Journal(terror)ists

Our favorite anti-American British newspaper, the Guardian, yesterday had an article about the press and the US military in Iraq: US forces 'out of control', says Reuters chief.

Reuters has told the US government that American forces' conduct towards journalists in Iraq is "spiraling out of control" and preventing full coverage of the war reaching the public.

I'm sorry about this, but "preventing full coverage of the war?" What a ridiculously foolish and unbelievable statement! If you followed the mainstream media, as well as Reuters' coverage of the war in Iraq you would assume that US and Iraqi military units are just drivin' around Baghdad trying to find IED's with their Hummer tires! The media has not covered anything in Iraq other than the death of US soldiers, and occasionally Iraqi police. Fact.

The Reuters news service chief referred to "a long parade of disturbing incidents whereby professional journalists have been killed, wrongfully detained, and/or illegally abused by US forces in Iraq".

This is an interesting thought. Now, why is it so hard to tell terrorists in Iraq from journalists? Maybe because in many ways they are the same thing? Just as in the West Bank and the Gaza strip, it seems that journalists get such good pictures of terrorist activities it's almost as if they knew the events were going to take place... I apologize for my inability to find the evidence on the web of journalists' photos of car bombs going off, and of Palestinians firing rockets at Israel - I simply don't have time to look today. But all-in-all, there have been numerous incidents of "journalists" being right alongside terrorists in their daily activities. I don't feel too bad when four terrorists run around a corner in Iraq; three holding AK-47's and the fourth one a camera. It's either the terrorists or the soldiers over there.

Oh, and does anyone remember Eason Jordan? No? He was the head of CNN's news division, but he stepped down after he made unsubstantiated claims that he hoped no one would find out about during a journalism conference in Switzerland early this year. He told the media there that the US had "targeted" journalists. Of course his claims were both untrue and ridiculous - so much so that those who tried to corroborate his statement were refused access to the audio recordings made of the conference! Of course once news spread through the blogosphere Jordan had to jet from his job. Poor guy - spouting off anti-American propaganda to the press while hoping that no one will find out during a time of war can be so tough on employment.

Anyway - this notion that journalists in Iraq are being killed and detained purposely by the US military is false. So false, in fact, that the only motivation that can be created for the military to do so is to "prevent full coverage of the war." When CNN and the Guardian start covering schools, roads, and elections instead of dead soldiers, prisoner abuse, and beheadings I might be inclined to start to believe them.