Thank you, and thanks to Glenn Greenwald. I know, but it helps to know other people know. Propaganda really does work, and we have been years at building propagandistic enemies so why be surprised when they are taken as given by analysts not supposed to be wildly partisan?
Recently, I have been struck by the number of war reporters who admit to be hawks in this guise or that. The last war reporter who I know was a pacifist was Chris Hedges of the Nerw York Times, who eventually became incapable of directly reporting on war.
Hedges gave a graduation speech criticizing the war in Iraq, after the initial war, and was jeered terribly and formally criticized by the Times and resigned and there have been almost no pacifist articles since. Only, reporting on Fritz Stern comes to mind in several years and Hedges began this reporting.
The General's Report: How Antonio Taguba, who investigated the Abu Ghraib scandal, became one of its casualties. By Seymour M. Hersh
On the afternoon of May 6, 2004, Army Major General Antonio M. Taguba was summoned to meet, for the first time, with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld in his Pentagon conference room. Rumsfeld and his senior staff were to testify the next day, in televised hearings before the Senate and the House Armed Services Committees, about abuses at Abu Ghraib prison, in Iraq. The previous week, revelations about Abu Ghraib, including photographs showing prisoners stripped, abused, and sexually humiliated, had appeared on CBS and in The New Yorker. In response, Administration officials had insisted that only a few low-ranking soldiers were involved and that America did not torture prisoners. They emphasized that the Army itself had uncovered the scandal.
If there was a redeeming aspect to the affair, it was in the thoroughness and the passion of the Army's initial investigation. The inquiry had begun in January, and was led by General Taguba, who was stationed in Kuwait at the time....
In my essay for this contest, I wrote about seeing Kevin Carter's Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph of a vulture preying on a Sudanese girl. Later, people asked if Carter was really helping the girl by taking her picture, and in my essay, I said I wanted to be able to make decisions like that for myself.
Should journalists intervene?
It's a question I've considered almost non-stop since January. I read interviews with my favorite journalist, Anne Hull. She says no. I asked professors at my journalism school, most of whom weren't exactly sure either. It's a balance, they said.
Tonight, the decision was here. But not for me, exactly.
Prudence Lenokoumo, 24, had never been to the doctor before Wednesday. She had delivered three children in the last eight years, but she had delivered them all at home with the help of a midwife in her village Kongo. Six days ago, she went into labor with her fourth.
But the baby wasn't coming.
Three days of labor, and he still wouldn't come out. The birth attendant told Prudence and her husband, 28-year-old Alain Awona, the bad news.
"Pas de possible," she told them. They would have to travel the 25 kilometers to the hospital in Yokadouma. Neighbors agreed to take care of the other children, and Alain scraped the money together to put Prudence on a moto-taxi headed for the hospital.
But getting there was only half the journey.
When we arrived at the hospital today, Prudence's baby was dead inside of her. Lying on a rudimentary bed, Prudence breathed with a shudder. Each breath was literally a shake. Her eyes, rolled back into her head, did not move. A mosquito, one of the many bugs flying in and out of the room, circled her head.
An operation isn't possible yet, Dr. Pascal Pipi told us. Even if the family had the $100 to pay for supplies, Prudence is anemic and needed 2,000 cc's of blood (500 ccs from four different people).
There's no blood bank here. Locals won't donate for fear of the AIDS test required before donation. And Prudence's family, the most likely donors, live 120 kilometers away.
Today begins with a bad story, and ends with a good one. We had heard about a settlement of recent returnees from Josh Ruxin, our gracious host in Kigali and director of Rwanda's Millennium Villages Project. Millions of Rwandans left Rwanda in the decades of instability leading up to the genocide, and many settled permanently in surrounding countries. Some have since been forcibly sent back, including this group of about 2,000 people from Tanzania....
Thank you, and thanks to Glenn Greenwald. I know, but it helps to know other people know. Propaganda really does work, and we have been years at building propagandistic enemies so why be surprised when they are taken as given by analysts not supposed to be wildly partisan?
ReplyDeleteanne
Possibly the term should be propagandized, or just enemies created in terms of propaganda or the like. I am tired.
ReplyDeleteanne
Recently, I have been struck by the number of war reporters who admit to be hawks in this guise or that. The last war reporter who I know was a pacifist was Chris Hedges of the Nerw York Times, who eventually became incapable of directly reporting on war.
ReplyDeleteHedges gave a graduation speech criticizing the war in Iraq, after the initial war, and was jeered terribly and formally criticized by the Times and resigned and there have been almost no pacifist articles since. Only, reporting on Fritz Stern comes to mind in several years and Hedges began this reporting.
anne
Nicholas Kristof is a tempered hawk, who I do respect; respect completely. No one covers Africa and Asia with the compassion and courage of Kristof.
ReplyDeleteBob Herbert may be the sole columnist pacifist.
Paul Krugman is always superb, but not a pacifist.
anne
Then, there is the astonishing Seymour Hersh who needs to write a column.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/06/25/070625fa_fact_hersh?printable=true
June 25, 2007
The General's Report: How Antonio Taguba, who investigated the Abu Ghraib scandal, became one of its casualties.
By Seymour M. Hersh
On the afternoon of May 6, 2004, Army Major General Antonio M. Taguba was summoned to meet, for the first time, with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld in his Pentagon conference room. Rumsfeld and his senior staff were to testify the next day, in televised hearings before the Senate and the House Armed Services Committees, about abuses at Abu Ghraib prison, in Iraq. The previous week, revelations about Abu Ghraib, including photographs showing prisoners stripped, abused, and sexually humiliated, had appeared on CBS and in The New Yorker. In response, Administration officials had insisted that only a few low-ranking soldiers were involved and that America did not torture prisoners. They emphasized that the Army itself had uncovered the scandal.
If there was a redeeming aspect to the affair, it was in the thoroughness and the passion of the Army's initial investigation. The inquiry had begun in January, and was led by General Taguba, who was stationed in Kuwait at the time....
anne
Kristof and a young doctor and teacher are reporting from central Africa by the way and should be read.
ReplyDeleteNotice the blog of the team, with the honesty of fresh seers trying to see freshly.
http://twofortheroad.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/06/17/nkundas-rebels/
anne
http://parks.blogs.nytimes.com/?p=22
ReplyDeleteSeptember 15, 2006
Should Journalists Intervene?
By Casey Parks
In my essay for this contest, I wrote about seeing Kevin Carter's Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph of a vulture preying on a Sudanese girl. Later, people asked if Carter was really helping the girl by taking her picture, and in my essay, I said I wanted to be able to make decisions like that for myself.
Should journalists intervene?
It's a question I've considered almost non-stop since January. I read interviews with my favorite journalist, Anne Hull. She says no. I asked professors at my journalism school, most of whom weren't exactly sure either. It's a balance, they said.
Tonight, the decision was here. But not for me, exactly.
Prudence Lenokoumo, 24, had never been to the doctor before Wednesday. She had delivered three children in the last eight years, but she had delivered them all at home with the help of a midwife in her village Kongo. Six days ago, she went into labor with her fourth.
But the baby wasn't coming.
Three days of labor, and he still wouldn't come out. The birth attendant told Prudence and her husband, 28-year-old Alain Awona, the bad news.
"Pas de possible," she told them. They would have to travel the 25 kilometers to the hospital in Yokadouma. Neighbors agreed to take care of the other children, and Alain scraped the money together to put Prudence on a moto-taxi headed for the hospital.
But getting there was only half the journey.
When we arrived at the hospital today, Prudence's baby was dead inside of her. Lying on a rudimentary bed, Prudence breathed with a shudder. Each breath was literally a shake. Her eyes, rolled back into her head, did not move. A mosquito, one of the many bugs flying in and out of the room, circled her head.
An operation isn't possible yet, Dr. Pascal Pipi told us. Even if the family had the $100 to pay for supplies, Prudence is anemic and needed 2,000 cc's of blood (500 ccs from four different people).
There's no blood bank here. Locals won't donate for fear of the AIDS test required before donation. And Prudence's family, the most likely donors, live 120 kilometers away.
"What type of blood does she need?" I asked....
anne
http://parks.blogs.nytimes.com/?p=30
ReplyDeleteSeptember 19, 2006
Prudence
By Casey Parks
5 p.m.
Prudence died at 5 p.m. today.
I see this in an e-mail, and it should make sense. It should be what I expect....
[The darned heck with miserable William Easterly. The heck with the rotter.]
anne
http://twofortheroad.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/06/14/glimpses-of-hope/
ReplyDeleteJune 14, 2007
Glimpses of Hope
By Leana Wen
Today begins with a bad story, and ends with a good one. We had heard about a settlement of recent returnees from Josh Ruxin, our gracious host in Kigali and director of Rwanda's Millennium Villages Project. Millions of Rwandans left Rwanda in the decades of instability leading up to the genocide, and many settled permanently in surrounding countries. Some have since been forcibly sent back, including this group of about 2,000 people from Tanzania....
anne
Hm hm.. that's quiet interessting but to be honest i have a hard time understanding it... I'm wondering what others have to say....
ReplyDelete