The Washington Monthly
Read the article, it's a great story. USA Today and the NYT have been wracked by journalism scandals. WSJ hasn't been. Maybe that's because what's scandalous at the NYT and USA Today is just normal behavior at the WSJ.
Wednesday, May 05, 2004
NYT interviews a key witness in the Abu Ghraib case
The New York Times > International > Middle East > Iraqi Recounts Hours of Abuse by U.S. Troops
His narrative rings true -- particularly the relatively benign course prior to the November episode. I wonder about drug abuse in the US guards. This sounds less like a planned procedure inspired by military intelligence and more like a Fellini movie. Were he to end up in a US court, a jury could make him a (justly) wealthy man.
Mr. Abd, 34, is at the center of an explosive scandal over American mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners, but he remained calm in a detailed, two-hour account of his time at the fearsome Abu Ghraib prison. He claimed that he was never interrogated, and never charged with a crime. Officials at the prison said Tuesday that they could not comment on his case.
In November, when the abuse took place, few Shiite Muslims like Mr. Abd were carrying out attacks against United States forces. Nearly all the attacks were attributed to forces loyal to Saddam Hussein, mostly Sunni Muslims, and fighters from other Muslim countries.
'The truth is we were not terrorists,' he said. 'We were not insurgents. We were just ordinary people. And American intelligence knew this.'
Mr. Abd spoke with no particular anger at the American occupation, though he has seen it closer than most Iraqis. In six months in prisons run by American soldiers, in fact, he said most of them had treated him well and with respect.
'Most of the time, they wouldn't even say, `Shut up,' ' he said.
That changed in November — he does not know the exact date — when punishment for a prisoner fight at Abu Ghraib degenerated into torture. That night, he said, he and six other inmates were beaten, stripped naked (a particularly deep humiliation in the Arab world), forced to pile on top of one another, to straddle one another's backs naked, to simulate oral sex. American guards wrote words like 'rapist' on their skin with Magic Marker, he said...
...He was arrested in June at a military checkpoint, when he tried to leave the taxi he was riding in. He was taken to a detention center at the Baghdad airport, he said, and then transferred to a big military prison in Um Qasr, near the Kuwaiti border. He said he had stayed for three months and four days.
The treatment in Um Qasr, he said, "was very good," adding: "There was no problem. The American guards were nice and good people."
After the three months, he said, he was transferred to Abu Ghraib, a sprawling prison complex 20 miles west of Baghdad, where Mr. Hussein incarcerated and executed thousands of his opponents.
But after the prison fight, the victim pointed out Mr. Abd and six others to American guards, and at that moment, his time in prison turned.
Mr. Abd said he and the other men had been handcuffed and taken inside the prison to a cellblock called "the hard site," reserved for the most dangerous prisoners. There he saw, for the first time, an American soldier called "Joiner or something." (Mr. Abd does not speak English. The man he pointed out in the picture as Joiner has been identified in other reports as Specialist Charles A. Granier, of the 372nd Military Police Company.)
"In my pocket, I had three cigarettes," Mr. Abd said. "Joiner said to me, `Put them in your mouth and smoke all of them. If one falls out of your mouth, I will crush you with my boot.' "
The command came through the translator, an Egyptian known by the prisoners as Abu Hamid. In an area in front of the cells, he said, were "Joiner," the translator and two other male soldiers, one bald and one with reddish hair and complexion. He said there were two women: the one whose name he did not know, and the one with the camera, whom he knew as Miss Maya...
...About 10 days after it started, the nightly abuse ended, for no explained reason. "Joiner" just stopped coming to the cell block, and about a month later, Mr. Abd and two others among the seven were transferred to a civilian Iraqi prison in Baghdad.
Two weeks or so after that, an American military investigator came to visit him. He showed Mr. Abd the pictures and said he needed him to make a statement against the military police who had mistreated him. Mr. Abd trusted him.
"He said, `Don't be afraid. Tell us what happened. We are on your side,' " Mr. Abd remembered. " `Tell us everything they have done.' "
Mr. Abd was released in mid-April. Looking back, the only explanation he can imagine for the mistreatment is that "Joiner" had been drinking.
"Americans did not mistreat me in general," he said. "But these people must be tried."...
...About 10 days after it started, the nightly abuse ended, for no explained reason. "Joiner" just stopped coming to the cell block, and about a month later, Mr. Abd and two others among the seven were transferred to a civilian Iraqi prison in Baghdad.
Two weeks or so after that, an American military investigator came to visit him. He showed Mr. Abd the pictures and said he needed him to make a statement against the military police who had mistreated him. Mr. Abd trusted him.
"He said, `Don't be afraid. Tell us what happened. We are on your side,' " Mr. Abd remembered. " `Tell us everything they have done.' "
Mr. Abd was released in mid-April. Looking back, the only explanation he can imagine for the mistreatment is that "Joiner" had been drinking.
"Americans did not mistreat me in general," he said. "But these people must be tried."About 10 days after it started, the nightly abuse ended, for no explained reason. "Joiner" just stopped coming to the cell block, and about a month later, Mr. Abd and two others among the seven were transferred to a civilian Iraqi prison in Baghdad.
Two weeks or so after that, an American military investigator came to visit him. He showed Mr. Abd the pictures and said he needed him to make a statement against the military police who had mistreated him. Mr. Abd trusted him.
"He said, `Don't be afraid. Tell us what happened. We are on your side,' " Mr. Abd remembered. " `Tell us everything they have done.' "
Mr. Abd was released in mid-April. Looking back, the only explanation he can imagine for the mistreatment is that "Joiner" had been drinking.
"Americans did not mistreat me in general," he said. "But these people must be tried."
...On Tuesday, he said, he would travel, finally, with his family back to his home in Nasiriya, though he said he could not stay. He said he would be too ashamed. He wants the American government to pay compensation. He said he felt he needed to move out of Iraq, and despite it all, he said he would not refuse an offer to move to America.
His narrative rings true -- particularly the relatively benign course prior to the November episode. I wonder about drug abuse in the US guards. This sounds less like a planned procedure inspired by military intelligence and more like a Fellini movie. Were he to end up in a US court, a jury could make him a (justly) wealthy man.
Bush Asks Congress for Additional War Funding (washingtonpost.com)
Bush Asks Congress for Additional War Funding (washingtonpost.com)
I presume he means the US cost of WW I, not the cost of all participants?
Impressive numbers, but the relevant number is percentage of GNP. I think that's still a relatively small number, though growing.
Sophisticated munitions, combat intensity and the high cost of an all-volunteer Army have already made the Iraq war an expensive conflict. With an additional $25 billion, the war's total cost exceeds the inflation-adjusted costs of the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, the Spanish-American War and the Persian Gulf War combined, according to a war cost study by Yale University economist William D. Nordhaus.
At $174 billion, the Iraq conflict would be approaching the inflation-adjusted, $199 billion cost of World War I, a level the war will likely pass next year.
I presume he means the US cost of WW I, not the cost of all participants?
Impressive numbers, but the relevant number is percentage of GNP. I think that's still a relatively small number, though growing.
Google is indexing the full content of the scientific literature
Nature Publishing Group: science journals, jobs and information
From a UMLS list posting by Mike Cumments:
I doubt there's a large amount of money in this for Google, but it fits with the social mission of their CEOs. I doubt it makes their VC's happy.
From a UMLS list posting by Mike Cumments:
Google appears to be getting ready to index all of the full content of the scientific literature. They are doing a pilot with publishers until the end of 2004. At this stage they seem to be focused on simply doing a PageRank type search without delving into the semantic content. They do a standard Google search and apply a filter for only the URLs of the 9 publishers.From the infotoday article:
See http://www.infotoday.com/newsbreaks/nb040503-1.shtml for background.
The project description is http://www.crossref.org/crossrefsearch.html.
For a search of the full text content of these publishers using Google go to http://www.nature.com/dynasearch/xrs/
CrossRef (http://www.crossref.org), a 300-member publisher trade association, has announced a pilot project called CrossRef Search that will enable users to search the full text of scholarly journal articles, conference proceedings, and other sources from nine leading publishers. Google will supply the search technologies and CrossRef the reference links to publisher Web sites. While Google will also incorporate CrossRef content connections into its general Web search engine, users who go to publisher Web sites and click on the CrossRef Search icon will reach just the scholarly subset. However, searching through the icon will access content from all participating publishers...
... Searching CrossRef Search will be available to all Web users at no charge. Content will include current journal issues as well as back files. The system uses CrossRef’s DOIs (Digital Object Identifiers) or standard URLs to identify and link to content.
At present, publishers participating in CrossRef Search are:
American Physical Society (http://prola.aps.org/xrs.html)
Annual Reviews (http://arjournals.annualreviews.org/search/external)
Association for Computing Machinery (http://portal.acm.org/xrs.cfm)
Blackwell Publishing (http://www.blackwellsynergy.com/servlet/useragent?func=showSearch&type=external)
Institute of Physics Publishing (http://www.iop.org/EJ/search)
International Union of Crystallography (http://journals.iucr.org/; click “search” and scroll down the page)
Nature Publishing Group (http://www.nature.com/dynasearch/app/dynasearch.taf)
Oxford University Press (http://hmg.oupjournals.org/search.dtl; each journal’s search page includes a link)
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/crossref.html)
These initial publishers produce some 1,100 journals, according to Pentz. Participants have investigations underway to test how to use DOIs to improve indexing and metadata for better retrieval and to enable persistent links from search results to the full text of content at publisher sites.
The initial pilot will last throughout 2004. CrossRef plans to gather feedback from scientists, scholars, and librarians through e-mail forms and formal evaluations using external consultants, according to Pentz. CrossRef is also hoping to discuss similar programs with other search engines, Pentz said.
There are only two rules for joining the pilot program, according to Pentz. “The publisher has to have all their content indexed through the way Google indexes and make the search box available to everyone at no charge.” ...
I doubt there's a large amount of money in this for Google, but it fits with the social mission of their CEOs. I doubt it makes their VC's happy.
Tuesday, May 04, 2004
Canopy Economics
Google Search: "canopy economics"
I was thinking about economics the other day. I used to think of the economy in terms of plate tectonics. When the fundamentals change, when the plates move, the visible surface is transformed.
Nowadays though, the surface seems very persistent. Even when the ground shifts, processes, institutions, entities, persist. Zombie processes stagger on beyond their life expectancy. The economy seems to have a "mind of its own".
So now I think of economics in terms of the "canopy", the layer of the forest that lies above roots and trunks. In a tropical forest I believe the trunks can die, but the canopy -- suspended by interconnections, can be relatively undisturbed.
Call this "Canopy Economics".
A google search found no matches on that phrase. Now there is one!
Update 9/11/06: Well, there are more hits on the Google search now -- but they're all 'splogs'! That is, computer generated web pages designed to trap search engines. I guess they harvested the concept from this page. Hmmm. What would be the neurologic and viral analog of that? DNA fragments, harvested and recombining, emergent systems ....
Update 11/24/07: The splog hits are gone now, and "canopy economics" returns two posts of mine and one post about forestry economics.
I was thinking about economics the other day. I used to think of the economy in terms of plate tectonics. When the fundamentals change, when the plates move, the visible surface is transformed.
Nowadays though, the surface seems very persistent. Even when the ground shifts, processes, institutions, entities, persist. Zombie processes stagger on beyond their life expectancy. The economy seems to have a "mind of its own".
So now I think of economics in terms of the "canopy", the layer of the forest that lies above roots and trunks. In a tropical forest I believe the trunks can die, but the canopy -- suspended by interconnections, can be relatively undisturbed.
Call this "Canopy Economics".
A google search found no matches on that phrase. Now there is one!
Update 9/11/06: Well, there are more hits on the Google search now -- but they're all 'splogs'! That is, computer generated web pages designed to trap search engines. I guess they harvested the concept from this page. Hmmm. What would be the neurologic and viral analog of that? DNA fragments, harvested and recombining, emergent systems ....
Update 11/24/07: The splog hits are gone now, and "canopy economics" returns two posts of mine and one post about forestry economics.
Lord of the Flies at Abu Ghraib
Iraq Prison Supervisors Face Army Reprimand (washingtonpost.com)
Neglected and forgotten young soldiers in a bloody awful citadel of suffering. The only rewards and attention they get comes from satanic private contractors tasked with interrogations too nasty for the CIA to touch.
An idiot could write a play about this. Let the battle for the movie rights begin. Maybe the victims, including those both victim and perpetrator, will be able to sue for a share of the proceeds.
Overall, the report portrays the prison as being run by a poorly led, undermanned and demoralized group of U.S. soldiers. Because of Army personnel policies, it notes, the 800th MP Brigade did not receive replacements as members left for medical reasons or because their terms of service were finished. Also, the report found, the troops' quality of life was 'extremely poor.' They lacked many of the facilities provided to soldiers at other U.S. bases in Iraq, such as mess halls, barbershops and post exchanges, which offer magazines, toiletries and other personal items for sale.
Neglected and forgotten young soldiers in a bloody awful citadel of suffering. The only rewards and attention they get comes from satanic private contractors tasked with interrogations too nasty for the CIA to touch.
An idiot could write a play about this. Let the battle for the movie rights begin. Maybe the victims, including those both victim and perpetrator, will be able to sue for a share of the proceeds.
A War for Us, Fought by Them: Bring back the draft (NYT OpEd)
The New York Times > Opinion > Op-Ed Contributor: A War for Us, Fought by Them
By WILLIAM BROYLES Jr.
I can't really excerpt meaningfully from this NYT OpEd essay. It's a succinct and well written piece by a playwright who's a former (involuntary) marine and a father of a marine serving in Iraq. Unlike most wars, including Vietnam, no child of any administration official is serving in Iraq. Not only is this unfair, it allows the corporate and ruling elite to neglect our soldiers. The Abu Gharaib disaster is, on first inspection, partly a consequence of that neglect. If you drop young people into a terrible environment, and don't provide relief, structure, and support, you get 'The Lord of the Flies'.
The author says we need a draft, presumably of both genders, for the 'war against terror'. Since I have three young children, and since this is likely to be a Forever War, I can't claim much personal enthusiasm for the idea. Nor, however, can I deny the logic. On the other hand, as the author notes, GWB and Cheney managed to avoid service (in Cheney's case he was honest about his avoidance) during a draft. I find it hard to believe, in today's world, that a draft would be any more fair than it was in Vietnam. The result might even be less representative than our volunteer army.
Philosophically though, I don't disagree. I suspect if we had such a draft, Bush would not be up for reelection.
By WILLIAM BROYLES Jr.
I can't really excerpt meaningfully from this NYT OpEd essay. It's a succinct and well written piece by a playwright who's a former (involuntary) marine and a father of a marine serving in Iraq. Unlike most wars, including Vietnam, no child of any administration official is serving in Iraq. Not only is this unfair, it allows the corporate and ruling elite to neglect our soldiers. The Abu Gharaib disaster is, on first inspection, partly a consequence of that neglect. If you drop young people into a terrible environment, and don't provide relief, structure, and support, you get 'The Lord of the Flies'.
The author says we need a draft, presumably of both genders, for the 'war against terror'. Since I have three young children, and since this is likely to be a Forever War, I can't claim much personal enthusiasm for the idea. Nor, however, can I deny the logic. On the other hand, as the author notes, GWB and Cheney managed to avoid service (in Cheney's case he was honest about his avoidance) during a draft. I find it hard to believe, in today's world, that a draft would be any more fair than it was in Vietnam. The result might even be less representative than our volunteer army.
Philosophically though, I don't disagree. I suspect if we had such a draft, Bush would not be up for reelection.
Monday, May 03, 2004
The fallen americans: not as much outrage as some would guess?
Terrorism & Security | csmonitor.com
Maybe this was Bush's strategy ... Our reputation is so low it cannot fall further.
I wonder if this might episode might, paradoxically, ease tensions in in Iraq. It's immensely annoying to have a "superior" civilization constantly blathering about their innate goodness, discipline, and all around wonderfulness. I suspect Bremer can't get away with that act any longer; nor can any other American representative in Iraq. Iraqis have had a dark and shameful recent past, but now they know that that their occupiers are flawed as well. Time for a real discussion?
The Christian Science Monitor reports that the effect of the photos was somewhat blunted because Arabs 'say they expect no less from the United States given the widely held view that it is running a brutal and oppressive occupation in Iraq.'
'Will the pictures make a difference in the Arab world? Probably not,' says Michael Young, a Lebanese political analyst. 'It simply confirms what people already think about the Americans. But it will be embarrassing for the Americans in Iraq, and that's where it's going to count.'
Maybe this was Bush's strategy ... Our reputation is so low it cannot fall further.
I wonder if this might episode might, paradoxically, ease tensions in in Iraq. It's immensely annoying to have a "superior" civilization constantly blathering about their innate goodness, discipline, and all around wonderfulness. I suspect Bremer can't get away with that act any longer; nor can any other American representative in Iraq. Iraqis have had a dark and shameful recent past, but now they know that that their occupiers are flawed as well. Time for a real discussion?
Sunday, May 02, 2004
Guardian Unlimited | Fundagelism ....
Guardian Unlimited | US elections 2004 | God save America ...
This Guardian article is itself a bit extreme, but extremism seems to be indicated nowadays. They claim 90 million evangelicals will vote for Bush -- that seems higher than the numbers I've read -- but I have little faith in the numbers.
The word 'fundagelism' has never appeared in the columns of this newspaper. The term is, however, current in the blogosphere - that cyberforum which nowadays carries the most interestingly paranoid political debate. 'Fundagelism' is not a word that trips easily off the tongue. It's a crunching together of the even more mouth-boggling compound 'fundamentalist evangelism'.
This Guardian article is itself a bit extreme, but extremism seems to be indicated nowadays. They claim 90 million evangelicals will vote for Bush -- that seems higher than the numbers I've read -- but I have little faith in the numbers.
Sharp Blue: Consilience & The Naturalistic Fallacy
Sharp Blue: Consilience
Great review -- I'd heard of consilience but this review has put it on my read list. I also loved the name for a terribly common fallacy, a variant of which is the idea that "that which is natural is also healthy" -- the herbal medicine fallacy.
... the naturalistic fallacy, the idea that what is natural is also moral.
Great review -- I'd heard of consilience but this review has put it on my read list. I also loved the name for a terribly common fallacy, a variant of which is the idea that "that which is natural is also healthy" -- the herbal medicine fallacy.
MSNBC - Rough Justice in Iraq - Janis Karpinski is NOT going quietly
MSNBC - Rough Justice in Iraq
More on the POW scandals. It seems that even a one star general can be dangerous when angry. Karpinski is not going to go quietly, and she'll talk to any media outlet anywhere. She's giving the scandal legs even as Bush & Co try to put it to sleep.
More on the POW scandals. It seems that even a one star general can be dangerous when angry. Karpinski is not going to go quietly, and she'll talk to any media outlet anywhere. She's giving the scandal legs even as Bush & Co try to put it to sleep.
The Barbara Walters adoption game show
Adoption Isn't A Game Show (washingtonpost.com)
I wonder what state she's operating out of? In many states child protective services would be looking in very closely.
Barbara Walters has fallen a long way. ABC must share a deep desperation with her.
The bright side of living in a nation with zillions of laywers is that you know they're all figuring out how best to sue ABC.
Tonight ABC's weekly news program '20/20' is to air Barbara Walters's profile of Jessica, a pregnant 16-year-old who will select among five couples vying to adopt her child. Jessica will participate in an open adoption, an increasingly popular practice that allows adoptive parents and, in many cases, the child to maintain contact with birth parent.
I wonder what state she's operating out of? In many states child protective services would be looking in very closely.
Barbara Walters has fallen a long way. ABC must share a deep desperation with her.
The bright side of living in a nation with zillions of laywers is that you know they're all figuring out how best to sue ABC.
American Express: Reliable service is hard to provide
American Express Personal Finance, Business Solutions, and Travel Services
It's very hard to provide reliable 24x7 service. American Express ought to do well, but they don't. For example:
1. AMEX service for downloading credit card transactions to Quicken is out of order. This is an important function for me, so I use their online email service to complain.
2. I get an email saying they've got a reply online.
3. A week later I return to the AMEX online email service to read their reply -- but it's "temporarily out of order".
Why some companies can provide 24x7 service, but most cannot, would be a great topic for a Harvard Business Review study.
It's very hard to provide reliable 24x7 service. American Express ought to do well, but they don't. For example:
1. AMEX service for downloading credit card transactions to Quicken is out of order. This is an important function for me, so I use their online email service to complain.
2. I get an email saying they've got a reply online.
3. A week later I return to the AMEX online email service to read their reply -- but it's "temporarily out of order".
Why some companies can provide 24x7 service, but most cannot, would be a great topic for a Harvard Business Review study.
Saturday, May 01, 2004
The prisoner affair: The New Yorker (Hersh) provides extensive coverage
The New Yorker: Fact
One of the few publications to provide coverage. The question -- where does the buck stop? At Rumsfeld? At Bush? And what about Guantanamo? There is at least one hero though:
It appears that many of the abuses began with the the now standard procedures for CIA interrogations of "high value" captives. These have been discussed in articles in the Atlantic and NY Times Magazine; in the dark world of semi-civilized torture these are considered mainstream techniques. In the hands of amateurs, including a few who may have had some serious flaws to begin with, these methods were applied more widely and with increasing creativity at Abu Gharaib. Such is the peril of the "slippery slope".
Rumsfeld has known about, and approved, the interrogation methods used in the "war against terror". He should resign -- but he won't.
The defense attorneys will use techniques that have been effective in past war crimes. They will threated to broaden the inquiry up the chain of command. This technique normally causes the military to back down, but in this case they're not alone. The cashiered General is not going quietly into the night. From the New York Times:
One of the few publications to provide coverage. The question -- where does the buck stop? At Rumsfeld? At Bush? And what about Guantanamo? There is at least one hero though:
The abuses became public because of the outrage of Specialist Joseph M. Darby, an M.P whose role emerged during the Article 3 hearing against Chip Frederick. A government witness, Special Agent Scott Bobeck, who is a member of the Army’s Criminal Investigation Division, or C.I.D., told the court, according to an abridged transcript made available to me, “The investigation started after SPC Darby . . got a CD from CPL Graner. . . . He came across pictures of naked detainees.” Bobec said that Darby had “initially put a anonymous letter under our door, then he later came forward and gave a sworn statement. He felt very bad about it and thought it was very wrong.Of course, knowing this administration, SPC Darby will pay a high price for his courage. The other hero, who Bush will be searching for, is whoever leaked the secret report. The accused, on the other hand, have promising careers ahead on talk shows and in the off-Hollywood movie business.
It appears that many of the abuses began with the the now standard procedures for CIA interrogations of "high value" captives. These have been discussed in articles in the Atlantic and NY Times Magazine; in the dark world of semi-civilized torture these are considered mainstream techniques. In the hands of amateurs, including a few who may have had some serious flaws to begin with, these methods were applied more widely and with increasing creativity at Abu Gharaib. Such is the peril of the "slippery slope".
Rumsfeld has known about, and approved, the interrogation methods used in the "war against terror". He should resign -- but he won't.
The defense attorneys will use techniques that have been effective in past war crimes. They will threated to broaden the inquiry up the chain of command. This technique normally causes the military to back down, but in this case they're not alone. The cashiered General is not going quietly into the night. From the New York Times:
But the officer, Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski of the 800th Military Police Brigade, said the special high-security cellblock at the Abu Ghraib prison, west of Baghdad, where the abuses took place had been under the tight control of a separate group of military intelligence officers who had so far avoided any public blame.
In her first public comments about the brutality — which drew wide attention and condemnation after photographs documenting it were broadcast Wednesday night by CBS News — General Karpinski said that while the reservists involved were "bad people" and deserved punishment, she suspected they were acting with the encouragement, if not at the direction, of military intelligence units that ran the special cellblock used for interrogation.
Speaking in a telephone interview from her home in South Carolina, the general said military commanders in Iraq were trying to shift the blame exclusively to her and the reservists.
"We're disposable," she said of the military's attitude toward reservists. "Why would they want the active-duty people to take the blame? They want to put this on the M.P.'s and hope that this thing goes away. Well, it's not going to go away."
She said the special cellblock, known as 1A, was one of about two dozen in the large prison and was essentially off limits to soldiers who were not part of the interrogations.
She said repeatedly in the interview that she was not defending the actions of the reservists who took part in the brutality, who were part of her command. She said that when she was first presented with the photographs of the abuse in January, they "sickened me."
The burning shame of the US media
BBC NEWS | Americas | US media grapples with Iraq horrors
I have little outrage left, but this almost shocked me. With great brevity, Mr Kurtz has demonstrated how low our media has fallen. We're talking lower than a snake's belly.
If I were the editor of the Washington Post, I'd have the entire staff over for a first order tirade.
This does explain why our media never covered the smallpox hoax. (Bush's faux vaccination program, which was dropped as soon as we invaded Iraq.)
But Howard Kurtz, media critic for the Washington Post, told the BBC that the White House has not made an effort to quell the reports. [of criminal torture and humiliation of Iraqi POWs]
Mr Kurtz said that one possible explanation as to why the story was not receiving greater coverage in the US was that Democrats, the party in opposition, were not making the allegations an issue.
'We, in the media, are a little hesitant to start the debate ourselves, but if some member of the Democratic Party were to start a debate over this, we would be on it in a flash,' Mr Kurtz said."
I have little outrage left, but this almost shocked me. With great brevity, Mr Kurtz has demonstrated how low our media has fallen. We're talking lower than a snake's belly.
If I were the editor of the Washington Post, I'd have the entire staff over for a first order tirade.
This does explain why our media never covered the smallpox hoax. (Bush's faux vaccination program, which was dropped as soon as we invaded Iraq.)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)