You all have so denigrated the people who oppose you......that you believe your own spin that we are stupid.
I don't believe you or the media are stupid, I do however believe people I can talk to directly with first hand experience. When my neighbor comes home from either Iraq or Afhganistan (where he is now) every two months he gives me his experience. His experience is just one view, but he's not in the military - he's a civilian security contractor for reconstruction outfits. Others I know from my kids classmates are soldiers and they also have encouraging stories regarding the positive difference the US is making for the people of Iraq. Of course they all have stories of conflict - heck we have those here with the Tacoma Mall shooting, the Bank robber last week in Olympia and the Jewelery store robbery with shots fired just last month. The difference is the media only covers the shots fired stories - not the fact I made it safely to the store to plan my twins birthday party.
I think its wonderful that the Hussein family is sending their only daughter to college; however, I find it disturbing that she has to carry an AK-47 to class. Okay, maybe Ms. Hussein is overly paranoid but there is danger in almost everything an Iraqi does these days. And its true that 80% of the country is quiet and that the problems are mostly in the big cities but the reality about Iraq is that most of the 80% is desert and that not many people live in the desert.
Having said that, it is true that there has been some improvement in the lives of Iraqis. They don't have to contend with a dictator and that's good. They can vote and that's good too. But there are so many negatives that outweigh the good that its easy to question what good we are doing there.
But for me, that's not the real issue at all. I don't think we should have been there in the first place. In fact, all the negative things several of us on this thread predicted would happen in Iraq four mos. before the war started have happened.........in spades. I think the American public was snookered into going over. I don't think that speaks well of our leaders. In fact, I think the leaders in question should be impeached for their arrogance. And I am saying that as an American, not a partisan.
Finally, most Americans are beginning to realize that Iraq was a mistake. They want the war ended. And maybe you hawks will learn a lesson.......if you start a war, make sure its started for the right reasons and that you are being honest with the public when you cite the reasons for going to war.
Not to say I have the only view - but having lived outside the USA for eight years and listening to the press talk about my home (at that time) of Los Angles - you would have thought American was a war zone, with every car on the road full of bullet holes with all the drive by shootings - that type of hyped reporting opened my eyes to the medias biases for ratings.
I disagree. I lived in LA at the time. LA WAS a war zone. For a year after the riots, I heard gunshots every nite before going to bed. There was very little hyperbole in the media. LA is still a dangerous place inspite of billions having been poured into it.
Even more recently the review of the over hyped Katrina gang rapes and killings in the SuperDome should convince you they are driven by the mantra "if it bleeds it leads". I know the media has an agenda - my neighbor does not.
Again, I disagree. Until recently, I think the American media has done a lousy job of reporting significant happenings in Iraq. Whether they were afraid of Bush or trying to be patriotic, they pulled their punches. For most of the past 5 years, I've read the better UK papers to find out the truth of what was happening in Iraq and even in this country. American media did this country a huge disservice.....hopefully, they too have learned their lesson. |
