It has been asserted by some that the CBS Killian memos were probably computer generated, presumably by MS Word, based on the use of the "th" super/subscript feature. While I am interested in knowing more about the provenance of these Memos and CBS's internal investigation, I don't find this particular argument convincing.
Since the super/subscript feature is automatic in MS Word, then why isn't the "th" subscript found in both instances where it occurs in this Memo? It appears twice in the foregoing Memo, first as "normal" size type and then as super/subscript. So, if this Memo is a fake, then its author would have typed the first "th", erased it when it automatically appeared in super/subscript, and then somehow manually override the automatic feature and retype it in the same font as the rest of the document.
When I try this with MS Word using Times Roman type, I am unable to actually accomplish this with the as-factory installed features of MS Word intact. Perhaps it is possible to override this automatic feature, but not readily. And, if a forger took the effort to have somehow disabled or overwrite this automatic feature in the first instance, why did he/she not do so in the second instance?
There is yet another instance where this automatic super/subscript feature would have had to been overridden in this Memo ("1st Lt. George Bush"). The "st" in this Memo is in the regular type face and font. It is not in super/subscript as the auotmatic feature of MS Word would have done.
In my version of MS Word at its as-installed factory settings, I can only defeat the automatic super/subscript feature for "st" and "th" by placing a space between the them and preceding numerals. This is not the case with the Memo.
I previously posted that IBM Selectrics that were widely used at the time these Memos were supposedly written had this subscript feature.
Officers who wrote evaluations, efficiency reports or fitness reports on juniors (reporting seniors) commonly kept a “personal file” (P file) with copies of these reports. The reason for this was in the event the original, that went to the permanent files of the applicable service, was lost, the reporting senior would be contacted to provide a replacement. This was important because a missing report could prevent an officer from being promoted. If you wrote fitness reports, you were required to maintain a file of copies for something like 20 years. Usually, you would haul the file from one office to the next, not keep it at home. You arrived at a new assignment, and tossed your P file in your safe.
It was common practice also to write a memo for the record/memo to file/CYA (yes, the term was used) report when the order did not match the regulations, but you weren’t totally sure if the order was illegal. In these cases, a concientious officer would usually raise the points of contention with the superior, and if he said do it anyway, you wrote a CYA and dropped it in your P file, and hoped for the best.
In the 60s and 70s, Selectric 1 and 2 typewriters were the word processing instrument of choice for the military. Some units used other brands as well. (I worked at one place where Brother was the instrument of choice, and as I remember, the staff thought they sucked.) The IBM executive typewriters were found too, but usually reserved for senior staff, as they were expensive. These IBMs, SELECTRIC and EXECUTIVE, are essentially ‘golf ball’ typewriters. The golf balls were expensive, and they came in a variety of fonts. I remember courier, times new roman, OCR and one other that made a good appearance but I can not recall the name of it–Bookman, maybe?
If I were going to forge a document of this sort, I would find a selectric typewriter first. I would not try to replicate a document on a computer. Not only do you have the problems of ink not matching or spraying due to laser or injet printing, you also would have to adjust the letters so that they appear to be hand typed–SELECTRIC type looked good, but a letter would occasionally misalign–as opposed to computer generated. Selectrics are not rare, you can find them everywhere, still. It doesn’t make sense that anyone would go to that effort to do a job that could be done simply, but nothing makes sense these days.
I pulled out my old P file today. It isn’t actually a file, it is a wide, three ring notebook that is stuffed to the gills with crap. There are several hundred reports on officers from all branches of service that I signed over the years, copies of regs that I had written and updated, and almost 40 memos for the record. Some of the memos had to do with differences in regulation interpretations, others are play-by-plays of long forgotten disciplinary issues, and others are more mundane (a diatribe on who wants what type of modular unit in their reconfigured offices–it must have been important at the time).
P files are not unusual, but your average junior officer will not have reason to have one, or even be aware that a senior keeps one. I didn’t have any awareness of them in my first few years of service. You have to be senior enough to sign OERs/evaluations/fitness reports to bother to start one up. This usually happens at 0-4 at the earliest, and you maintain the file until you retire, and even beyond, if you are conscientious. Two years ago I had a request for a copy of a missing report, and I was able to provide it.
When you ship your household goods in the military, your “professional books and materials” including P files, are not charged against your weight allowance. My file was only a three ring binder, but I have worked for senior officers who have a file cabinet full of personal papers and materials.
I have no way of knowing if CBS actually got hold of the entire P file of this officer, or obtained the memos from another source, but if they do have it, it could be a gold mine for them, if the officer was in the habit of carefully documenting events.
I knew how to type, so I prepared my own memos, but often officers would write memos out in longhand and have a civilian secretary or military administrative personnel type the document. I did this with reports, because I was too impatient to wrestle with the forms, which had to be carefully aligned. Sometimes, these people kept copies of their own, either as a record of their work, or for use as a template or if they liked the way it was written (in the days before the internet, people with files stuffed with good ideas, compelling writing examples and dramatic turns of phrase were very appreciated).
What does this all mean? Who knows, but it provides context for discussion of the issue.
Comment by Military Retiree — 9/10/2004 @ 12:27 am
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