he said. “It tops the list as the world’s most popular sporting event and underscores our mission to provide a ‘touch of home’ to the troops who serve out country overseas.”

Geez, even those Stryker types (who'll now take the bridge ...) watched the Superbowl; but hell, the Superbowl isn't just that small-time hockey is it?

http://www.strykernews.com/archives/2010/02/08/photos_soldiers_2.html

Sigh

[ObedientiaZelum]

He lacks credibility as he goes off half cocked like a drunk in a bar.

As a child and as a young adult, he was a prankster who got in trouble for, among other things, making homemade bombs.[2] Other children bullied him repeatedly throughout his childhood, particularity because of his short stature.

He killed a man in a bar room fight in Ocean City, Maryland in the 1980s; criminal charges were filed but later dropped

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Yon

[daftandbarmy]

It looks like the bad guys are winning: sneak in and blow something up just so you can watch the Westerners slap each other around like Laurel and Hardy.

If Yon has an observation to make about our Generals, he should send it direct to the Generals.

[recceguy]

It looks like the bad guys are winning: sneak in and blow something up just so you can watch the Westerners slap each other around like Laurel and Hardy.

If Yon has an observation to make about our Generals, he should send it direct to the Generals.

Why? There's nothing to be gained for him, publicity wise. If they even answered, they would quietly tell him he had his facts wrong, to please meet with Lt. So and so, at 09:30 Tuesday for perfect insight.

Instead he expects to raise a ruckus, his profile, and his bank account. If he ruins the career of some foreign General in the process, who cares? He becomes endeared to the uneducated that spend time with his prose while evacuating their bowels in the blue rocket. Which is the best place for the paper he is written on to be used.

He is the Geraldo Rivera of his generation. Sooner or later, this hack blogger will find his own personal Capone safe, if he hasn't already.

[milnews.ca]

Good stuff, Vern!

The latest.....

Journeyman on 03 Mar 10, 11:00:36:  Well, I'm sure an apology from Yon is forthcoming

It may be coming sooner than one thinks - this, from FaceBook as of around 9am Eastern (yesterday)....

Uh, it might take a bit longer - this, as of ~0330EST today:

Working on dispatch with more details about the Tarnak River Bridge. There are many assumptions flying in comments -- often talking (incorrectly) about assumptions made here. Surprises are coming. Suggest cease fire until facts are presented. Some folks are wedging into corners by making assumptions about 'assumpti...ons.'

The detailed dispatch will contain email traffic. After facts are presented, it will be a simple matter for pros to check the trail. (Many pros on this FB.) Remains amazing that MSM missed the fact that a strategic bridge was hit, and instead focused so much on hockey ....

I await with interest.

[Colin P]

If blowing stuff up as a youth was a career ending move, most of us, myself included would not have the careers that we have now.

[MarkOttawa]

Colin P: Indeed.  One afternoon when I was 11 or 12 myself and couple of friends shot frogs with BB guns on a lake's beach and then blew them up with cannon crackers.  The, er, good old days.

Mark
Ottawa

[riggermade]

I don't think I will throw Micheal Yon into the same boat as Scott Taylor.

I think he sounds alot like Scott Taylor...therefore I would not believe half of what he says...on a side note I was listening to CFRA in Ottawa the other day and COL Drapeau ret't was on and saying how much he admires Scott Taylor...since I can't stand listening to him spout off his "expert" opinion it spoke volumes to me about him as well

[MarkOttawa]

Some very interesting stuff from BruceR. at Flit:
http://www.snappingturtle.net/flit/archives/2010_03_05.html#006673

The continuing saga of Michael Yon continues as a saga. Apparently Yon had a meeting with the RC (South) Deputy Commander, who told him RC (South) was in fact responsible for the bridge in question, not the Canadians, as I had said below. Check. Yon has also said he will apologize to the Canadian Task Force Kandahar commander [emphasis added].

While I look forward to that, and will link to it if it ever actually happens, I wonder if he'll apologize for some of this other comments this week on that little Facebook page of his...

He's clearly channelling what some U.S. soldiers are thinking and saying. And I think some degree we're affected by our training at the Major level and up, which always assumes a multinational framework with a strong American contingent, if only to make the tactical problems we put to our students more interesting. (Being a lieutenant-colonel means you need to know what a brigade commander does, and being a full colonel means you need to know what a division commander does, and Canada hasn't fielded a division anywhere since 1945). Inevitably that leads to the point in the simulation where our earnest young Canadian staff officers throw "wave after wave of Americans" at the problem. We see our units as completely interoperable, but for that to work in real life takes a measure of international diplomacy that we sometimes tend to abstract out of those equations...

...he's not making this stuff up: meaning there's a small internal communications patchup job between the Task Force Kandahar commander and his American juniors that may need doing here.

Do read the whole post.

[Teeps74]

I wonder if that douche Yawn would ever bother reading a forum like this? Would he gain insight and perhaps mature into knowing where exactly he went wrong with his full on hypocrisy and slander?

Most likely not.

Nice catch Flawed... Wish I could laugh at that, but just goes to show how flawed the psyche of that clown Yawn really is.

[ObedientiaZelum]

Nice catch Flawed... Wish I could laugh at that, but just goes to show how flawed the psyche of that clown Yawn really is.

Agreed, that's why I quoted it. He screams little man who was picked on turn make as much noise as possible syndrome