Stephen F. Kislock, III – 6/1/11

 


This page was last updated on June 1, 2011.


Still waiting for justice; Stephen F. Kislock, III; Beaver County Times; June 1, 2011.

Most of Mr. Kislock’s 60+ letters over the last seven years have been Republican-bashing exercises, though he sometimes goes after Democrats for his pet causes.  Sometime during 2009 Mr. Kislock became an in-house commentator for Beaver County RedsPlease follow this link to learn more about Beaver County Reds.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.


“‘Official who makes valid point against Israel forced to resign.’ -- The Onion, May 29

“U.S. diplomat Nelson Milstrand had no idea that the truth would set him free.  Well, actually it was his boss, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.  She fired him.

“Clinton and President Barack Obama, et. al., get their foreign policy marching orders from the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee.

“The elephant in the room is Israel, and no one in the U.S. government is allowed to forget it.  Firings like Milstrand’s and vicious campaigns against former U.S. Rep. Cynthia McKinney are the fate of those who would dare speak up for the Palestinian people and against the apartheid government of Israel.”

[RWC] Given his letter-writing body of work, I thought Mr. Kislock couldn’t outdo himself.  I was wrong.  The Onion is a well-known news satire website and Mr. Kislock swallowed the faux story (posted May 20th, not May 29th) about the apparently-fictional Nelson Milstrand hook, line, and sinker.  Assuming Mr. Kislock didn’t know the truth about the article, this is an example of not verifying a story simply because it said something you want to be true.

Though it’s not the responsibility of the Times to fact-check letters, I’m a bit surprised the Times didn’t tell Mr. Kislock he fell for a parody piece.  Then again, since the Times itself has a history of using comedy shows as references, perhaps as Mr. Kislock the Times believes The Onion is a credible news source.

I haven’t noticed the alleged “vicious campaigns against” Ms. McKinney, though it’s not surprising Mr. Kislock would take up her cause.  In case you missed Ms. McKinney’s antics over the years, do a little research and you’ll see what I mean.

“Let’s remember the USS Liberty, an intelligence-gathering naval vessel operating in international waters, which was attacked repeatedly on June 6, 1967, by our ally, Israel.

“President Lyndon Johnson let the attack go unpunished.

“The survivors of the attack can only wonder when they will receive justice from their government and Israel.”

[RWC] Proving the saying “even a stopped clock is right at least once a day,” Mr. Kislock is correct about the USS Liberty incident except the attack was on June 8th, not June 6th, and Israel paid compensation to the families of those killed, to those wounded, and to the US for damages to the Liberty.

I’m surprised Mr. Kislock failed to mention Jonathan Pollard.


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