Subject:        OPERATION TAILWIND

Dear Senator Helms,

I respectfully request that your Senate Foreign Relations Committee initiate
an investigation into what many Americans now believe was a flagrant attempt
on the part of CNN and Time to intentionally  mislead the world and discredit
the United States Government,  its Armed Forces, and specifically the US Army
Special Forces.
This CNN/Time  propaganda effort was perpetrated on the viewers and readers of
the world  through the presentation of a television program and itsTime
Magazine version, falsely describing  a US Special Forces operation during the
Vietnam war code named  "TAILWIND".
The public outcry and rage in response to these propaganda efforts, backed up
by indisputable facts  forced CNN/Time to retract their lies.  These
retractions and apologies, ( insults to any one's intelligence) stated
basically that  the " facts " as presented in the program and the magazine
could not be proven. The obvious attempt  of these false  "mea culpas"  was to
leave the impression that United States Special Forces did in fact commit war
crimes during the Vietnam war,  but CNN/Time did not have enough evidence to
prove it at this time.
The news media in our country have a right protected by our Constitution to
report the news as they see them. That right however does not extend to
intentional attempts to lie and mislead the public. Many of us believe that
CNN/Time knowingly and with malice perpetrated a deception on its pubic
viewers and  readers in the presentation of the TAIL WIND television program
and the related Time Magazine story.
If our country were at war,  this intentional deception on the part of CNN and
Time would be considered a brilliant propaganda coup by our enemies.  We are
not at war;  nevertheless this deception worked,  and has caused irreparable
harm to the reputation of the United States Government,  its  Armed Forces,
and to the brave and dedicated servicemen involved in Operation TAILWIND.
We believe that the motivation and objectives of this disgusting propaganda
effort, and the subsequent forced retractions and disingenuous apologies
should be investigated by the United States Congress. Many Americans have
fought and died to preserve the  freedom of the press, which must be forever
preserved if our country is to be free.  But freedom of the press to
intentionally lie and mislead must never be allowed.  If this attempt to
blatantly mislead the world is allowed to stand, other attempts will surely
follow.

Respectfully yours,

Andrew L. Irzyk
Colonel, United States Army, Retired
1404 Dumont Dr.
Valrico, FL 33594

Endorsed By:
Paul F. Campbell
1020 Hemingway Drive
Raleigh, North Carolina 27609