Ted Bogosian And His Untruths About Monte Melkonian

[MosJan]

Ted Bogosian And His Untruths About Monte Melkonian

[ 2010/04/17 | 12:48 ] Feature Stories societyhttp://hetq.am/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Monte-17.04.jpg

 

By Ara Manoogian

 

17 years following his martyrdom in Artsakh, Armenian national hero Monte Melkonian is once again a victim of defamation. I came across a very interesting interview on Radio Open Source with an Armenian decorated filmmaker and documentarian Ted Bogosian. The subject of the interview was Ted's vocation – seeking the truth and telling it.

 

http://hetq.am/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/T-Bogosian-17.04.jpgOpen Source host Christopher Lydon introduced Ted Bogosian as a truth hound and put the 'what is truth' question to him (see: http://www.radioopen...-truth-hound/). What I heard in response less than halfway through the interview led me to think that Ted may have misheard Christopher, thinking he had been asked 'what is a lie' or, for that matter, how to present a lie as truth.

 

As someone committed to truth seeking, I was at first thrilled to learn about an alternative experience from a prominent Armenian until I heard the following statements made by him:

 

"In Armenian Journey there is a very important sequence which didn't make the cut. And that is that I started to pursue an interview with a young man of my age and background named Monte Melkonian. And Monte was born in about the same year, in the central valley of California. And while I was at Duke, he was at Berkley, and when I went to graduate school, he went to graduate school in Beirut. And he was pursuing the truth about the Genocide in his own way and he became radicalized and he went underground and started selling arms and started selling drugs and started an Armenian terrorist movement. And so while I was making Armenian Journey, he was in jail in France, for having masterminded several bombings in Europe, at Orly Airport and at Turkish embassies and other businesses, where many innocent people were killed. And so, I went to see Monte in prison, and it was quite a moment, because he thought that I was there to kill him since he didn't know who I was and wasn't expecting a visitor that day. But I came to start corresponding with him and came to understand his manifesto, and I realized that what he was doing was similar to what I was doing except in a different theater. And so, my battle was against the media to try to tell the story one way, and his battle was more traditional. So, that didn't make the cut because I wouldn't have been able to get the film on television had I presented that manifesto. But I mention it because I want to say that I think this sort of thing is in the blood not only of Armenians but of people who want to tell the truth and, that is, they're willing to go there no matter where it leads." (The audio fragment is at 09:16-11:36).

 

Having devoted over a decade of my life researching Monte Melkonian's brief and thorny path, it was especially saddening for me to hear such irresponsible and defaming statements coming out of a fellow truth seeker's mouth.

 

These statements manifest shoddiness of research, sweeping generalizations and a self-indulgent distortion of recent Armenian history.

 

I would like to see one single piece of evidence that supports Mr. Ted Bogosian's claim that Monte Melkonian was a drug dealer, arms dealer and a founder of a terrorist movement, who masterminded the Orly operation.

 

These are the three major things against which Melkonian had been struggling with all his essence, endangering his life in the process. It was the Orly operation that catalyzed the split of Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA).

 

To be more specific, below I have singled out each of Ted Bogosian's inaccurate claims. Let's start from the most innocent inaccuracies.

 

Ted Bogosian's claim #1: "And Monte was born in about the same year."

 

Ted Bogosian was born in 1951, whereas Monte Melkonian was born in 1957.

 

Ted Bogosian's claim #2: "…and when I went to graduate school, he [Monte Melkonian] went to graduate school in Beirut."

 

Monte Melkonian was admitted to a graduate school at Oxford, but chose to give up his academic career in favor of a trip to Beirut at the onset of the second phase of the civil war and joined the defense of Bourj Hammoud, the Armenian quarter of the city.

 

Ted Bogosian's claim #3: "…and [Monte Melkonian] started selling arms and started selling drugs…"

 

All the accounts of people who knew him, whether interviewed by me or other researchers, including those who spoke up at their own initiative, indicate that Monte was adamantly opposed to drugs, be it for use or for sale.

 

Throughout my research, I haven't come across any evidence of Monte being involved in arms or drug dealing. According to one of Monte's brothers-in-arms, once Monte, already a Commander of Martuni Defense Region, refused Samvel Babayan, Commander of the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army, to promote an officer only because he smoked marijuana.

 

He had even banned his soldiers from using alcohol, which was common practice in other detachments.

 

More importantly, Monte earned himself highly influential enemies after burning lucrative cannabis fields in a noble attempt to shut down the local drug trade.

 

This deed was followed by a few attempts on his life. One might assume that Monte could use the proceeds from supposed drug sales to feed and equip the poorly armed fighters under his command. All evidence indicates that he had ignored any such compromise.

 

Ted Bogosian's claim #4: "…he [Monte Melkonian] started a terrorist movement."

 

This is an outright false statement. ASALA, to which Ted Bogosian refers, was founded in 1975 in Beirut, Lebanon during the first phase of the Lebanese Civil War by Harutiun Takoshian, alias Hagop Hagopian.

 

This was 3 years before Monte arrived in Lebanon for the first time. Monte was recruited by ASALA in 1980 after serving in an Armenian militia group in the Beirut suburb of Bourj Hammoud helping defend the Armenian population during the civil war.

 

Furthermore, based on the accounts of both supporters and opponents of ASALA, Monte played a pivotal role in the violent split of the organization in 1983 into those who supported the despotic leader Hagop Hagopian and those who disapproved his methods of struggle exactly because it took innocent lives, as well as distracted the attention from the cause the attacks were supposed to raise awareness of.

 

Ted Bogosian's claim #5: "…he [Monte Melkonian] was in jail in France, for having masterminded several bombings in Europe, at Orly Airport and at Turkish embassies and other businesses, where many innocent people were killed."

 

A sweeping generalization. Monte Melkonian was arrested for possession of a falsified passport and an illegal handgun in Paris on November 28, 1985.

 

He was sentenced to six years but served only three and a half. The Orly airport attack, which took place on July 15, 1983, and did kill and wound many innocent people, was masterminded by his already archenemy Hagop Hagopian and carried out by the latter's supporters in Paris.

 

The only people tried for the Orly airport attack were Varadjian Garbidjian (also spelled as Varoujan Garabedian life sentence, released 17 years later), Soner Nayir (15 years), Ohannes Semerci (10 years).

 

Parallel to the preparation of the Orly operation, inner turmoil was in progress within ASALA due to the widening gap between the members of the organization over the despotic leadership of Hagopian, the methods of struggle and, specifically, the implementation of the Orly attack.

 

Monte was in the opposition wing. But despite his efforts to cancel the the Orly operation, it was implemented, accelerating the final split of ASALA.

 

Who knows, the Karabagh war could have been a lost cause, had Monte Melkonian been the mastermind of the Orly airport attack and therefore gotten a life sentence?

 

Melkonian was arrested twice. In his court documents there was neither evidence, nor allegations supporting Mr. Bogosian's announcement regarding his participation in the attack in any form, as well as arms and/or drug dealing.

 

It would have been convenient for the French authorities and to Monte's enemies to find such evidence, but there was none.

 

To support my claim, I suggest that interested individuals read The Right to Struggle, My Brother's Road, Reality, A Self Criticism and a dozen other books.

Ted Bogosian's claim #6: "I went to see Monte in prison, and it was quite a moment, because he thought that I was there to kill him…"

 

Okay, let me try to get this straight. Monte thought that Mr. Bogosian came to the prison to kill him?

 

So, Mr. Bogosian is saying that Monte thought an Armenian-American filmmaker was going to walk into a high security prison, formerly a concentration camp, armed guards watching his every move, and kill him?

 

What about checking for weapons before entering the highly guarded visiting room? Ted Bogosian makes it sound like Monte was in a health spa in the South of France.

 

I provided my arguments as accurately as I could and am willing to embrace supporting evidence that proves Mr. Bogosian's claims.

 

Otherwise, as a friend of mine put it, Mr. Bogosian's interview is more like "Ted talking about Ted – not the truth." I welcome facts, as they will enrich our knowledge about who Monte really was.

 

http://hetq.am/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/A-Manoogian-17.04.jpgWith that said, I invite Ted Bogosian to set the record straight by exchanging his recollections with evidence and facts. Otherwise a public apology from Ted Bogosian is in order.

 

Ara Manoogian is a human rights activist representing the Shahan Natalie Family Foundation in Artsakh and Armenia, as well as a member of the Washington-based Policy Forum Armenia (PFA)

[MosJan]

inch tarorinak mardiq kan...

[Zartonk]

Riding coattails of better men...

[Moushegh]

What nerve this man has!

 

Anyone have his email?

I'd be thrilled to ask him about these 'inaccuracies' pointed out by Mr. Manoogian.

 

 

 

 

 

Can you believe this??

 

 

 

Christopher Lydon: Ted Bogosian: Confessions of a Truth Hound

April 2, 2010

 

Ted Bogosian is one of those uncommon journalists and filmmakers for whom the stark truth of the matter is all that counts. Truth at the far pole from truthiness. Emotional truth. Historical truth. Negotiable truth, which is to say: politically useful truth. Truth so awful sometimes that most of us — whether victims, perps or bystanders — would just as soon turn away.

 

 

Listen in on the conversation here:

 

TB: Being Armenian requires a different standard of truth telling. What’s in your DNA is this business of overcoming denial… The first thing in my life I remember is standing in my backyard in New Jersey, watching my grandmother, who was a survivor of the genocide, making a pile of rocks and telling me, in her broken English, that “nothing mattered.” And for her to be saying that to a 3-year-old boy, based on what she had witnessed, started my journey toward making that film 30 years later, which was about all the apocryphal stories and all the real stories I had heard growing up. I had to decide for myself which ones were true. And when I did, I had to figure out a way to relate those truths to the world. So I think it’s different for Armenians and for other ethnic groups trying to overcome similar denials.

 

CL: In other words, truth hounds don’t just happen.

 

TB: There has to be a powerful momentum, an irresistible force, pushing you in that direction. Otherwise it’s too easy to take the path of least resistance.

 

 

http://www.asianews.com.pk/2010/04/christopher-lydon-ted-bogosian-confessions-of-a-truth-hound/

[AraManoogian]

What nerve this man has!

 

Anyone have his email?

I'd be thrilled to ask him about these 'inaccuracies' pointed out by Mr. Manoogian.

 

 

 

 

 

Can you believe this??

 

 

 

 

I believe you can email him at tedbogosian @ mac(dot)com though I have not yet heard back from him, though that does not mean he will not be getting back to me.

 

If you live in the Boston area, you could always go down to Duke on Monday to ask him face to face. His office phone number is on the internet as well as the classes he is teaching.

Edited April 18, 2010 by AraManoogian

[Arpa]

Who is this clown to desecrate the sacred memory of Monte anyway? ASALA?

Obviously he is a diehard anti-Dashank Ramkavar.

Note that those other dogs define "diaspora" as a synonym for "dashnak".

There was a time when even I thought the Ramkavars were our "salvation". Little did I know that their one and only agenda was to counter the Dashnaks. Now, it seems they are drowning in their own manure. I have been receiving, gratis, their "RAG" known as Mirror Spectator for quite sometime, whose main topics and letters are diatribes at the Dashnaks.

Are they those "certain Diasporans" that dog dav-it-oghlu is talking about? How many of the members can read Armenian? Why has their Party Organ stopped publishing "Payqar/Պայքար"** in the Armenian Language. How many of them can read Armenian?

** It means "struggle" not unlike the Arabic word "Jihad".

Edited April 19, 2010 by Arpa

[Moushegh]

I believe you can email him at tedbogosian @ mac(dot)com though I have not yet heard back from him, though that does not mean he will not be getting back to me.

 

If you live in the Boston area, you could always go down to Duke on Monday to ask him face to face. His office phone number is on the internet as well as the classes he is teaching.

 

Thank you, Mr Manoogian for providing his email, and also for your efforts to set the record straight and clear Monte's name. I urge everyone to email him and respectfully demand an explanation and a public apology for these blatant false statements.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have very little doubt that he is funded or at the very least supported by Ramkavars. What a disgrace!

[MosJan]

like to see his face wan he gets an Email from ASALA or a knock on his doors, adiga ov e , ?? ASALA/en em qezi pan m@ peradz em vordght tnem ??

[Moushegh]

Email sent.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Ted Bogosian,

 

 

 

I am writing to you today because I have grave concerns about statements which you have made publicly regarding Monte Melkonian.

I ask that you substantiate these dubious statements which you have made;

 

 

 

1) "Monte was born in about the same year."

Is not a fact, that you were born in 1951?

 

I ask you, sir, is this an accurate and truthful statement for someone who claims to be a "truth" hound?

 

 

 

2) "…and when I went to graduate school, he [Monte Melkonian] went to graduate school in Beirut."

Is it not a fact, that Monte Melkonian was admitted to a graduate school at Oxford?

 

I ask you, sir, is this an accurate and truthful statement for someone who claims to be a "truth" hound?

 

 

 

3) "…and [Monte Melkonian] started selling arms and started selling drugs…"

Is it not true, that according to people who knew him, including those who spoke up at their own initiative, have indicated that Monte was adamantly opposed to drugs, be it for use or for sale?

Is it not true, that according to one of Monte's brothers-in-arms, once Monte, already a Commander of Martuni Defense Region, refused Samvel Babayan, Commander of the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army, to promote an officer only because he smoked marijuana?

Is it not true, that Monte earned himself highly influential enemies after burning lucrative cannabis fields in a noble attempt to shut down the local drug trade?

 

I ask you, sir, is your claim that Monte "started selling drugs" an accurate and truthful statement for someone who claims to be a "truth" hound?

 

 

 

4) "…he [Monte Melkonian] started a terrorist movement."

Is it not a fact, that ASALA was founded in 1975 in Beirut, Lebanon by Harutiun Takoshian, alias Hagop Hagopian?

 

I ask you, sir, is your claim that "he started a terrorist movement" an accurate and truthful statement for someone who claims to be a "truth" hound?

 

 

 

 

5) "…he [Monte Melkonian] was in jail in France, for having masterminded several bombings in Europe, at Orly Airport "

Is it not a fact, that Monte Melkonian was arrested for possession of a falsified passport and an illegal handgun in Paris on November 28, 1985?

Is it not a fact, that the only ones convicted of the Orly airport attack were Varadjian Garbidjian , Soner Nayir, Ohannes Semerci?

 

I ask you, sir, is your claim that "he [Monte Melkonian] was in jail in France for having masterminded several bombings in Europe, at Orly Airport " an accurate and truthful statement for someone who claims to be a "truth" hound?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Ted Bogosian, you have some explaining to do!

 

 

On behalf of every [genuine] truth and justice seeking person, regardless of national origin, I challenge you to rehabilitate your reputation and credibility by explaining these 'inconsistent' statements which you have made. If you are unable to provide to us an explanation then I demand that you offer a public apology and clear your name for making these 'inaccurate' and deeply disturbing statements against an honorable man who gave his life defending his country. his people, and freedom.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Regards,

 

 

 

Moushegh Kalajian

[Arpa]

I thought the name sounded familiar. Sure enough. Here he is. I do remember that docu;

http://armenianstudies.csufresno.edu/faculty/kouymjian/speechs/filmmaking.htm

At the end of the 1980s, younger directors made rather good films on the Genocide. Certainly one of the best if not the best film to treat the Armenian Genocide and its consequences thus far is by a young documentary filmmaker, Theodore Bogosian from Boston, who established a strong reputation in public television before producing and directing An Armenian Voyage (1989). Bogosian uses as the central character in the film a Genocide survivor, Miriam Davis, who he accompanies on a moving visit to her birthplace in Turkey and the places where she saw her father, mother, and brother die.

[Boghos]

If I were Ted Bogosian I would choose somebody else to do research on. Rather, I would choose somebody else and actually do the research.

[Arpa]

If I were Ted Bogosian I would choose somebody else to do research on. Rather, I would choose somebody else and actually do the research.

Barev Boghos Boghosovich Boghosian. You said it better then I ever could.

We need better scientific historians. Not Hnchak, not Dashank, not Ramkavar "historians/schmistorians-", not stambolian, not "marash-li-an", not "yerevan-LI-ian", hysterectomic hystorikians, but "skyentifik" (Hi Popeye!) : oops: I mean "scientific". What we need is more "historians" fed on "spanakh"

==

This;

http://www.foodhaccp.com/memberonly/0925a.gif

====

or this;

http://www.getprice.com.au/images/uploadimg/1051/350__1_okra55-1.jpg

Edited April 20, 2010 by Arpa

[Boghos]

Arpa jan, I really enjoy okra. I remember very fondly my grandmother on my father's side cooking it with tomato and a touch of lemon juice. Later on I learned a very simple recipe of creole okra which is delicious.

I do understand some peoples wish to demistify historical figures or institutions. Be as it may, our own myths are rather modest and often anti-heros. Even the most recalcitrant Tashnaks can't really come up with super human idols. Today I think this is a great trait we have.

all the best,

B.

[Arpa]

Arpa jan, I really enjoy okra. I remember very fondly my grandmother on my father's side cooking it with tomato and a touch of lemon juice. Later on I learned a very simple recipe of creole okra which is delicious.

I do understand some peoples wish to demistify historical figures or institutions. Be as it may, our own myths are rather modest and often anti-heros. Even the most recalcitrant Tashnaks can't really come up with super human idols. Today I think this is a great trait we have.

all the best,

B.

Yes Dear Boghos,I too like okra/bamia, and I often have it. However I do remember when we would not even go home for lunch on bamia days. Most children don’t like it for a variety of reasons, neither do the average Americans simply because they have no imagination, they don’t know how to prepare it, they just boil it, maybe with some butter.

Not to forget that some Armenians use the word "bamia" as a euphmist for a certain immature male anatomical appendage; http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://greenarbytheday.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/okra_22.jpg&imgrefurl=http://greenarbytheday.wordpress.com/2009/08/13/preservation-technique-how-to-freeze-okra/&h=362&w=500&sz=55&tbnid=w9JLZhTQ3JdB8M:&tbnh=94&tbnw=130&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dokra%2Bpictures&hl=en&usg=__aVmWeQHLZ0EvD-wfR09XlqU-I8U=&ei=1bDNS7mALYqy9gTRndCsDw&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=1&ct=image&ved=0CAYQ9QEwAA

:ap:

----

Getting back to Bogosian v Monte, I have written about that “Armenian malady”. Whereas we deify and adore other personages, obey them and .... Case in point, we don't even have the decency to address our own with respect. while we cal,l those other dogs with honorific titlee. Look at the three presidents that Armenia has had in the last two decades. We could not wait even one day before beginning to vilify them. We don’t even have the decency to call them “president”, “levonik”, “roibertik” and “sergik”, "ptsik -pllik" etc.? Of course, after all they are our own snotty/khllot boys, unlike when we call that dog hamid “sultan", and the other dog talaat "poopoo/kaka" etc.

As a rule the Armenian motto is “gna merir ari sirem”, look at all those we vilified during their lifetimes , comes to mind Abovian, Charents, Bakounts, Komitas and many more, to only deify them after their demise.

I am sure you have seen this; http://hyeforum.com/index.php?showtopic=18401&st=0&p=245113&hl=heretic&fromsearch=1entry245113

Another Armenian custom is to never vilify a dearly departed, just listen to some of the eulogies at the funeral of a most despicable person…. Yet this Ted did not even have the decency to follow that rule. Of course, Monte is dead, he died a hero’s death, he cannot speak on his behalf. Shame on him for speaking evil of the dead.. What has he done for the nation?

Speaking of which, I wish I could find a video of the Armenian Journey docu he had produced. What I remember, yes, there were allegations of Genocide, if only as sideline, the rest of the story, something I hate so was a nostalgic trip to her “homeland” and remising how they peacefully lived together with their “furkish brothers” UNTIL….. Is that not what erbokhan and dav-it-oghlu are saying, that we hade been brothers all those years and centuries UNTIL…. Why can’t we get back to those days when we say “JUMP” and you say “HOW HIGH”? When we say “DIE” , and you let us know if by the sword, starvation or the gallows.

Too bad Armenians did not invent or learn how to use this…

Edited April 20, 2010 by Arpa

[Boghos]

Ah, yes dear Arpa, I decided to skip this most horrible behaviour that we often have just because I am sick and tired of it. It is quite true that we may have our modest, humble heroes but seem to find supermen outside our own. Thankfully we have quite a few that eschew this idiotic nonsense.

[AraManoogian]

I don’t know about anyone else, but I received a response from Ted Bogosian telling me “I will respond tomorrow, Ara.” He sent the message via Cingular Xpress Mail with a Blackberry.

 

Well tomorrow came and he responded to me alright, but instead of an email from Ted explaining his statements or offering an apology, I received an email from his legal counsel Jeffrey K. Techentin of ADLER POLLOCK & SHEEHAN P.C.

 

I won’t get into the details of the message at this time, but will just say that instead of addressing the issue of Ted making defaming statements about Armenian National Hero Monte Melkonian, the email was one of those I will sue you Ara if you don’t back off letters that I usually get from those people who know they are up the creak without a paddle and are going to fall very hard. From the emails, I can conclude that Ted is going to be hard nut to crack, but as Monte stated in one of the youtube videos I’ve posted of him, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. If my perfect score of bringing corrupt mafia/government figures to terms with the truth means anything, I can tell you that it will be just a matter of time that Ted will cave in and do right by everyone and would like to add that there is a good chance it will be much sooner rather than later.

 

One good thing came of this so far and that is that Ted knows that we are not happy about his defaming an Armenian national hero and that we also know that the email address I have posted is accurate, which you can feel free to send your messages to and Ted will get them on his Blackberry.

 

For those of you who have written to Ted and not heard back from him, you may want to try sending a copy of your message to Ted’s attorney Jeffrey K. Techentin at: Jtechentin @ apslaw (dot) com or you can telephone Jeff at (401) 427-6147. Alternatively feel free to send Jeff a fax to (401) 351-4607. According to Jeff, any further communication from me should be directed to him (for I’m sure for a hefty fee to Ted).

[Moushegh]

What a coward. Publicly defame someone - a fellow countryman and national hero no less (who isn't even alive to defend himself), then run and hide behind the skirt of an attorney. If he does have the information to back up his claims, then why this need to put an attorney on retainer? It's crystal clear that he knows he cannot back-up his statements, otherwise he would have done so.

 

 

 

Way to go, Mr. Manoogian! I applaud you for spearheading this campaign to clear Monte's name. You've got him worried and on the run. I'm certain that Monte is smiling from ear to ear.

 

You have our support, I'll send Mr. Techentin an email asking him why his client is unwilling to respond to my email.

 

 

 

 

Brothers and sisters, Monte sacrificed so much for us, I plead with everyone to do whatever we can to keep the pressure on Mr. Bogosian until justice prevails.

Thank you.

[ED]

I don’t know about anyone else, but I received a response from Ted Bogosian telling me “I will respond tomorrow, Ara.” He sent the message via Cingular Xpress Mail with a Blackberry.

 

Well tomorrow came and he responded to me alright, but instead of an email from Ted explaining his statements or offering an apology, I received an email from his legal counsel Jeffrey K. Techentin of ADLER POLLOCK & SHEEHAN P.C.

 

I won’t get into the details of the message at this time, but will just say that instead of addressing the issue of Ted making defaming statements about Armenian National Hero Monte Melkonian, the email was one of those I will sue you Ara if you don’t back off letters that I usually get from those people who know they are up the creak without a paddle and are going to fall very hard. From the emails, I can conclude that Ted is going to be hard nut to crack, but as Monte stated in one of the youtube videos I’ve posted of him, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. If my perfect score of bringing corrupt mafia/government figures to terms with the truth means anything, I can tell you that it will be just a matter of time that Ted will cave in and do right by everyone and would like to add that there is a good chance it will be much sooner rather than later.

 

One good thing came of this so far and that is that Ted knows that we are not happy about his defaming an Armenian national hero and that we also know that the email address I have posted is accurate, which you can feel free to send your messages to and Ted will get them on his Blackberry.

 

For those of you who have written to Ted and not heard back from him, you may want to try sending a copy of your message to Ted’s attorney Jeffrey K. Techentin at: Jtechentin @ apslaw (dot) com or you can telephone Jeff at (401) 427-6147. Alternatively feel free to send Jeff a fax to (401) 351-4607. According to Jeff, any further communication from me should be directed to him (for I’m sure for a hefty fee to Ted).

 

 

that explains a lot and dont think some Armenians are amune to prostitution.

ove lsel kattsini u tsareri patmutyun@?

 

Gluxe yerkatsitse bayts poch@ meznits!!!!

[AraManoogian]

Thank you everyone for your kind words of support. By all means, please keep the pressure on Ted.

 

On the Huffington Post (see: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/christopher-lydon/ted-bogosian-confessions_b_523557.html) a couple of comments were posted by someone going by the name of "Bogosian." I can't be certain if this is in fact Ted Bogosian, but will just re-post them here for you to read and comment if you would like (any input from you may be used in the next article that should come out in a few days). For now I will not reply to these post other than say to you here that in my opinion the comments fall miles short of an explanation or acceptable apology. You be the judge. Oh and if anyone writes to Ted, ask him if these are his comments or those of some else?

 

"I am pleased that my conversation with Christopher Lydon has inspired such informed comments. The FARA database is in desperate need of reform. There is not enough transparency or timeliness now, as JustineH, FirstTimeVoter and others indicate. Finally, I pledge to correct any inadvertent errors and omissions I may have made at Brown, as always. That is a Truth Hound's obligation. Thanks to everyone for listening." - Posted by Bogosian at 11:40 AM on 4/21/2010

 

"CORRECTIONS & AMPLIFICATIONS: While I still consider Monte Melkonian and myself to be the "same age" (as I told Chris Lydon in this podcast), Monte was, in fact, 6 years younger. Monte was an undergraduate at UC-Berkeley, not a graduate student there. I could have identified the terrorist movement he started: ASALA-Revolutionary Movement. Finally, while Monte was convicted of illegal weapons possession, he was not charged with selling arms or illegal drugs. (I knew him to practice healthful living habits during his imprisonment.) I stand corrected and regret these errors." - Posted by Bogosian at 06:12 PM on 4/22/2010

[Moushegh]

Posted at Huffington post -

I hope that my comment will appear, as all comments are moderated.

 

 

 

 

 

I see that "someone" by the name of 'Bogosian' [a *fan* of Ted Bogosian] has attempted to set the record straight and finally speak the TRUTH about the honorable Armenian freedom fighter and national hero, Monte Melkonian.

 

Why have we not heard from the real Ted Bogosian?

 

I am outraged and disgusted that Mr. Ted Bogosian, a so-called "truth hound" would be so unprofessional and so careless as to publicly make statements as "truths" without having done proper research and being able to provide ANY evidence to back-up his claims.

 

Mr. Bogosian is not worthy of being labeled a "truth hound." Until he - the real Ted Bogosian - makes a public statement about all the 'inconsistent' statements defaming Monte Melkonian, then the label that is most fitting Mr. Te Bogosian is simply ... A FRAUD!

[AraManoogian]

Ted Bogosian Loyal To His Untruths About Monte Melkonian

By Ara Manoogian

 

"Silence is one of the hardest arguments to refute," Josh Billings, a 19th century popular American humorist, once famously said. But no matter how hard it appears to be, I have no other choice but to start a dialogue with a wall of silence, behind which Ted Bogosian the Truth Seeker has opted to hide. One circumstance, however, plays in my favor: the more garrulous your interlocutor has been preceding his avowed silence, the more vulnerable the latter becomes. This point was brilliantly proven by Ted Bogosian himself just a few days ago in what appeared to be a desperate attempt to stand corrected… by silencing the truth.

 

It's been roughly a month since Radio Open Source host Christopher Lydon's infamous interview with Ted Bogosian, an award-winning Armenian-American director, documentarian and journalist, was aired online and reposted throughout the web. The dissemination of the radio interview served the noble agenda of spreading the word about the heart of the Armenian cause - the Armenian Genocide and the Turkish denialism. However, his headlong pursuit of big truths was regrettably marred with loads of misinformation dishonoring Armenian national hero Monte Melkonian, one of the most revered martyrs of modern Armenian history who put his life at stake for the defense of fellow Armenians and their victory in an unequal war. Mr. Bogosian spoke from the viewpoint of a Truth Hound as he was presented at the onset of the interview. He made a number of serious unsupported claims that Monte Melkonian started a terrorist movement, selling arms and drugs, masterminding the Orly Airport attack of July 15, 1983 in Paris, as well as Turkish embassies in Europe and other businesses.

 

When the dead cannot stand up for their own defense, someone alive has to. Having spent over a decade researching the life and death of Monte Melkonian but never once coming across evidence that would support any such claim, I wrote Ted Bogosian an email on April 13, 2010. In my heartfelt message, I kindly asked him to share the supporting evidence I assumed he would have for the claims regarding Monte Melkonian he made in the interview. In expectation of never-before-seen evidence I refrained from repudiating any of his claims based on my own research.

 

Four days of Ted Bogosian's absolute silence and/or complete indifference - thus, lack of supporting evidence for his claims - compelled me to set the record straight based on existing evidence. I wrote an article and submitted it to Hetq, a leading newspaper of investigative journalism in Armenia. At the same time, I wrote Mr. Bogosian another email as a reminder for a response to my previous letter. But no reply followed. As a next step, I posted the whole article as a comment under his interview at Radio Open Source website and Huffington post to make sure he receives my message. Then I embarked on a mission to make sure my refutation of Ted Bogosian's untruths catches up with the speed at which his interview with dubious truths was spreading online.

 

Although a couple of people had already voiced their discontent with Bogosian's inaccurate claims about Monte Melkonian's pre-Artsakh past prior to the posting of my article, it is a bitter truth that the presentation of someone as a Truth Hound is for the majority of people sufficient evidence of the veracity of any statement uttered by him or her. For many people these "truths" become facts, and thus history is unjustly rewritten.

 

I contacted Markar Melkonian, Monte Melkonian's brother, the co-author of My Brother's Road, a biography of Monte Melkonian, to get his commentary regarding Ted Bogosian's latest interview. He had this to say: "By far the most scurrilous of Bogosian's claims is his contention that Monte masterminded attacks such as Orly. Not only was Monte not involved in this attack in any way, but as you [Ara Manoogian - A.M.] quite correctly noted, Orly and similar attacks drove Monte into desperate plans to kill Hagopian [Hagop Hagopian, founder of ASALA - A.M.] and any of his henchmen who got in the way, in order to stop such operations. With each outrage Monte became more desperate, until he resolved to take steps against Hagopian, with the full expectation that he would be killed in the process. Monte abhorred Orly, the Istanbul bazaar attack and the Ankara Airport attack, both because they took innocent lives, and because he believed such attacks harmed the cause to which he had pledged his life."

 

As Ted Bogosian's silence grew more deafening, and I received no confirmation that he had, in fact, received my emails, I implemented a tactic I was certain would repudiate an old Italian proverb: "Silence was never written down." It was, in fact, on April 20, 2010. The tactic was to register tedbogosian.com and tedbogosian.blogspot.com, then upload my article debunking Ted Bogosian's untruths about Monte Melkonian. Immediately after that I sent an email to the address I still believed belonged to Ted Bogosian, notifying him of the registration of tedbogosian.com for exposing his lies about Monte Melkonian. Silence was finally and immediately written down, as mentioned above, on April 20, 2010, as frugal as it was. Ted Bogosian wrote: "I will respond tomorrow, Ara."

 

The next day I received an email from Jeffrey K. Techentin of Adler Pollock & Sheehan P.C. engaged to represent Ted Bogosian with respect to my registration and use of www.tedbogosian.com and www.tedbogosian.blogspot.com. The content of his email revealed utilization of a more traditional tactic: when you can't answer the core question, you have to cloud the issue. To this effect Mr. Techentin had this to say: "Mr. Bogosian has forwarded me the communications received from you. Please refer any further communications directly to me. Additionally, please note that Mr. Bogosian takes your threats very seriously, and objects to your appropriation of his name for your own purposes." The latter of the concerns is understandable and expected, however, I was baffled by the respectable Truth Hound's perception of my pursuit of truth as a threat. I honestly expected his cooperation in finding the truth wherever it leads. I must have been misled by Mr. Bogosian's bold statement in the same interview in question: "Every single truth that gets revealed leads to another and other and other, and we may never arrive at truth. But we're obligated to try. That's my view."

 

Having had them serve their purpose - making Ted Bogosian speak out - I parked the domains. When it became clear that Bogosian was unwilling to address the issue as seriously as he had taken the non-existent threats his attorney had referred to, I decided to issue a press release uncovering Ted Bogosian's untruths on April 22, 2010. As I had hoped, many media outlets responded to the cause by publishing it. I should also note that I received scores of emails encouraging my efforts. I'll take advantage of this platform and say a big "thank you."

 

Nonetheless, one thing that the launch of the press release revealed for me was the justification of my apprehension that there will never be a shortage of people falling short of transcending stereotypical judgment, such as this: if you are a terrorist, then you kill innocent people, sell drugs and arms. How many people will question this? With this stereotype, one will perhaps be right nine times out of ten. However, Monte Melkonian, an exceptionally gifted person who preferred standing up and dying for the rights of his nation at any cost over a brilliant academic career awaiting him at one of the most prestigious European universities, deserves to be more than just a negligible statistical error differing from the expected value. This is my chief concern that has been fueling my active stance on inhibiting public dissemination of Ted Bogosian's inaccuracies purported to be facts.

 

Later that day, Ted Bogosian, as confirmed by Radio Open Source host Christopher Lydon, his friend of 35 years, posted a comment under the interview on Huffington Post: "I am pleased that my conversation with Christopher Lydon has inspired such informed comments. […] Finally, I pledge to correct any inadvertent errors and omissions I may have made at Brown, as always. That is a Truth Hound's obligation. Thanks to everyone for listening."

 

Mr. Bogosian fulfilled his promise the next day by posting "corrections and amplifications" in the form of a comment at the Radio Open Source and, with some minor difference, at Huffington Post, which reads as follows:

 

"CORRECTIONS & AMPLIFICATIONS: Everything I told Open Source about Monte Melkonian related to the period ending in April 1988, when “An Armenian Journey” premiered on PBS. I did not reference Monte’s exploits after he left prison. While I still consider Monte and myself to be the “same age”, he was, in fact, 6 years younger. Monte was an undergraduate at UC-Berkeley, not a graduate student there. I could have named the terrorist movement he started: ASALA-Revolutionary Movement. Finally, while Monte was convicted of illegal weapons possession, he was not charged with selling arms or illegal drugs. (I knew him to practice healthful living habits during his imprisonment.) I stand corrected and regret these errors and omissions."

 

How can Ted Bogosian "stand corrected" if he has provided elusive responses to most of my questions and ignored the others. Isn't there anything to correct in the following statement he made in the interview to Radio Open Source: "[Monte Melkonian] having masterminded several bombings in Europe, at Orly Airport"? I wrote as many as five paragraphs to tell the story behind this bombing as I know it in an attempt to set the record straight that Monte Melkonian not only was not involved in that attack but also did his utmost to prevent it (for more details read claim #5 in "Ted Bogosian And His Untruths About Armenian National Hero Monte Melkonian"). At the same time, I requested evidence from Mr. Bogosian to back up that claim. But instead of providing supporting evidence or retracting the false statement, he has shrouded the issue with silence. However, I'll try to analyze each of Ted Bogosian's responses pertaining to the matter.

 

• "Monte was an undergraduate at UC-Berkeley, not a graduate student there.

What Mr. Bogosian had stated in the original interview was as follows: "And while I was at Duke, he was at Berkley, and when I went to graduate school, he went to graduate school in Beirut." Monte never went to graduate school in Beirut, he was admitted to graduate school at Oxford but he never went there. Mr. Bogosian's latest response is simply inadequate.

 

• "I could have named the terrorist movement he started: ASALA-Revolutionary Movement."

 

This correction refers to the following statement in the original interview: "[Monte Melkonian]

started an Armenian terrorist movement." I had identified this terrorist movement with ASALA, which was founded by Hagop Hagopian in 1975 and Monte Melkonian was recruited in 1980 (for more details read claim #4 in "Ted Bogosian And His Untruths About Armenian National Hero Monte Melkonian"). In his attempt to clarify this statement, Mr. Bogosian identified that terrorist movement as ASALA-Revolutionary Movement (ASALA-RM). I wonder what exactly made him conclude that ASALA-RM is a terrorist movement.

 

ASALA fell apart at Monte Melkonian's initiative exactly because of the murderous deviation of Hagop Hagopian. The Orly Airport attack masterminded by Hagopian was the final blow to the unity of ASALA and the finishing touch to the split spearheaded by Monte Melkonian. ASALA-RM, the resulting splinter, in its early stage is best represented through the following collectively written statement: "We do not believe in benevolent friends, the inevitable triumph of justice, or covertly and cleverly manipulating the superpowers. If we are to achieve national self-determination, then we ourselves, the Armenian people, will have to fight for it. We believe in the power of organized masses and in the capacity of our people to determine their own future. We believe in revolution." This movement that had no real members but quite a few sympathizers became the personification of Monte Melkonian who concentrated on raising awareness about the Armenian cause mainly through writing.

 

In the times when there's no definitive international consensus on a legally binding definition of terrorism and terrorist organizations, Mr. Bogosian is making hasty conclusions. Personally, I am more inclined towards this viewpoint of a terrorist and counter-insurgency expert Bruce Hoffman: "Terrorism is a pejorative term. It is a word with intrinsically negative connotations that is generally applied to one's enemies and opponents, or to those with whom one disagrees and would otherwise prefer to ignore." Labeling a revolutionary movement as terrorist, while it seeks to unite the nation to struggle for self-determination, is usually the signature of governments targeted by such movements.

 

• "Finally, while Monte was convicted of illegal weapons possession, he was not charged with selling arms or illegal drugs."

 

This correction refers to my criticism targeting the following passage in his original interview: “…and [Monte Melkonian] started selling arms and started selling drugs…” None of the abundant evidence I have researched about Monte Melkonian maintains this claim. On the contrary, there are plenty of stories about Monte Melkonian being a fierce opponent to drug use or sale (for more details read claim #3 in "Ted Bogosian And His Untruths About Armenian National Hero Monte Melkonian").

 

Ted Bogosian's response to my question is a cunning way to steer away from the main point. His statement clearly implies that not being charged with selling arms or illegal drugs does not necessarily exclude the possibility of being involved in such activity. It is neither a retraction nor a clarification, but rather a fragile exit strategy due to lack of supporting evidence. I was not questioning only the validity of the charges Mr. Bogosian ascribed to Monte Melkonian's case in the interview, but also his assertion that Monte Melkonian was involved in such activity. I'm still waiting for supporting evidence or unconditional retraction of these false statements.

 

Silence is a text easy to misread, as science-fiction writer Alfred Attanasio once said. Nevertheless, I want to believe that Mr. Bogosian had no malice in ascribing all of the aforementioned inaccuracies to Monte Melkonian, and I believe that his good will may well be manifested by a full-fledged direct response to each of the questions I singled out and any others he might be enthused to enlarge on. If Ted Bogosian is a man of his word and believes "we're obligated to try" to "arrive at truth," he must then fulfill his "pledge to correct any inadvertent errors and omissions" more elaborately with the following options as guidelines: a) present evidence to support his claims; retract the claims, for which he cannot provide supporting evidence; c) make corresponding arrangements to have the parts of radio interview that include the abovementioned misinformation about Monte Melkonian removed.

 

Ara Manoogian is a human rights activist representing the Shahan Natalie Family Foundation in Artsakh and Armenia, as well as a member of the Washington-based Policy Forum Armenia (PFA)

[Moushegh]

Wow, so eloquently articulated.

 

Absolutely brilliant, Mr. Manoogian.

 

 

Keep up the noble work, we're behind you 100 percent.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Bogosian, shame on you!

[Zartonk]

Truth Hound...

 

Insubstantial and pseudo-liberal maneuvers for the mere sake of appearing dissident.

 

Fantastic work Ara.

[AraManoogian]

Time to turn up the heat.

 

For those who would like to help to get Ted Bogosian to come clean and set things right, please sign an online petition addressed to Mr. Bogosian which can be found at: http://www.change.org/petitions/view/request_for_evidence_or_retraction_of_false_statements_by_ted_bogosian_about_monte_melkonian

 

Please pass this information on to all your friends.

Edited May 4, 2010 by AraManoogian

[AraManoogian]

Time to turn up the heat.

 

For those who would like to help to get Ted Bogosian to come clean and set things right, please sign an online petition addressed to Mr. Bogosian which can be found at: http://www.change.org/petitions/view/request_for_evidence_or_retraction_of_false_statements_by_ted_bogosian_about_monte_melkonian

 

Please pass this information on to all your friends.

 

 

UPDATE: I had to change the petition server as it was not recording all the signatures. The new link for the petition is: http://www.gopetition.com/online/35986.html

Edited May 6, 2010 by AraManoogian