What do all these lines have in common?
- “The formation of a strong and focused government will set the stage for reconciliation and peace throughout the country, serving as a model for others in the Middle East. Then we in the United States can sleep easier knowing there is one less threat against us because we have helped bring Iraq into the 21st century, providing their citizens with the opportunities we cherish in our great country.“
- “We are succeeding in our goals for the Iraqi people. Unfortunately, only the violence is covered in the media and not the humanitarian progress that is being made.”
- “But while watching the news channels in the dining facility, some mentioned how disheartening it was to watch or read the media coverage of the day. There was little, if any, mention of the successes that our military has achieved during the past five years. The story lines, instead, seemed to concentrate on the negatives such as the financial cost of the war, and the number of casualties among U.S. forces and Iraqi civilians.”
Answer: They’re all propaganda, and they were all printed in the Review-Journal under the byline of one Dr. Joe Heck, aka Republican state Sen. Joe Heck. The third installment of Heck’s multi-part series ran in today’s paper. And like the others before it, it contained not a single mention of the fact that he’ll be on the ballot in November.
Will we read anything about the other side of the story, the one that says what happens in Iraq has nothing whatsoever to do with the security of the United States, and never did? Iraq didn’t attack us, and didn’t support those who did. That’s Afghanistan. Will we read anything that says, of course news coverage centers on our losses, because each and every one is a tragic, unnecessary waste in a tragic, unnecessary war? Will we read anything that says the primary good to come out of the war is profits for connected companies like Halliburton, KBR and Blackwater? Or how our soldiers are treated by our own government upon their return to the United States?
Nope. That’s not the preferred storyline, so it won’t be found in the R-J’s pages, just like the ethically required disclosure that the paper is essentially donating news space to a politician who’s running for office. Sure, you can argue Heck earned it, by answering the call to duty and going to Iraq when he could just as easily have stayed home. But that doesn’t mean you cover it up, either.
This entry was posted
on Monday, May 12th, 2008 at 4:02 pm and is filed under
Various Things & Stuff.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the
RSS 2.0 feed.
You can
leave a response, or
trackback from your own site.
Blogs
The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsiblity of the authors. By publishing a comment here you agree to the comment policy. If you see a comment that violates the policy, please notify the Online staff.