Hi Soumen Barua; Re: "This sets a bad precedent. In the future this type of yellow journalism (Dan Rather and CBS) can be used to destabilize any strategic force."
The bad press for the war in the US is due to a lack of support for the war in the US. Support is around 50%, give or take 10% or so.
This is not the first unpopular war in the US. In addition to Vietnam, the war with Mexico in 1846, the Spanish American war of 1898, and the Philippines insurrection following that are great examples. During the latter, Mark Twain, a famous and very popular American writer, suggested a modification to the American flag for use in the Philippines:
"Just our usual flag, with the white stripes painted black and the stars replaced by the skull and cross-bones."
dissidentvoice.org
Despite this lack of enthusiasm for the wars of 1846 (when enough US citizens deserted the US military and joined the enemy that Mexico organized battalions of them to fight against the US) and 1898, as well as the Vietnam war, the American public nevertheless supported wars following those wars, some of them quite bloody.
It all boils down to one thing, and that is the question of how the US will benefit from the war. The American people are quite willing to fight to make the world a better and safer place for Americans, but fighting to make the world a better place for Iraqis (or whatever) is a harder sell, especially when it has to be done with actions that are dishonorable and embarrassing.
-- Carl |
