BEIRUT -- Hello everyone. Long time, eh? Sorry for the radio silence, but I really had to step away from the blog for a while. Emotionally, it was too much to do one's best to cover the war here fairly while still maintaining a sense of truth, only to be flayed by people who accuse me of shilling for Hezbollah. Khalas, enough.
One thing I've learned from this war is that when it comes to Israeli-Arab relations, most people don't want the truth: they want words that conform to their preconceived notions. I.e., that Israel is a aggressive, colonial construct with designs on the Litani's water, or that Hezbollah is full of bloodthirsty savages who don't deserve to live.
Neither or these caricatures is, of course, accurate. But subtlety doesn't seem to have much place in the blogosphere anymore, where you get the most attention and the most hits by putting out whatever half-assed opinion one can muster. You only have to shout loudly enough and play to whatever audience you want to get the attention. Blogging these days seems to resemble bad vaudeville rather than thoughtful commentary.
I never wanted that from blogs. I had a vision of blogs standing alongside the so-called mainstream media and being the garnish of a well-balanced media diet, as I said in a lot of radio interviews. I never thought of blogs as a replacement or actively hostile to the Big Guys. Considering my background, that would be ridiculous. I'm a journalist. I'm a proud mainstream media journalist. My background is with the Associated Press, the New York Daily News and TIME Magazine. I'm very proud to be associated with such publications now and in the past and I'm proud of the work they've done, with or without my contribution.
But now, it seems the blogosphere has become more concerned with "gotcha" politics and "fact checking your ass," mantras by armchair photo analysts who have no clue about what happens in a war or how photographs are made and distributed. They just want to score points in what seems to be, at best, a debating club rather than real life and death situations. Congratulations, your team won. Yay. People are still dead, you know. It's happened in Iraq and it's happened here, and I don't really feel like being part of that culture any more.
That said, I'm also proud of the work done on this blog, even in this war, despite some commentators saying I know nothing of Israel or that I only wrote what my "minders" let me. (For the record, there was never any "minder" from Hezbollah that I saw, and certainly not attached to me. Any reticence I exhibited was based on my my own judgment of the situation.)
Which brings up one of the frustrating things about reporting here -- or anywhere in the Middle East, for that matter: knowing things but being unable to say them openly. Somethings have to be kept back for security reasons or you don't want people to know you've been to places that would get you in hot water. The Israelis, for example, don't much like seeing a passport with a lot of stamps from Arab states in it. They'll hassle you. Hezbollah, likewise, probably wouldn't look too kindly on a reporter who'd openly been to Israel.
This was a major obstacle in this war for me, but I'd hoped that my reputation and past record -- which has been one of honesty, fairness and, yes, accuracy -- would have carried me through. That was not the case, however, and a bunch of angry pro-Israel readers who didn't know my work accused me of saying things that I didn't know to be true. This is not accurate on their part. When I say something on this blog, it's backed up by reporting. I may not always be able to openly source it -- the rules of protecting sources or myself don't change simply because the work is online -- but I know what I'm talking about. Readers can accept that or not; I really don't care any more.
Which is why I took a break. I got tired of defending myself to anklebiters who frankly had no idea what they were talking about. I got tired of going out every day, risking the life of my driver, translator and myself, only to be told I can't do anything put parrot Hezbollah propaganda. It was insulting and it pissed me off. To all you people who think you could do better in a war zone, bring it on.
This will be the last entry on B2I Edition du Liban for a while. I'm working on a novel now and I want to focus on that and my other, professional work. I'm also going to focus on rebuilding a life here and taking care of the people I love. Something's got to give and the blog -- or what's left of it -- is it. I have realized that life is short.
To everyone who wrote asking if I was OK, thank you for your concern. It means a lot. But farewell, for now.
Chris, I hope you know I have always thought well of you and your reporting. You stand for the best in journalism, and I admire you greatly for what you’ve done. You’re so right that life is short, and you’re doing what you need to do. Take care, and I look greatly forward to your work in the future, including the book you’re writing - be sure and post about it here when it comes time to publish so we know about it…
I’ll miss your reports, Chris. It seems as though true reporting is becoming more and more difficult to find nowadays.
Chris, I’m going to miss the blog. I counted on it for an inside look at what was going on. You did a GREAT job. Can’t wait to read the novel!
Hey Chris,
Long time no see .
Long time no read.
Since you Sept 1st post mentions you getting bashed for “pimping” the Hezbo pov.
Say Did the minders have you second guessing yourself or your blog entries ?
Chris, I am convinced you make the most sincere efforts to remain objective and impartial, and this is why i keep reading you. Tenez bon!!
Chris,
It’s good to hear you are safe. Your reports will be missed, but you have to do what is best for yourself and the people you care about.
It’s sad to see random idiots drive an intelligent voice from posting about the Middle East. These type of people, assaulting anyone that doesn’t agree with their preconceived notions of events, are the downside to this form of open communication. I’ll never understand that type of closed mindedness.
Anyway…. In the sea of idiots in the “blogosphere”, I greatly appreciated your insight, from on the ground, in the middle of it all. Keep up the good work. I hope to hear more from you in the future.
Chris,
Now you have reached the place where you can do great reporting on this blog. Don’t care. Just write what you find to be true. Let the critics spin all they want.
As the old greek saying goes, “do you owe them any money?” If “no” then “fuck them.”
Darn! There goes one of the best sources of info on the middle east anywhere.
It’s understandable, but a real loss to those of us aware of the vast amounts of pure BS slung around here in Washington DC and elsewhere. Facts are way too hard to come by, and you have provided a good healthy dose with every post.Thank you very much!
John L.
Good grief, there goes another one. Just as I’m trying to adjust to losing the Truth-About-Iraqis blog, I lose this one as well - after a long silence that was worrisome. Is there something about decent blogging or commenting that makes the good ones just fall away? If there is, we on the net need to try to fix it.
Sorry to see you go, Mr. Albritton.
I suppose people are more likely to comment on things they hate than on things they love. I just started reading this blog a month ago (they mentioned it in my journalism grad school program at Medill and I looked it up immediately) and just so you know, I think it’s been terrific.
Chris,
I’ve really enjoyed your writing and even blogged about your coverage. Hope all goes well for you to rebuild from these events. If anything, keep up updated on the good things going on there. We never hear that news enough.
If you’d even want to do a VoIP interview on my podcast, my door is always open.
Truth about Iraqis came back a bout a month ago at a new address and can be found here:
http://truth-about-iraqis2.blogspot.com/
Chris,
Thank you for reporting, for taking the risks you did, and for your professional objectivity. I have regularly checked your blog to get a deeper perspective of events, first in Iraq and more recently in Lebanon.
Stephan
I’m not sure I understand why, after taking heat from every side during your reporting from Iraq, you took such strong resentment from comments regarding your coverage of Lebanon on this blog…or why you believe vitrolic and the absence of thoughtfulness and accuracy is a particular wickedness of the blogosphere - and not so much, the mainstream media.
I DO believe and advance that you are wrong about one thing. Maybe you WISH to be and intend to be a mainstream journalist. You certainly are published as one. But you were BEST, in the not-mainstream, thesis- sum-it-up-wrap-it-up world, where ambiguity and emotional roller coaster rides and terror and loss and small triumphs played through your factual dispatches and brought a unique and human dimension to the coverage - and enhanced your readers’ sense of not only the wars and the major events and personalities, but of being there in the Middle East, among its populations.
To which mainstream media may we now turn to find THAT?
It’s understandable that you are ready to move on, but I hope some folk will follow the path you laid out and, if you hear or come across them, that you will point me in their direction.
Best regards.
I have very much enjoyed reading your blog. Thanks you so much for all your hard work. I look forward to reading your book when it is finished.
Chris,
Glad to know you are OK. I’ve appreciated your reporting over the last few years but understand the need to prioritize. I wish you the best in whatever your future brings. Your voice in this venue will be missed.
Chris, Thanks for the hard work that you do. I can’t wait to read that book that you’re writing. You have always reported as you have seen on the ground and I for one have appreciated that. Take care.
Too bad - some of us WERE looking for news instead of agenda - now where do we go?
Chris, Your insights and reporting will be greatly missed. I’m glad you’re safe though, I was really starting to worry. Good luck with the book, and I hope at some point in the future you can get back into blogging. There are far too few people actually doing real investigation and real reporting compared to the number of hacks out there who want to second guess everything based on their preconceived notions.
Good luck, and take care.
I have enjoyed your reporting here and also your recent interview on NPR. It’s been good seeing a more honest viewpoint of the Middle East than what most of our media seems willing to present. Best of luck with your book and life.
Thanks for the hard work, but be wary of novel-writing. The romanticizing nature of fiction is very tempting to fall into. I hope you write something unsparing, unromanticized and as truthful as the reports you’ve been giving. Fiction has its limits, more than people like to admit, especially fiction writers — of which I’ve been paid to be one. It only has no limits when writers don’t adhere to the “rules” of fiction.
As Conrad Dobler, the infamous former NFL thug, used to say: “Screw the rules.”
Best of luck.
Chris,
Thanks for being an honest voice in the maelstrom - look forward to reading your book and giving it out as gifts to all my friends.
Hey Chris,
Posting a blog with the comment feature on puts you directly in the line of fire. But it’s not necessary to write a blog to be hit by this. I work for an agency which hires engineers and scientists from, literally, around the world, including 1st generation U.S. citizens and green card holders from Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Afghanistan (and Taiwan and Indonesia and Austrailia and Canada and Serbia and Japan and Korea and more): These are all people who work in the same building on the same set of projects. However. There are topics one simply does not bring up — or at least not for long — because if generous things are not said solely about one side or the other… Well, harmony would not reign. It’s sad, actually. There’s so much talent, and every one of the people I’ve mentioned is personable, likeable, intelligent, etc. They are even able to sit in the same room and be personable and civil to each other. But to hear them separately on certain topics, one really does wonder how this happens, though perhaps they think of each other as “exceptions.” One can only hope everyone will grow to see that the world is not made of angels and devils, but of bad (and good) situations which can be made better (or worse), and that our own attitudes are part of what will make things become better or worse.
Chris,
I’m really sorry to hear your last post. I’ve always been a huge fan of your blog. To try and put it differently from everybody else, let me just say that, when you didn’t post on your blog for some time, I was seriously distraught.
I hope you’ll regain interest in blogging in the near future, but regardless, the quality of your work on this site for the past few years has been exceptional. Best wishes.
Chris,
if this is your decision, I can only say: take care! And be happy in whatever you do next. I’ll be missing your honest voice, and will be definitely looking forward to your novel or any other future work.
Andrea
Hi Chris! Wow, what has happened??? Please, stop justifying yourself, there is no necessity to do that. Why do you give such ignorant persons the power over you to get pissed off? If you prefer to dedicate yourself to write a novel, perfect, but please, don’t allow individuals who are not able to adapt to reality, so that they try to adapt reality to themselves to influence you!!! I can imagine that you’re just too exhausted, so that you weren’t able to follow your credos, don’t caring too much about other peoples’ opinions like you always did!!! When we got to know each other I critized you a lot because of going to Iraq, if you remember, now I just have a lot of respect for your work and your dedication! Just needed to let you know! Take care! nadine
Its easy for a commentor to write bias opinions when his name and career do not depend on it and no personal emotion is attached to it. i really regret, but will respect your decision to stop the postings… you are a pioneer in this and as other readers said, your contribution to mainstream media will never replace this.
the blog’s archive is already a novel by itself.!
THank you!
I’m sorry to hear this news, but if anybody deserves a rest, it’s you. Pissed some people off, did you? Good.
Along with your mother, I am heaving a great sigh of relief that you are safe and home. Thanks for your excellent efforts.
Maybe you could use the blog to post links to your articles - wherever they appear. And perhaps think about turning off the comments. Mom
Adios, mi amigo. I will miss the perspective you have provided. The blog generated a lot of heated comments during the recent conflict in Lebanon from both sides and it was difficult to see you caught up in the crossfire literally and figuratively. It should not come as any surprise as truth is always the first casualty of war. The war of words in cyberspace is now only mimicking the fighting in the ground and your blog was just another arena where it was being fought out. Objectivity is a difficult commodity to come by given all the variables that must be analyzed and in spite of the ramped up rhetoric there were some facts that could be gleamed from all the posts. At the risk of sounding like a Bush apologist maybe this cease fire will be a good time for all to step back and think of a long term solution rather than to lick wounds, re-arm and plan to fight another day. Good luck with the novel.
Chris-
I’ll be sorry to see you go. Your reports have been exceptional for their scope and clarity in an arena where ofuscation and propaganda are the norm. I wish you would continue but, man, if anyone could use a change, it’s you. Hell, I only had one year in Vietnam and that’s stayed with me ever since. I can only guess what three years in the Mid-East wars will do. Thanks again for all you’ve written. I’ll look forward to whatever you write in the future.
I’m sorry you feel that you have to stop blogging because of some negative elements in the comments section. Generally, I read your blog and that’s it. I dont bother with the comments unless there is a really interesting discussion going on (usually, people are confirming their own opinions, though)
My gran used to say, it’s the creaky hinge that gets the oil. Dont forget there are many who follow your blog, wo do not comment or stereotype or troll. It would be a shame to only respond to the creaky door and ignore the rest of your audience.
Be well, thanks for all the insights. I have been following you for the longest time, it always was worth the read.
Anja The Netherlands
Glad to hear you are still alive and kicking Chris! I certainly can’t blame you for wanting to step back from all the hot blood that has been aimed at you. You deserve better!
I have very much appreciated your objective take on Iraq, Lebanon, and all things Middle East. I wish that there were more reporters who did as good a job as you at trying to give both sides, or all sides, a fair shake at getting their stories out.
Good luck with your novel and I hope to see you writing here again at some point in the future!
I guess I’ll be the first voice to try to refuse your resignation, regardless of my lack of any authority to do so.
You have always known that the world contained many people with fixed ideas, narrow visions of human motivation and a moral code completely consonant with loathing their fellow man. It is a mistake and a weakness and a logical error on your part to alter your extremely beneficial behavior due to the fact that a portion of these extremely flawed people have turned their groundless misapprehension in your direction.
And yes, it is very easy for me, the object of essentially none of that hatred, to sit here anonymously typing these words. Their truth remains.
What you can give us is valued greatly. Even if it is simply vignettes of your experience in the region, fragments of conversations that you found insightful, relaying the un- or under-reported conventional wisdoms in various communities, or passing on obscure bits of information necessary to understand widely reported events — micro-reporting, if you will — your voice is recognized as one of professionalism and integrity by all whose opinions deserve consideration, and has value beyond that of your published professional work.
If indeed your heart is set on a novel, and you’ll be taking a total vacation from reporteresque activities, then more power to you. But if you will be continuing to do reporting, don’t presume that this blog requires the painstaking “copy-paste-and-email-to-TIME” quality composition to which we have become accustomed. And don’t be harassed into deserting your loyal and grateful readers by the pointing and clicking of armchair snipers.
My full name is Pazitya Ariel Tirosh. You can find me at yettouse@gmail.com
Since the agrument of my anonymous has been brought up here, I feel it’s fair I give my full name.
I’m not a bloger, and my beeing Israeli (or proIsraeli) has nothing to do with my claims towards Chris’ (I’m sorry to say) bad job.
As much as I can feel his pain, and I can, an argument like “I’m risking my life here, and you insult me?!” is not an actual answer to the the claims I’ve raised in the previous post. Nor is this discussion about the blogsphere, which I fail to see how it is related to your duty to an ethical job.
I am sorry to say that the fact you find your insult and your feelings a more relevant issue than the actual claims presented to you about your work and the damage that you do by failing to be accurate or to know the first thing about what you make conclusions about, an unfortunate evidence of your unawareness to the major role these mishaps of people like you play in the fundamentalist’s strategy on how to promot their deadly agenda (deadly both for Israelis and Lebanese).
So frankly, as much I feel for you (and I do), I am glad you are taking a break, because that gives a fair chance to the option you’ll take the time to concentrate in learning the backround of what you’ll choose to report of next time, and maybe gain some overview, as well.
Pazitya.
It seems to be you did good work and honest work as best you could.
I’m a little troubled by the heckling of witnesses, I felt one should respect the costs they pasy even if one thinks they may be out of focus. For example I disagreed with some of Mr. Yon’s prognosis, but felt he earned it.
So there is a line being crossed. I know the Fox News reporters who converted to Islam are now being slimed as cowards.
I also know that any doubt about Israels strategy or tactics was dismissed as anti semitic with one exception. That is the criticism that they didn’t kill enough civilians, the Orthodix Americans have sent their complaint about this fault.
I find even in “moderate” groups they are asking the question “Do we have the guts to drop the bomb’ and on the right Truman is becoming a hero. I don’t know exactly how these “memes” spread, it was like the belief that Saddam planned 9/11 and Iraqis carried it out. You can find a few sources, but mostly it just appeared.
Fortunatly it sems Israel is more sane than it’s American “friends” who are of ciurse a bit miffed it didn’t destroy Lebanon and Syria. But here an emotion is cresting. One name for it is “nuke Iran.”
They are serious. They all; dream of being little Pol Pots and Stalins.
Christopher,
I read your blog for insights and first-hand information as one of many sources on the war in Lebanon and the war in Iraq.
I think you did a great job. I also think that there’s always 100 sides of any given story and there are millions of people wanting you to be on theirs. Don’t give up, this world needs a lot more people like you.
… and if you’re ever coming to Munich, Germany, I’ll buy the drinks.
Jonas
Chris, I might be mentioning my claims towards your reports in a letter that I’m trying to take the time to write.
If I do, then I probably should send you a coppy, so that you can respond if you like. But I don’t have your e.mail. So if you want to excrise your right to know what might be written concerning your work, then write me to the e.mail I’ve left.
What a baby! Waaah! I went to the Middle East and I was shocked by how political it is! No duh, dood. It’s a war. The partisans of warring states are critical of “objective” reporting. Well no shit. Good luck on your novel….. Zzzzzzzzzzzzz Boring!
I’m sorry you are leaving. I’ve been reading your blog ever since you started it. I found it to be a great source of information about what was really happening in the Middle East. I’ve noticed there are some obnoxious comments made on many blogs…I think most of us who just read the blogs tend to ignore them. I’ve sorry you’ve taken them to heart…but can’t say I blame you. I rarely post any comments on any blog, but wanted to do so here because I have really appreciated your contribution. I am 63 years old and have seen enough of life and people to recognize integrity when I see it. Good luck.
I’ve enjoyed your blog since it’s inception. A heartfelt thanks for all your work. That said, BTI been around for a while, and blogging takes its toll. Thoughtful commentary is tremendously laborious. There needs to be some payoff, and it’s easy to see that this particular venue may not provide that for you anymore.
Vengeful detritus certainly seems to be the fastest way to get hits these days. A quick look at any site’s stats can show a correlation between “controversial” posts and hits. Many popular Blogs contain a disproportional number of negative comments. It seems that those who offer the most lengthy comments —and those people emerge for ANY subject — perhaps do not have meaningful ways to spend their time or productive ways to dissipate their anger. Busy people seem to just read and move on.
I don’t see how continuing to blog in this atmosphere here would be rewarding, so good for you. But although seems as though this is the state of Blogs, its certainly not an endpoint of the medium. There continue to be great, amazing, blogs out there from people who insist on exploring difficult subjects in nuanced ways that aren’t included in most media coverage. I believe they will evolve to meet the demand for that hard to get pertinent information. Hopefully yours will be there again someday. In the meantime, enjoy your Life and we look forward to seeing your writing in other places.
It’s been great, thanks.
I’ll miss your reporting. I’m sorry you let the know-nothing bloggers get to you this much, but I suspect that’s not the only reason you’re going on hiatus. Please don’t be a stranger, and I hope to see you back as soon as you feel you’re able!
i had followed the lebannon war in many blogs, and was impressed by the number of trolls that were posting comments here…
maybe they couldn’t stand to the fact that you were reporting, bravely i must say, directly in a war zone… who knows…
: thanks a lot for your work, and i wish you and the ones you love a good life!
Sorry to hear this - I enjoyed your unique point of view on the Mideast.
I’m not so sure about your reasons for taking a break, though, as I think you’ll find that in just about any line of work there will be those who try to bring you down. If all you do is focus on them, then life is unbearable. Instead, concentrate on your supporters as they’re the ones who helped you get to where you are.
Anyway, good luck with the ‘novel’ although you really shouldn’t tell people that’s what you’re doing. It sounds so cliché!
Chris, Thank you for all your work and insight; I have relied on you for presenting complex issues with fairness.I hope you know how much you are appreciated. Take care….
Hey, Chris. I’m going to miss your blog coverage — sorry to hear about the messages you’ve been getting. I’ve always found your writings fair, well researched and well worth the time to read and mull over. It’d been a while since your RSS feed went bold in my Bloglines and I missed it. Yet I’m glad to hear you’ve got a big project in mind; I know that’ll be worth reading too. Best of luck on the next thing, and above all, don’t let the complaints of people with low-resolution minds convince you there’s no way to broadcast high-definition ideas. Some people are always going to be blurry, but there’s always some of us who live for the fine detail. I’m proud of what you did here.
Chris: I’ve been reading your blog since…shit - Thanksgiving or so of 2002, before the runup to the attack on Iraq. Even donated $$ to get ya back. I’m thinking it was Sean Paul @ the Agonist that turned some of us on to your place.
I’d read some of the comments that were probably instrumental in your decision. However, I do like what Deborah said above: “don’t let the complaints of people with low-resolution minds convince you there’s no way to broadcast high-definition ideas..” I think it’s the technical spin that speaks so forcefully.
I’ll miss your updates. But, ya know - make it a book and I’ll buy it.
Take good care of yourself. Write when ya can.
I’ve been with you all the way and feel like you’re part of my extended family. I’m just thankful that you’re alive and can make the choice to quit blogging. I have great respect for you and your reporting. Very best wishes for the future. Meg
Hi Chris, As a reader I go back to 2002. I posted comments quite a few times, signed with ‘Kodia’. That was back in the days when I needed anonymity to protect my inlaws in Baghdad. Your reporting on this blog has proven to be reliable, accurate, not to mention courageous over the years. I could tell because in many cases I could cross-reference your information with info obtained through my own connections in Iraq. You’ve gone through great lengths on quite a few occasions to obtain first hand information. And along the way you single-handedly created a new model for journalism. For that you deserve a lot of credit. However, along with quite a few other posters I am disappointed at the way this blog comes to an end. After everything you’ve gone through, I find it curious that you take such strong resentment from critics. Making a blog the likes of ‘back-to-Iraq’ is quite difficult and I realize it takes a heavy toll. Posting a negative comment from behind a comfortable desk, on the other hand, is quite easy. This obviously means that one post of yours may generate a lot of negative comments. Such is reality. Nevertheless, for me a feeling of gratitude prevails. I’d like to thank you very much for your work over the years and wish you all the best. Igor Asselbergs Amsterdam
I’m glad to hear you are doing okay. And one piece of advice, respectfully given.
Stop being so thin skinned about bloggers. Of course, there are idiots on blogs; I run into them all the time. But there is also a good deal of reasoned discussion on the blogs just as there are interesting and insightful comments posted on this blog. You sound like you’re engaging in some stereotyping here.
If you want to take a break from blogging, fine. But don’t put the responsibility for your decision on the blogging community.
Sorry to hear you have had to give up the blog — not surprised you got hammered during the last round. You were reporting it in all its ugliness; spectator combatants on all sides get unsettled by ground level realities.
Thanks to this blog I got to meet you and got some useful tips on getting by in the unfamiliar surroundings there. I’m still very grateful for your help and the reporting you’ve done here.
Stay well.
I’ve said it before…this is a great blog. I hope others will use it as a model. Thanks much for your efforts.
The best part of a blog is exactly that it is not part of the “mainstream media.” You have given us insights here that many editors in the mainstream media may have downplayed or stripped out entirely. Plus, a blog has an element of continuity that a reader can rarely, if ever, find in the mainstream media.
About the objectivity question, just as quantum physics shows we can never have perfect knowledge of a given physical state, so it is with news reporting. The state of affairs is always changing and facts can have differing interpretations, depending on whom you ask. A good reporter will examine a story from a variety of angles and personal points of view before venturing to offer a conclusion about what it means. For the most part, I think that’s what you’ve done, while fairly acknowledging the strengths and limitations of your information. There’s not much more that an honest reader can or should expect. A lot of your critics fail to understand that you are here to inform, and not necessarily to give backing to a particular point of view. That’s their loss. Perhaps your efforts to get good information is what most incensed some people because they couldn’t bear to see their version of the story challenged.
Thanks again for this great service, and good luck on your future projects.
OK? I didn’t read all the entry. I couldn’t finish. My nerves betrayed me. I also admit that I didn’t read all the entries. Dude, I don’t even care if you respond to me. But you know what?
F*c# all those people man. This is my first time reading your post. I was brought here from a blog called Tinta Digital from Puerto Rico, don’t bother looking for it (or mine) as they are both in spanish. However, you know what? I’m a Soldier. I come from a semi-diplomatic or diplomatic wanna-be background called the United Nations Model. There I got all the passion for politics and socials.
I’ll tell you what, you know why I am a Soldier? I am Puerto Rican, and other than economically, 9/11 didn’t affect me personally, (alghough I admit it was awfull). I am in war frankly because of two reasons: Money and my passions. Truth is one of my passions, and I believe THAT is your business, on people like you people like me depend (personall speaking). I don’t give a dawm about trolls, fu@#* stupid trolls.
You must undestand one thing sir, and that is: your mission. You must focus on your mission. Your mission is to bring out the truth, regardless of all obstacles that the enemy throws your way. If it were like that, the profession soldier wouldn’t exist, for we wouldn’t enlist for fear of bullets. We fight, regardless of danger of death. That’s you fu#@ job sir. The truth. It’s risky, dangerous, and most, a pain in the ass. But it is something you swore to yourself that you would do. So I will keep looking at your post from now on… AND YOU BETTER BE POSTING!!!
and for the record, I am not talkin from an office in Puerto Rico, I’m talking from Bagdad.
-ps: don’t try tracing the ip, as it traces back to the CONUS.
Hello Mr. Allbritton
it’s a pity you are frustrated by those people. As a regular though normally not commenting reader, i’d just like to say how much i enjoyed your reports; they always seemed honest, straightforward and conveying a sense of urgency to describe how things really look on the ground. At best, it was like reading Hemingway, no joking. Like back in the days, when insurgents took over parts of iraq and you and your fellow journalists went to assess the situation, which included interviewing the insurgents and crossing the frontlines - hands up and running.If i remember it right. Anyway, over the years you gained a growing community of readers. They certainly didn’t come to battle over details but to get a good piece of information. I’m sure the page visits show that. All the best from the west and in spite of everything: have a good time
Matthias Neff
Chris I have been a long time reader of your blog and am sorry to hear of it’s temporary suspension. Guess the reason there can not be open ended debate over the U.S. government’s total support for Israel is how fanatical people feel about it. We are creating extremists on both sides. Sorry to hear your voice has been silenced in this attempt to enlighten us.
Oh man… This is sad… Tis is really going to damage the blogosphere yet again.. Like you said the blogosphere is becoming ruled by ranting loonies who have no real place in scoial commentary, and many of them also have no real knowledge or experiences in the fields about which they talk.
The Iraqi blogosphere benefitted greatly from your contributions Chris, and for a long time I have wanted to get in contact with you, to chat with you and ask if you for advice on how to successfully follow in your footsteps.
Oneday I wish to be a self-motivated and reader-funded journalist, but for now the best I can manage is to upkeep the Olivebranch Network and keep expanding its list of quality Iraqi writers, who provide proper commentary as opposed to vile opinionative writings… (there are 23 Iraqi writers so far, and 4 non-iraqi’s including myself)
my email is lukey@iinet.net.au my yahoo ID= lukey_skinner my msn = evilfeet@hotmail.com my gtalk = troutish@gmail.com
Please take the time to send me an email, and maybe if you are willing, grant the me, and the Olivebranch Network support and permission to use your wonderful work on our page…
Someone must keep the truth about Iraq and the middle east flowing, and your writings would be a great boost to the Olivebranch Network’s ability to do so!
Even the archives!
it is a very sad day for me everytime a quality writer leaves the blogosphere, particularly when their field of expertise and experience is in Iraq or the Middle East…
I really do hope we can chat.
Sincerely, your faithfull FAN and long time reader-
Luke(y) Skinner
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7203348157256796035&q=Jews&hl=en
Wishing you peace while you take your well-earned break. Please know that you’ve made a difference and that you will be missed here. I’ll keep checking back, though. You never know when the urge to continue will come back.
ofcourse, they don’t know the truth as much as Chris does… But still they are local from birth. This one is highely estimated, and it was published in french in a Lebanese newpaper during the war http://www.menapress.com/article.php?sid=1479
this is a lebanese blogger http://dreadpundit.blogspot.com/2006/08/hizballah-accused-of-monstrous-qana.html http://newsbusters.org/node/7019
another “armchair know nothing” testimony http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,,19955774-5007220,00.html
The email the Canadian UN soldier wrote before he died http://www.nakedterror.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=807#807
If everybody was like Chris, noone would have had any way of knowing the truth. “gottu!” is a despicable thig when it refutes blood libels against the Jews http://www.camera.org/index.asp?xcontext=2&xoutlet=118&xarticle=1179 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1oq7oGON8&eurl http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOwZ8wgV7I4&eurl http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/45884734/reports/ThePhotothatStartedit_All.asp
Wherever you choose to go next, stay safe.
You were reporting on one of the most polarized issues in modern times. To witness things from the perspective of a Lebanese (being on the receiving end of Israeli bombs) puts you in a completely different position than the usual “Israel can do no wrong” posture normally assumed by the NY Times.
I still maintain my past opinion on your work over there…That is: you should get the hell out, and come back home. If this were the Vietnam war, you could roam around and write about whatever you wanted. Now a journalist will simply get kidnapped and murdered for reporting certain things that piss-off the polar opposites. Come home and write gossip in NYC. At the end of the day it accomplishes the same thing.
“The Israelis, for example, don’t much like seeing a passport with a lot of stamps from Arab states in it. They’ll hassle you. Hizbullah, likewise, probably wouldn’t look too kindly on a reporter who’d openly been to Israel.”
The difference is that the Israelis will let you go whilst Hizbullah will kill you. If you don’t get the difference, your objectivity meter needs recalibration.
i will be turning comments off soon. Israelis, aka P.A.T. (Israeli), are posting here as “Courageous Lebanese Journalists.”
An addendum to my last comment: P.A.T. (Israel) accused me of filtering his/her “last comment”:http://www.back-to-iraq.com/archives/2006/09/takingabreak.php#comment-52979, which this person posted under a different name — claiming in fact to be “courageous lebanese journalists.” I did no such thing. My automatic spam filter caught it because of the number of links in it. I have since reposted it. But I’d also like to post his/her email here:
My work speaks for itself. I will have no more to say on this subject.
Chris, I’ve read your blog for years, looking for a sense of what’s really going on from a personal perspective at the scene. But I’ve never posted a comment before. I usually don’t read the comments on blogs, just as I don’t read “letters to the editor” in traditional media. Even in magazines as frivolous as “Entertainment Weekly,” the comments always seem to be extremely partizan (pro or con Tom Cruise, for example.) Now I wish I had posted before, to let you know how much I appreciated your efforts to tell it as you saw it. There are so many places on the internet to get armchair rhetoric from both the left and right, but few places indeed for personal journalism. I’m sorry the weasels have gotten to you, but just reading a few of the vitriolic comments above would wear anyone down. Bon chance, bon vie! Can’t wait to read the novel.
Chris, Hang tough. Just turn off your ears to it and write. BTW, you ever read any J.M. Coetzee? Recent Nobel winner from South Africa? The spare, sparse, minimalist edge and impact of his prose is something to behold.
P.A.T., What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done to another person?
What’s the worst thing Israel has ever done to another person or groups of persons?
No easy answers, please. I expect to hear something that makes you ashamed.
Unless shameful behavior is simply not possible on the part of Israel.
Chris, It’s sad to read this. This blog has been one of the most insightful and interesting sources of information on the Middle East anywhere. I’m looking forward to the book. Take it easy…
Chris, I was checking on another blog from Baghdad Burning and I realized that is where I first linked into yours. There hasn’t been a post there in a month and the silence is deafening. I will miss your posts, they were informative and they lent something to the conversation. There is this disconnect between what the Bush administration projects and what the truth on the street is. I like to think that there are peeps out there who will walk that street and give the rest of us a glimpse of what they see in that prism light. Your vision was clearer than most. Not for political gain but in a quest for the truth. Thanks.
These two mails were my answer to Chris:
Chris,
You may consider addressing to courageous Lebanese journalists using third person: “they” to be impersonation. Since the comment contained links to their testimonies, and not my opinion, I didn’t think my name mattered there.
May be you are just pissed to the point you want to hung on to it, in which case, be my guest. But it just occurred to me the reason you see it as wrong is because you’re implying I’m responsible for nasty comments not under my name.
If that’s the case, then I can assure you I’m not. Every hash thing I had to say to you was said under my name. The reason I want you to know that is because I don’t want you to have a gate way from my criticisms by letting your self assume I’m some sort of troll. I’m not. I haven’t posted anything of my opinion (or any opinion for that matter) not under my name. The links are to some other people’s opinions. My identity has got no importance to them. True, there’s a reason I didn’t sign my name to them, because seeing people there referring to any divergence from the “Chris take care… I’ll buy you a beer” which I’m included in, as a troll, makes it possible they won’t be looking at the links because of my name there. Well, the reason I got the links there is to overcome your ridicules excuse that Israelis and Lebanese just are too fanatical to be able to hear any sort of criticism about their sides. That is why it was more important to me they read them than posting my name.
I’m sorry, I’d love to be the troll you really wish you could assume I were, but I’m not. Reality is a bit more complicated than “oh, these people just don’t want to hear the truth!”. I really wish you had a clue as to how troublesome (not to say pathetic) it is to witness your self image as aligned with the truth, while you don’t even know the first thing on the conflict, on the parties involved or pretty much about anything about this war. The truth is a very high target to aim at, for everyone; all you have to do is keep your reports accurate. Accurate means loyal to facts, not rumors. That is what you posted, and an explanation like: “I had a source” is really silly when your report was word by word Nasrallah’s public speech on TV. Because frankly, in that case, everyone could be your source, from your grocery owner to your next door neighbor. And still a journalist has to bring the accused side’s comments.
I hope your record gets better one day
Israelis, aka P.A.T. (Israeli), are posting here as “Courageous Lebanese Journalists.” “”
“Israelis”- plural?? And what exactly can you base that on?? So everybody should assume that all of the critic comments against you are just impersonating Israelis. Does it even bother you that it is probably a lie?
You’re hopeless. You just can’t help your self, can you? Chris, there’s no unwritten rule in journalism that allows you to accuse Israelis of what ever you like with no basis. Get that through your head.
So now that you have your readers thinking Hank Hill might be an Israeli impersonating, (I really don’t have any idea who he is), why not just look at what you referred to.
“The Israelis, for example, don’t much like seeing a passport with a lot of stamps from Arab states in it. They’ll hassle you. Hizbullah, likewise, probably wouldn’t look too kindly on a reporter who’d openly been to Israel.”
I take it this is from experience. So you’ve been hassled by Israel? Because you see Al-Jasera have their greatest representative right here in Israel. I guess they’ve never heard about this passport stamps hassle.
And of course, seeing that the two British terrorists which executed the suicide bombing in “Mike’s Place”, and had Jordanian stamps on their passports, are not enough of a good reason to explain any “hassle” such stamps might cause before Israel lets their owner in. No. It’s exactly like the Hezb’Allah’s hassle, that there are testimonies about it being up to murder threats (of course not to people like you, who never challenge their tolerance, if you even manage to recognize it’s Hezb’Allah you’re talking to) to who ever reports of anything other than what they allow to get out.
It’s the same thing. Just like:
” The reason for the hassling and the threat was that a reporter had filmed or described either a launching site or Hizbullah positions. (I’m not sure which.) To the best of my knowledge, that’s been the extent of the hassling. I’m going to get in trouble for this, but I think it’s a reasonable restriction. This is the exact same restrictions placed on journalists by the Israeli army and by the Americans in Iraq”
Oh, you mean like IDF won’t let its launcher of shells be filmed?
http://masoret.hevre.co.il/hydepark/topic.asp?topic_id=1990937
To Dadler, what ever the worst thing I have ever done may be, it did not include being in a country where everything is censored by Hezb’Allah and their private propaganda TV Al-Manar airs from: http://switch5.castup.net/frames/20041020MemriTVPopup/video_480x360.asp?ai=214&ar=934wmv&ak=null
http://switch5.castup.net/frames/20041020MemriTVPopup/video_480x360.asp?ai=214&ar=895wmv&ak=null
http://switch5.castup.net/frames/20041020MemriTVPopup/video_480x360.asp?ai=214&ar=964wmv&ak=null
and to shamelessly quote their leader in a speech on that same TV, saying that Israel had been waiting to get back at Lebanon, (so the war isn’t actually his fault, and they should really let him go on using their land for his agenda, for he is protecting them from Israel). This is the speech:
http://switch5.castup.net/frames/20041020MemriTVPopup/video_480x360.asp?ai=214&ar=1203wmv&ak=null
And this is Chris’ version:
“Israeli military that had been looking for a chance to get even ever since Hizbullah finally forced Israel from Lebanon in 2000.”
Sounds familiar?? It can’t be that a reporter sits in Beirut, and thinks he can repeat that story without even asking IDF’s story, not to say checking to see if any of this might be true.
I can tell you of nicest thing I’ve done, which is to save my harshest words for Chris to the private mail, once he seemed to have looked like he was taking a break. Only to him use it to try and spin the whol