The Discerning Texan
All that is necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing.
-- Edmund Burke
-- Edmund Burke
Sunday, January 21, 2007
American "Wins" Misreported--it is time to get Drastic about it
Funny, I was under the impression that we were in an "if it bleeds it leads" Elite Media mindset in this war; but from what I can see, that assumption needs to be revised slightly to: "if it bleeds for anyone but the enemy it leads"; this is the kind of story that should lead the news--it is a wonderful example of how the Iraqi Army is slowly becoming more effective and self-sufficient. But if you are reading this now, just answer me this one question: have YOU seen the linked story above in your Sunday paper this morning? And even if you did, was it on the front page, or buried somewhere deep within?
FDR, for example, had no compunctions whatsoever about vetting newspapers and radio for enemy-friendly propaganda or for information that gave away any secrets--and he did censor newspaper and radio content numerous times throughout World War II. And this was in a time when our homeland (save Pearl Harbor) was relatively immune to direct enemy attack; today that has all changed, as we found out on 9/11--and a well placed suitcase nuke could take out an entire city. This is no longer implausible--indeed the question the way we are fighting this war today seems to be when, not if. At least FOUR of the 19 hijackers on 9/11 came across the Mexican border illegally (not exactly a feat that requires rocket science these days...). If Osama were to lay out his millions for a Russian-era nuke, what is to say that could not easily come across our border illegally. Yet we seem to care more about the political aspects of border security than about the fact that an open border could invite catastrophe such as the US has never seen on its shores.
Today, we live with a nightmarish, Stalinist-like Political Correctness in this country that was not present in the 40's; yes that makes it harder for the President to take unilateral action without a big stink being raised. But when our sons' and daughters' lives are on the line--and when our lives may be on the line--I personally could care less about what "looks good" politically; we need to use EVERY weapon at our disposal. When the consequences of abandoning our commitment to the Iraqi people are so horrific to the stability of the entire world--e.g. ceding the entire Arabian penninsula to a Nuclear Iran just for starters--then we must stop fighting this war like a "beauty contest" and start doing whatever it takes to WIN.
It is well past time to take off the gloves--and that means against the seditious American news media as well as our enemies abroad. Prosecutions; heavy fines of offending publishers, media outlets and individuals; and jailing reporters who do not reveal the sources of leaked classified material--all would be critical weapons in protecting our state secrets and ensuring the public was informed about the positive things that were happening abroad. And over time, these unpopular-at-first steps would harden American resolve at home, thus making our defeat a virtual impossibility. If that is what it takes, then why not?
One of my biggest complaints about this Bush Justice Department has been its timidity when it comes to gettting to the bottom of the many damaging leaks that the New York Times, Washington Post, and other seditious media have published against the "wishes" of the US government. Well it is time to stop "wishing" and start "dishing"--dishing out indictments, that is... And if agencies under scrutiny for leaks (like the CIA) do not show up to scheduled interviews with the FBI leak investigators (as was reported last week), then slap a subpoena on the stonewallers--no matter who they are (see Jay Rockefeller post yesterday)--so fast their heads will spin, and then put them in front of a Grand Jury. And if they still don't cooperate, throw away the key until they do.
War is not pretty; it is a messy, sloppy, ugly business, laden with mistakes. That is its very nature. But that does not mean that the American people have to see every mistake and every mishap in bold headlines or on Katie Couric or Keith Olberman's newscasts with little or no counterbalance whatsoever. The Constitution gives the President extraordinary powers during wartime; Lincoln even suspended habeus corpus. This may be the most critical war for the future of the US that we have ever fought; we simply must use EVERY tool at our disposal to win this War, even if it means Hollywood and the Media would scream bloody murder and cry "wolf". So what? Are they not already doing this every day?
Taking off the gloves at home means using the President's Constitutional powers to stop the media bleeding at home against a press which have shown themselves in large part to be the enemies of our men and women in harms way. Faster, please.
I did note these three headlines today from the Associated (with our enemies) Press did make a bit more of a splash:
- Bombs Kill 18 in Separate Iraq Attacks
- Iranians Reportedly Set for talks with US (story about how they want talks with the US...)
- 3 U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq - roadside bomb, fighting Sunni insurgents
Notice a pattern?
The fact that you seemingly have to go to the Jerusalem Post to read about our successes in this war is one illustration of the extent to which the American Elite Media seems to be heavily invested in an American defeat; they seemingly care less about America winning this war--their only and overriding concern is to "get Bush" and to get a Democrat into the Presidency --no matter that doing so would put the United States and the West behind the proverbial 8-ball in its war for survival. The media's printing of classified secrets, and its horribly skewed coverage is costing American lives abroad and public morale and support at home. When our own media is openly rooting for mass murderers against American kids, and showing propaganda snuff films that helps the Islamists recruit, it is time that We The People and our Executive Branch rethink how we are going about this media war.FDR, for example, had no compunctions whatsoever about vetting newspapers and radio for enemy-friendly propaganda or for information that gave away any secrets--and he did censor newspaper and radio content numerous times throughout World War II. And this was in a time when our homeland (save Pearl Harbor) was relatively immune to direct enemy attack; today that has all changed, as we found out on 9/11--and a well placed suitcase nuke could take out an entire city. This is no longer implausible--indeed the question the way we are fighting this war today seems to be when, not if. At least FOUR of the 19 hijackers on 9/11 came across the Mexican border illegally (not exactly a feat that requires rocket science these days...). If Osama were to lay out his millions for a Russian-era nuke, what is to say that could not easily come across our border illegally. Yet we seem to care more about the political aspects of border security than about the fact that an open border could invite catastrophe such as the US has never seen on its shores.
Today, we live with a nightmarish, Stalinist-like Political Correctness in this country that was not present in the 40's; yes that makes it harder for the President to take unilateral action without a big stink being raised. But when our sons' and daughters' lives are on the line--and when our lives may be on the line--I personally could care less about what "looks good" politically; we need to use EVERY weapon at our disposal. When the consequences of abandoning our commitment to the Iraqi people are so horrific to the stability of the entire world--e.g. ceding the entire Arabian penninsula to a Nuclear Iran just for starters--then we must stop fighting this war like a "beauty contest" and start doing whatever it takes to WIN.
It is well past time to take off the gloves--and that means against the seditious American news media as well as our enemies abroad. Prosecutions; heavy fines of offending publishers, media outlets and individuals; and jailing reporters who do not reveal the sources of leaked classified material--all would be critical weapons in protecting our state secrets and ensuring the public was informed about the positive things that were happening abroad. And over time, these unpopular-at-first steps would harden American resolve at home, thus making our defeat a virtual impossibility. If that is what it takes, then why not?
One of my biggest complaints about this Bush Justice Department has been its timidity when it comes to gettting to the bottom of the many damaging leaks that the New York Times, Washington Post, and other seditious media have published against the "wishes" of the US government. Well it is time to stop "wishing" and start "dishing"--dishing out indictments, that is... And if agencies under scrutiny for leaks (like the CIA) do not show up to scheduled interviews with the FBI leak investigators (as was reported last week), then slap a subpoena on the stonewallers--no matter who they are (see Jay Rockefeller post yesterday)--so fast their heads will spin, and then put them in front of a Grand Jury. And if they still don't cooperate, throw away the key until they do.
War is not pretty; it is a messy, sloppy, ugly business, laden with mistakes. That is its very nature. But that does not mean that the American people have to see every mistake and every mishap in bold headlines or on Katie Couric or Keith Olberman's newscasts with little or no counterbalance whatsoever. The Constitution gives the President extraordinary powers during wartime; Lincoln even suspended habeus corpus. This may be the most critical war for the future of the US that we have ever fought; we simply must use EVERY tool at our disposal to win this War, even if it means Hollywood and the Media would scream bloody murder and cry "wolf". So what? Are they not already doing this every day?
Taking off the gloves at home means using the President's Constitutional powers to stop the media bleeding at home against a press which have shown themselves in large part to be the enemies of our men and women in harms way. Faster, please.
Labels: Associated Press, Iraq, Media Bias, Misreporting Events, War Successes
