Quotidian: Mr. DiRita explains it all…

Remember last week when the Pentagon was caught issuing press releases featuring quotes by the ubiquitous Mesopotamian Max?* The all-purpose Iraqi bystander was available for virtually identical comments after a July 13 car bombing in Baghdad and the July 23 car bombing at al-Rashad police station (see here and here). Well Larry DiRita explains everything.

"This is an egregious error that reflects a lack of rigor in the development of these press statements.

Well, yes it is, and yes it does -- although it's unclear what DiRita means by "lack of rigor." I take it to mean lazy overreliance on boilerplate copy and MS-WORD's template functions.

DiRita has said his best information was that the quotes were authentic, not fabricated.

My best information says that, given the amazing similarities between "the quotes," there's really only one quote, not two. And if "the quote" is not a total fabrication, then the translator seems to have taken some incredible liberties. Observe:

 Mesopotamian Max is eloquent: "They are enemies of humanity without religion or any sort of ethics.

 Mesopotamian Max has a sophisticated vocabulary: "The terrorists are attacking the infrastructure…."

 Mesopotamian Max (belatedly) grasps the flypaper theory: "I will now take the fight to the terrorists."

Since anonymous quotes are now prohibited in such press releases, expect to see some well-crafted names to go along with the fabricated, ah--very loosely translated, Iraqi-on-the-street comments.

[Click "Read More" for the full text of "the quotes" as cited by CNN.]


Following are the two quotes as provided by the U.S. military in news releases:

Sunday's news release said: "'The terrorists are attacking the infrastructure, the ISF and all of Iraq. They are enemies of humanity without religion or any sort of ethics. They have attacked my community today and I will now take the fight to the terrorists,' said one Iraqi man who preferred not to be identified."

The July 13 news release said: "'The terrorists are attacking the infrastructure, the children and all of Iraq,' said one Iraqi man who preferred not to be identified. 'They are enemies of humanity without religion or any sort of ethics. They have attacked my community today and I will now take the fight to the terrorists.'"

*"Mesopotamian Max" moniker courtesy of Corrente.