The Big Lie

A righteous post, CA. Good for you.

Peters is, God forgive me, a perfect halfwit. Pay no attention to his nonsense, I implore you. It doesn’t deserve your energy or your time.

Peters is, God forgive me, a perfect halfwit. Pay no attention to his nonsense, I implore you. It doesn’t deserve your energy or your time.

Remember when Rummy said journos were too stunned by arriving in the midst of violence to get out and see the truth of how peace was breaking out all over? (And Michael Ware said the SecDef should come over and live outside the green zone for a few hours… boy, I would have loved to hear what you guys said when the cameras were off!)

Ralph Peters is a moron.

BTW for anyone interested, Hannah Allam has an article in this month’s issue of Glamour magazine about an Iraqi translator whose family was targeted because of her work with the American. My admiration for everyone over there getting the truth out knows no bounds.

Thank you for trying to get the information out to us.

You’re right to take on Peters for some of the foul mud he slings against brave journalists, but some of what the man says has been right too. its perfectly condescending and stupid of him to say that children playing in the street are a sign of that civil strife in the country has subsided, but he is right when he says that the country backed off from falling into full blown civil war. I’m not seeing alot of journalists make this very true and it is simply a very important point right now. we’re fortunatly just not there yet, and i’d be happier if i saw you pointing this fact out because its something citizens in iraq should be proud of.

Chris,

I very much appreciate your blog and I will be reading it.

The picture you paint is not the picture I believe but at this point I’m not sure who is telling the truth. It seems realistic to me that there is unfortunately going to have to be a lot of Iraqi casualties before a democratic country is formed. I was told that Saddam killed nearly a million Iraqis in cobbling together the country. I hope that things can be different this time.

I have a few questions for you.

In poll after poll that I read the great majority of journalists voted for John Kerry in the recent election. I have heard as many as 90+%. Let me give you an analogy. I agree with the democrats that the personal views of a supreme court judge influence the decisions that judge will make. It seems equally logical that the views of journalists will influence the stories he/she writes. Couple that with the age old phenomenon “If it bleeds it leads” I would think that the picture of Iraq could be distorted. I watched the local news in Los Angeles last night. If I didn’t live here, if I lived in another country I would come away thinking that L.A. is overrun with child molesters, cop killers, and questionable police shootings. But I live here, and I don’t live in Baghdad, like you do. Do you disagree with my logic?

I also saw the movie where the producers gave video cameras to local Iraqis and asked them to go on the street and ask questions and video-tape. The video the Iraqis produced were so different from the headlines that were portrayed in the media. Are you aware of this movie? They didn’t seem to have a political agenda. I think the producers worked for MTV (hardly a bastion of conservatism). I recognize that was a couple of years ago and the conditions on the ground have certainly changed. I hope these producers will make an update of the movie.

Keep up the good work!

Brad

Dude, Chris, where’s my Civil War?

So journalists have been killed, including some quite righteously — stringers ‘embedded’ with ‘insurgents’ — that does not prove that they are unpartisan, and it doesn’t disprove a single assertion Peter’s has made.

You have a dangerous job? Okay. And that means your stories are of course 100% accurate? Non sequitur much?

Are your stories true? In context? Are Marines and soldiers getting blown to bits as part of a Aztec human sacrifice, or are they actually doing things? And you confirm your stringers stories how? All of this hue and cry, and where’s my Civil War, Chris?

When you get done being sanctimonious about your year of experience, how that somehow allows you to disregard a retired veteran’s opinion (he’s been there too, Chris), then I’ll toast your good work. Not during your hissy fit.

Dear Vercingetorix:

I’m sure Mr. Allbritton is just living for the day when you “toast his good work”.

Neither Mr. Peters nor Mr. Allbritton, however, have any say in whether the civil war in Iraq escalates or subsides (not even Bill O’Reilly, Wolf Blitzer or Sen. John McCain get a voice in it). Apparently, the U.S. military and the White House have precious little control over that, either. The same looks very much the case for the folk who may yet comprise the still-unformed Iraqi government, and the ‘Iraqi Army’- whatever that means, exactly, and whatever their capabilities may or may not be.

If the Iraqi population as a whole is of a mind to set aside their sectarian, ethnic, and other differences and demand cessation of the violence and a coming together of a unified national government, they clearly seem too frightened or reluctant for other reasons, to express that in a compelling fashion, don’t they?

(Tell me when I make a misstep here, if you will).

The situation in Iraq does not exist because the news media distributes too much “bad news” - and it isn’t going to get better because the White House-Pentagon p.r. machine and their media helpers and supporters float “good news” stories and rail about coverage that disfavors their views and hopes.

The American people responded in majority to the notion of invading Iraq (of course many believed it was to protect their homeland from iminent peril - in fact 8 of 10 believed Iraqis were among the 9/11 hijackers and that Saddam planned the attacks). The media did more than just support it; they were front-line cheerleaders. Americans believed the president and his team again and again when presented that very long string of errata and misrepresentations dished out, and Congress gave its strong support and bowed to every request for authority and dollars requested. Even after it became impossible for the government to claim there were wmds,terrorist connections and an imminent threat, America as a whole embraced the administration’s stated hopes for “bringing democracy to Iraq”…and the media continued to support the Iraqi effort in general terms (“no matter what, we can’t leave until we fix it”, was the near-unanimous expression).

Even when the final poll of Iraqis conducted by the CPA showed that over 80% of them wanted us out within a year and the costs of staying continued to rise, America continued to support the war.

After nearly three years, the cumulative effect of being misled and manipulated, and now that we have failed to deliver on our promises of reconstruction; failed to establish order; failed to end the insurgency; and, appear likely to fail to establish a viable Iraqi government or security forces, or bring the disparate factions together, the media and the American public are deeply tired of the b.s. and being sucked in by ‘assurances’ that happy days are just around the corner. Today even Mr. Rumsfeld and General Pace seemed more that a little weary of continuing the charade.

They are beginning to say what was the truth of the matter from the beginning: that no matter how impressive or well-intentioned, our military and our dollars cannot bring democracy to a people who don’t have that as their own priority.

The troops you spoke of earlier know it, and 70+% say “leave within a year”. More and more folk in congress are getting the picture.

That parrot is dead, sir, and the credibility of the White House and Pentagon may as well be.

Christopher Allbritton, Time, the New York Times and the democrats didn’t kill them…and they aren’t coming back because anybody wills it to be so, or because there have been some small victories and success stories - and many kindnesses and positive experiences.

Your civil war in Iraq has been going on for a very long time. Most recently, between the Sunni secularists who controlled the country and the Kurds and Shiites who struggled against that tyrnnical control. Call it “revolution”, “insurgency” or “blackberry pie”. It’s a nation in violent conflict, within itself.

The underlying causes haven’t changed; the table has just been turned. The addition of two additional, external parties - the Coalition and the terrorists our “strategy” allowed to stream into the country - complicated and acerbated the power struggles, but they didn’t solve anything.

No reporter or news organization’s reporting is 100% accurate or fully objective, anymore than any soldier’s is. No one needs to set out to prove Mr. Peters’ assertions as coming from a more biased and less objective perspective than most.

We have events and the absence of developments to view. Opinions on what’s going on are just about irrelevant as denial now.

We COULD use some good ones for how to extricate ourselves from this mess, without having Islamic revolution and/or civil wars break out across the region. We SHOULD be concentrating on that, instead of trying to rationalize continuing down one idiot trail after the next.

Dear Vercingetorix:

I’m sure Mr. Allbritton is just living for the day when you “toast his good work”.

Neither Mr. Peters nor Mr. Allbritton, however, have any say in whether the civil war in Iraq escalates or subsides (not even Bill O’Reilly, Wolf Blitzer or Sen. John McCain get a voice in it). Apparently, the U.S. military and the White House have precious little control over that, either. The same looks very much the case for the folk who may yet comprise the still-unformed Iraqi government, and the ‘Iraqi Army’- whatever that means, exactly, and whatever their capabilities may or may not be.

If the Iraqi population as a whole is of a mind to set aside their sectarian, ethnic, and other differences and demand cessation of the violence and a coming together of a unified national government, they clearly seem too frightened or reluctant for other reasons, to express that in a compelling fashion, don’t they?

(Tell me when I make a misstep here, if you will).

The situation in Iraq does not exist because the news media distributes too much “bad news” - and it isn’t going to get better because the White House-Pentagon p.r. machine and their media helpers and supporters float “good news” stories and rail about coverage that disfavors their views and hopes.

The American people responded in majority to the notion of invading Iraq (of course many believed it was to protect their homeland from iminent peril - in fact 8 of 10 believed Iraqis were among the 9/11 hijackers and that Saddam planned the attacks). The media did more than just support it; they were front-line cheerleaders. Americans believed the president and his team again and again when presented that very long string of errata and misrepresentations dished out, and Congress gave its strong support and bowed to every request for authority and dollars requested. Even after it became impossible for the government to claim there were wmds,terrorist connections and an imminent threat, America as a whole embraced the administration’s stated hopes for “bringing democracy to Iraq”…and the media continued to support the Iraqi effort in general terms (“no matter what, we can’t leave until we fix it”, was the near-unanimous expression).

Even when the final poll of Iraqis conducted by the CPA showed that over 80% of them wanted us out within a year and the costs of staying continued to rise, America continued to support the war.

After nearly three years, the cumulative effect of being misled and manipulated, and now that we have failed to deliver on our promises of reconstruction; failed to establish order; failed to end the insurgency; and, appear likely to fail to establish a viable Iraqi government or security forces, or bring the disparate factions together, the media and the American public are deeply tired of the b.s. and being sucked in by ‘assurances’ that happy days are just around the corner. Today even Mr. Rumsfeld and General Pace seemed more that a little weary of continuing the charade.

They are beginning to say what was the truth of the matter from the beginning: that no matter how impressive or well-intentioned, our military and our dollars cannot bring democracy to a people who don’t have that as their own priority.

The troops you spoke of earlier know it, and 70+% say “leave within a year”. More and more folk in congress are getting the picture.

That parrot is dead, sir, and the credibility of the White House and Pentagon may as well be.

Christopher Allbritton, Time, the New York Times and the democrats didn’t kill them…and they aren’t coming back because anybody wills it to be so, or because there have been some small victories and success stories - and many kindnesses and positive experiences.

Your civil war in Iraq has been going on for a very long time. Most recently, between the Sunni secularists who controlled the country and the Kurds and Shiites who struggled against that tyrnnical control. Call it “revolution”, “insurgency” or “blackberry pie”. It’s a nation in violent conflict, within itself.

The underlying causes haven’t changed; the table has just been turned. The addition of two additional, external parties - the Coalition and the terrorists our “strategy” allowed to stream into the country - complicated and acerbated the power struggles, but they didn’t solve anything.

No reporter or news organization’s reporting is 100% accurate or fully objective, anymore than any soldier’s is. No one needs to set out to prove Mr. Peters’ assertions as coming from a more biased and less objective perspective than most.

We have events and the absence of developments to view. Opinions on what’s going on are just about irrelevant as denial now.

We COULD use some good ones for how to extricate ourselves from this mess, without having Islamic revolution and/or civil wars break out across the region. We SHOULD be concentrating on that, instead of trying to rationalize continuing down one idiot trail after the next.

From Peters’ article:
“Ralph Peters is a retired U.S. Army officer and the author of 20 books, including the recent New Glory: Expanding America’s Global Supremacy.” (emphasis mine)

So, he’s an imperialist saying imperialism works just fine. His mindset resembles the old colonialist conviction that, while other “liberators” might oppress and steal, the US’ intentions are spreading freedom and democracy.

“And Iraqi stringers, some of whom have their own political agendas, long ago figured out that Americans prefer bad news to good news.”

And Mr. Peters, who has his own political agenda, long ago figured out that American conservative outlets prefer good news to bad news.

How am I supposed to take that guy seriously?

No reporter or news organization’s reporting is 100% accurate or fully objective, anymore than any soldier’s is. No one needs to set out to prove Mr. Peters’ assertions as coming from a more biased and less objective perspective than most.

Such is to say that Peters = Albritton, and using that impeccable logic, Albritton trumps Peters. Huh?

If this is a civil war right now in Iraq, there was also a civil war under Saddam Hussein, and we have the hundreds of thousands in mass graves to prove it. Just as there is a civil war in Ireland, Kashmir, Palestine, and the Bronx. Yet those places do not easily lend themselves to the term ‘civil war’, which is almost wholly the criticism against Albritton’s screed; its all about the body counts.

Reporters are dying, so they must be the good guys. QED. Soldiers and Marines are dying so we must be losing. QED. Iraqis are dying, so it must be a civil war. QED.

Except no, those soldiers take terrain, physical and political, and mount operations…they are not just dying but doing things. And we hear nothing about those things, like the Al Anbar campaign or the red-on-red engagements between al Qaeda and the Baathists, or tribesmen and al Qaeda.

Quote polls all you want, soldiers do NOT live by the poll. And thankfully they do not watch or read Albritton’s news. They, after all, need to be informed and not sensationalized.

Peters interviewed http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/ReadArticle.asp?ID=19373

Dear Vercingetorix: No. Peters certainly doesn’t equal Allbritton. Maybe Peters=Geraldo, or Peters=Oliver North. Allbritton, as you’d know if you’d been following him awhile, has been in and out of Iraq since before the invasion, a good bit of that time as an independent journalist, attached to no media except this blog. You’d also know that he has reported much that is positive and has actually pulled - quixotcally, in my mind - for a positive outcome. He hasn’t failed to report reality, however, and before it became untenable, he spent a lot of time talking to and reporting on ordinary Iraqis of widely-ranging viewpoint and station.

And I SAID violent internal struggle HAS been going on in Iraq for a very long time.(And will be after we have gone, too.)

What I SAID, is that whatever ANYBODY reports, it doesn’t alter or impact what is actually going down. We can see the EFFECTS. They ain’t good, by and large.

And of COURSE soldiers don’t live by polls. They must do as they’re ordered by their political commanders, both military and civilian, and first take and then SURRENDER ground as instructed, process and deal with detainees, AS INSTRUCTED; and, also work on civil projects they can with what’s left after corrupt and/or inept Iraqis and foriegners (including Americans) take their cut or piss the money away - or just “lose” it. Many of them have done kindnesses for common Iraqis, no doubt about it. 2,010 have died there and well over 16,000 have been LISTED as “wounded” - many very seriously (although our government believes it’s in everybody’s best interests that the public not know the break-outs on that). We also don’t know the extent or cost of psychological injury those folk have suffered.

They DO read this blog, by the way…but I don’t think that’s why over 70% of them over there now reply to anonymous polling that we should leave Iraq within a year. I think it’s their own experience and perspective.

Clearly the “information” provided them via the government’s substantial and carefully-controlled media apparatus over there
is not compelling enough to overcome the realities they see, just as Peters’very subjective snapshot from a few miles of a guided tour in a Bradley, hasn’t had any effect on the realities perceived by a steadily growing number of Americans.

Also… I’VE read and heard about those newish campaigns and the strife between al Queda and Iraqi groups - and it seems YOU have, too. I doubt we share many news sources. Who’s been left out, do you figure? Our troops?

We aren’t failing in Iraq because of our troops, or because of the media. You know why we’re failing as well as everybody else does, by now.

Peters wrote something a couple days ago about electricity being great, then there was an article that it hit the lowest production since the invasion.

The notion that the traitor press lost the war gains currency as things look tough to the right. In a faith based reality thoughts are believed to have magical powers. If you would just stop saying double plus ungood things all would be ok.

We are in an interesting experient, can the practice of this notion win the hearts and minds of the American people over and over, or is it starting to collapse into absurdity?

My optimistic guess is the latter. While they may truly believe Buckley, Kristol etc. are American hating leftists these people are not without influence.

I think the Rusian dittoheads are on the road to self destruction. But then again such tactics have succeeded many times in history.

They do have guns and the proper treatment of traitors is obvious from their perspective.

Cameron Strandber says: but he is right when he says that the country backed off from falling into full blown civil war.

Cameron, you know this how, exactly? Perhaps by retrofitting the definition of “civil war” to meet your political agenda.

Hey Chris — Deep breath, bro.

There are people who hang on Peter’s word. Like Bush’s speeches, it is reassuring, politically, that all is right with America.

But the tensions run deep.

Spinner, Burns and others just debated a left-wing hostile audience at Berkley, with j-school prof Danner (of Abu Ghraib Book fame)

I thought this was interesting:

“Journalists, Danner argued, have indeed been getting enough of the story both in Iraq and in Washington, DC, and getting it right. “The conceptual problem has to do with information versus politics,” he said.

His argument, essentially, was that the Bush Administration has hijacked reality, and that a confused and angry public has turned to shooting the messenger. Although almost as soon as the invasion commenced, journalists were reporting accurately that the military did not have enough troops to secure the cities — a fact later admitted by figures as high up as Paul Bremer, former head of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq — “the problem is that no consequences have flowed from that. No one’s been fired, no more troops have been sent.…And that’s true of torture, of a lot of other policy failures of this administration,” said Danner. “We know about them, yet we keep looking to the press to say, ‘You have to prove it, you have to prove it!’”

But not only does the public no longer trust that any such proof from the media can be conclusive, it also sees that nothing happens after it is published, rendering the “truth” of such proof impotent, Danner concluded. “The problem is that this next step after revelation, which is investigation and then punishment — or expiation and political change — hasn’t happened.”

http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2006/03/14_iraq.shtml

Don’t let the bastards get you down.

The Good Fight, is being fought.

Meanwhile .. still trying to get back….

Okay, who here has ever participated in a military operation??? Hands anyone?

Just askin’, because the military is a wee bit more complicated than just a bunch of guys with guns. They actually, you know, do stuff, like NEOs and TRAPs, and whatnot. Somewhat more complicated, dude. Just somewhat. /sarcasm

Hey, Peters is dead on the money when he talks about the Battle of Fallujah: The first battle was a strategic defeat caused by political pressure in the face of hysterical media coverage. In other words, the camera and unscrupulous reporting had a battlefield effect, at least on the political leadership. In the second battle, the Marines and Army beat the media cycle; it came fast, hard, and wrapped up the city before the terrorists’ print and broadcast reinforcements could repeat their slurs. Of course, we all know one particular Marine who almost had his head on the chopping-block; seems that reporting can actually serve up its own brand of casualties.

Remember ‘Jenin-grad’? Same thing. In fact, this is fundamental to how we fight nowadays; the media impact, the media cycle, the ease of information collection for the terrorists when the media does its legwork.

Deny it. Go ahead, deny that the media has any influence at all; you’ll either be a liar or a fool, tertium non datur.

Fact of the matter is that the reporting is often shoddy and if it errs, it errs on only one side, that of the ‘insurgents’, completely devoid of context even if they get the bare-bones facts correct, and also there is virtually no mechanism to double-check these vaunted stringers. You get what you pay for, and these guys only print the civil war just a breath away stuff.

Its been a breath away for nearly three years already. Someone tell them to get on with it already or shut up about it.

It always amazes me how desperately the fascist mind will continue to cling to the fantasies and outright lies handed down from a higher authority — even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Vercingetorix seems determined to provide yet another demonstration of that trait, one which at this point is hardly needed.

One of the things SMART militaries do is avoid getting trapped in their own preconceptions. It’s called situational intelligence. And it’s somewhat more complicated, dude, than just throwing around a lot of Pentagon acronyms and half-backed cliches about the “media cycle.” It requiries the power of critical thinking — a power that Vercingetorix clearly lacks. Which is pretty much what one should expect from someone so wrapped up himself and his delusions of grandeur he adopts the name of an ancient Gallic warrior as his web handle.

As for Peters, it seems to me Chris has wasted enough of his time critiquing the deranged old spook. Outside of a few fellow bitter enders like Vercingetorix here, I don’t think too many people are still listening to his rants. Like his fellow neocons, he bet the ranch on the Great Iraq Cakewalk, and now he has to pay the price: a complete loss of credibility.

In the end, it really is fairly simple: Successful superpowers learn from their defeats and make the necessary political or military reforms — usually over the howls of the conservative bitter enders. Failed superpowers don’t, because too many vested interests prefer to go on pretending that all is well, and are powerful enough to get their way. Iraq will determine — or at least help determine — which category America falls into.

yawn

point, Billy?

Good day then.

I do remember the mighty Soviet press corps that was singlehandedly responsible for the defeat of the commies in Afghanistan. Sure, the Sovs beat the Afghans in every straight-up fight, but how could the muj lose with the ferocious PRAVDA brigades on their side?

Pleasant dreams, Vercingetorix. Don’t forget to leave your nightlight on — so the big bad liberal media doesn’t get you.

Vercigetorix:

This is just a stab, because I don’t know Billmon - but I think his point is that you come on for all the world like a self-delusional fringe-dweller whose time (and usefullness to those who would use people like you for their own purposes) has come and gone, along with that dimwitted neocon ideology, the exploitative flag-waving and fear-mongering, and all that B.S. from the White House and Pentagon, that got us into this mess in the first place. Likewise sadly flacid and inept are the deserate attempts to blame the media for the Iraqi disaster or its terrible costs; and, implications that criticising government policy or pointing out realities and obvious failures in strategy and tactics, equals attacks on our military.

I think he’s saying you might be thinking about getting new masters for whom to play the sycophant and suggesting that, for your sake, it’s too bad Musolini is dead.

He just tried to say it nicely.

The point that Peters is a “deranged old spook” ought to be clear enough, even for you.

Okay, sob sisters. Got it.

Public opinion has NO impact on military operations. That’s because we live in the BushHitlerChimpyMcHalliburton dictatorship, where the Constitution will be shredded ANY. DAY. NOW. Is that just about it, fellas?

But whatever floats your boat, girlz.

The ‘deranged old spook’ part is priceless. Tell me again how you support the troops? Guy’s put his time in, walked the walk, talked the talk, but the ‘don’t question MY patriotism’ crowd [because Howard-Zinn-said-Thomas-Jefferson-said “Dissent is the highest form of Patriotism”-and-I’m-enough-of-a-rube-to-parrot-it] go all girls-gone-wild on anyone that dissents from the party view.

Hey, morons, Peters made a life of study, and application, of the third world, from Africa to Latin America to Asia and Europe. He’s also worn his country’s uniform, served his country, as an Army officer. He’s an author of 20+ books, a respected opinion among the military, and has forgotten more about war than any of you will likely ever learn.

But what the fuck does he know, right? The idiot brigades, that can identify the business end of a rifle every other time, well, they’re the authorities. Why their entire year of experience beats even a lifetime of accumulated knowledge…whatever. Believe what you want. You guys are morons.

YEAH! Take that, you l00sers!

I like how Vercingetorix and other shoot-the-messenger-first types completely absolve the Bush Admin of any possible blame in caving to “public opinion”. I don’t recall al-Jazeera getting on the horn to the Marines and telling them to pull back from Fallujah the first time —- nope, that was the White House. So much for steely resolve and staying the course —- but of course I’m such a loser that I can’t see that it is clearly IMPOSSIBLE for Bush to maintain course in the face of the almighty press —- he’s only commander-in-chief, after all.

And of course Peters’ opinion must be respected above such losers as Anthony Zinni, James Webb, Patrick Lang, Wes Clark, Joseph Hoar, William Odom, Tony McPeak, etc. etc.

Hi Chris,

Take a deep breath. Count to 10. And then leave the Peters issue behind.

Your first post concerning Peters was to the point. And it generated some interesting comments. But the issue has now become a waist of bandwidth. It seems to me there are more ipmortant issues to address in Iraq…

Please move on and keep up the good work.

“How dare you, Ralph. How dare you question these men and women’s intentions and honesty. I’ve worked with our staff in the TIME house for two years and I’ve never seen a more dedicated, careful group of journalists.”

Great, I guess your experience with those guys represents the lump sum of what journalists in Iraq are doing.

Anecdotal evidence is fine, and maybe what you’re trying to get across is true. It gets kind of lost in the self-righteouness though.

We’re all wrong sometimes. I’d rather hear about solutions to Iraq’s problems than anything. Got any hints? If not, I’ll go somewhere else…

Just one question, and I know it goes against the grain here…

Why does every Veteran, including me, feel that the media coverage of this war does not reflect the reality “on the ground”?

Not trying to start a ruckus and I am not saying that Peter’s is on target with his reporting or that you are wrong; but I am asking why NOT ONE VET I KNOW says that the reporting from Iraq is accurate. Not one….

Tequila,

Your post was idiotic. Hate Bush, Love Bush; all politics aside… if there is one thing that guy does it is following what he feels is “the right thing to do”. He has never cared about “public opinion”, and never will. Your hatred of this admin. has tainted your views and it shows in your entirely misguided rant.

So, you’re saying that Orville Schell’s account of journalism from Iraq, on Salon, TomDispatch and New York Review of Books, is more accurate than Ralph Peters’, and that I would be well advised NOT to come there, as Peters invites his readers to do, to “Look around” on my own? And I was so looking forward to experiencing the storied spiral landing!

Not sure what the truth is in this but all I do know is that the emails I get from family and friends in Iraq paint a drastically different picture than the mainstream media portrays. What would be the driving force in this? Is it political agendas? How about lack of verification? Probably both and a few more. Nuff said. I do not believe our media any longer and their bravery and dedication are not the reasons. Their lack of objectivity is.

Rick, if that was so, then please explain if and how the media is sabotaging the war effort. How could the media hurt the war effort if the President runs the war and is completely unaffected by public opinion?

I would also like to hear your explanation for how the first attack on Fallujah ended.

Rick — Can you elaborate on how the media’s representations of Iraq differ from vets’ experiences? What, for instance, would you feel an accuate report might contain?

Stonefly — It is possible what you are hearing from family and friends in Iraq is different because emails are subject to censorship. Also (I hear) people like to put a good face on things and allay the concerns of their loved ones.

• “Let me try to paint the picture a little more clearly, Mr. Peters: When Sunnis cheer the Americans….. They have no love for Americans, they just know who is best able to protect them from their neighbors.”

I might be fairly right if I said, No, there are no Iraqis Love the Americans, but, there might be some Iraqis who don’t Hate the Americans!

• ” Why, he himself saw Iraqis cheering his patrol as he rumbled through Baghdad atop an up-armored humvee.”

Well, that particular scene I doubt that you can see it NOW in any place in Iraq, even in Kurdistan and even for your fking chocolate.

• Allbritton, I’m not trying to deny the questioned acts carried out by some officials against the Sunnis), it’s REAL, but, you are keep ignoring the current (I won’t mentioned the hideous past under the ex-regime) anguish of the Shiites just same as the Sunnis, it is exist, even worse than you can imagine. I don’t like to be stupid letting myself to be dragged by your words and suggest this sectarian comparison, yet, let’s not ignore how many Shiites had been slaughtered and immigrated by Jihads and ex-baathis in particular places all over the country, actually most of the booby trapped cars that targeted civilians (which are the major attacks), were against Shiites crowds.

It’s all been set archly/slyly/balefully well.

HATE to admit that we might be on a low level civil war, the ongoing assassinations of Sunnis in the south and the ongoing slaughters of Shiites in the middle, the Syrians and the Iranians know how to play it well, God bless America!!! On the other hand, I think it might maintain that rhythm (no more no less) for a while, with the ups and downs.

• “Iraq is a big, conplicated story with a lot of moving parts: US military, Iraqi military, US Embassy, Iraqi government, Iraqi people and society, etc. You can’t cover the whole thing in every story, so you cover an aspect of it at any one time.” - “Iraq is a mess.”

That’s so damn true.

Why should you do all that talking regarding that Ralf Peters, just do your reporting and let the readers grasp where is the real, he doesn’t worth it, any one really following the situation in Iraq (which is apparently the case of B2I readers), will figure it out. Nevertheless, sometimes, in my unimportant simple flat opinion, I think that you’re kinda reporter that if someone give you two facts and insert a lie in the middle, you will buy it.

-..Iraqijournalists..sure,I’m not a journalist, but, thanx.