But, at the same time, the public has a right to know the truth. So, if you lie, I want the public to know about it -- especially if you're lying about a problem as big as the plight of our homeless veterans, and especially if you're using the media to tell those lies to a large audience.
As noted in a report by Media Matters for America:
Bill O'Reilly again baselessly challenged John Edwards' claim that "200,000 men and women who wore our uniform proudly and served this country courageously as veterans will go to sleep under bridges and on grates," telling radio host Ed Schultz, "[W]e're still looking for all the veterans sleeping under the bridges, Ed. So if you find anybody, let us know. ... They may be out there, but there are not many of them out there." Schultz replied: "Well, they're out there, Bill, don't kid yourself." According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, they are, in the approximate numbers Edwards asserted.O'Reilly has a pretty sizeable audience, with some 2.3 million people tuning in each weeknight. And many of these people might not do their own research and learn that O'Reilly is either lying or in denial.
But we know. And we need to set O'Reilly straight. And then O'Reilly needs to set the record straight.
And the organization Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for America (IAVA) is going to make it easy for you:
Click here to sign an open letter to O'Reilly, telling him that he needs to set the record straight as soon as possible.
As IAVA so diplomatically puts it, O'Reilly has a great opportunity to help homeless veterans by bringing more attention to the issue, and you can urge him to be part of the solution.
Personally, I suspect that O'Reilly's ego will not let him correct his mistakes, but I'd love to be proven wrong on that score. The more signatures we can get on IAVA's letter, the more pressure we will put on him. We can't let him think that he can get away with his lies and denials.
Our veterans deserve better.
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