Friday, May 19, 2006

Delusions of the Press

What is Reuters doing? In an article designed to plant stereotypical notions of the US Army and veterans in people's heads they drop a number of lies and distortions in their attempt to tell the "news."

The article is about the struggles that returning veterans have to find housing. A worthwhile topic for sure, and an important question to be raised. But what is the real problem here?

Military recruiters target poor neighborhoods like Gamboa's Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn. Young adults with few job skills join the Army.

What? Where in the heck did this come from? It's amazing that we can allow the press to pass of simple conjectures as solid facts. The demographics of the army are the same as that of the county - by race as well as socioeconomic status. To infer differently is a simple lie. My favorite is that last sentence. What a bunch of crap.

Repeated deployments -- a hallmark of the Iraq war -- and separation from family can also portend future problems.

Ah, the repeated deployment line again. It's tough to deal with the press when they portray situations as if "multiple redeployments" 1)cause post traumatic stress disorder and 2)are somehow outside of the range of a soldier's contract. Further, would Reutersrather support a draft to support the war on terror? I think soldiers fulfilling the duration of their contract is preferred.

No comments: