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Geraldo, Bush, and Iraq. Interesting Take
p3skyking
Member Posts: 23,916 ✭✭✭
This came to me via a buddy in Iraq. Cannot name the source or the writer, because I don't know.
Although I am not a fan of Geraldo Riviera, his comments below are worth reading.
Probably each of you has wondered if things could be as bad in Iraq as Brokaw,
Jennings, et al, have been painting it.
Interesting, isn't it?
The buildings that AREN'T burning in Iraq
"They have a saying in the news business," Geraldo Rivera related last week. "Reporters don't report buildings that don't burn." And with that introduction, he told a TV audience about the story that is being systematically denied to our entire nation; the success story of post-Saddam Iraq.
Are we losing some soldiers each week? Yes.
Is there some frustration in the Iraq public about electricity and water
service? Yes.
Are some Saddam Hussein loyalists throughout the land, making trouble? Yes.
Has this opened a window for some terrorist mischief? Yes.
But that's ALL we hear. No wonder our country is in a mixed mood about Iraq. If you hear about the buildings that are not burning, though, it is
a different story indeed.
[Rivera is no shill for George W. Bush. But Bush, Condi Rice and Colin Powell together could not have been as effective as Geraldo was Thursday
night on the Fox New s Channel's Hannity and Colmes program.]
"When I got to Baghdad, I barely recognized it," he began, comparing his just-completed trip to two others he made during and just after the battle to topple Saddam. "You have over 30,000 Iraqi cops and militiamen
already on the job.
"This is four months after major fighting stopped. Can you imagine that kind of gearing up in this country? Law and order is better; archaeological sites are being preserved; factories, schools are being guarded." But what about the secondhand griping that the media have been so efficiently relating about power, water and other infrastructure?
"To say that Iraq is being rebuilt is not true," answered Rivera. "Iraq is
being built. There was no infrastructure before; we are doing it. I just
think the good news is being underestimated and under reported.
At this
juncture, one must evaluate how to feel about the voices telling us only
about the bad news in Iraq, whether from the mouths of news anchors or Democratic presidential hopefuls. At best, they are under informed. At
worst, their one-sided assessments of post-Saddam Iraq are intentional falsehoods for obvious reasons.
"If I hear one more person mock that "Mission Accomplished" banner beneath
which President Bush thanked a shipload of sailors and Marines a few months
back, I'm going to spit. That was a reference to the ouster of Saddam's
regime, and that mission was indeed accomplish ed, apparently to the great chagrin of the American left. No one said what followed would be easy or
cheap, and that's why the dripping-water torture of the cost and casualty
stories is so infuriating.
"Remember we pay our soldiers whether they are in Iraq or in Ft Bragg, North Carolina.
"We should all mourn the loss of every fallen soldier. But context cries
out to be heard. Our present news media is not performing this task. As
some dare to wonder if this might become a Vietnam-like quagmire, I'll remind whoever needs it that most of our 58,000 Vietnam War toll died between 1966 and 1972, during which we lost an average of about 8,000 per
year. That's about 22 per day, every day, for thousands of days on end."
"Let us hear NO MORE Vietnam comparisons. They do not equate.
What I hope
to hear is more truth, even if we have to wrench it from the mouths of the
media and political hacks predisposed to bash the remarkable job we are doing every day in what was not so long ago a totalitarian wasteland. Local elections are under way across Iraq", Rivera reported. "Where Kurds
and Arabs have been battling for decades, things have been settling down.
Administrator Paul Bremer is doing a great job."
So does Geraldo think his media colleagues are intentionally painting with
one side of the brush? "I'm not into conspiracy theories,..but there's just more bang for your buck when you report the GI who got killed rather
than the 99 who didn't get killed, who make friends, who helped schedule
elections, who helped shops get open for business, who helped traffic flow
again.
"The vast majority of Iraqis are very happy to have us there. I would like
to see a bit more balance. This needs to be reported to the American Public who are presently being duped. I expect the dominant media culture
to nitpick and attack Bush, and Democrats to blast him with reckless abandon. But when that leads to the willful exclusion of facts that would
shine truthful light on the great work of the American armed forces, that
level of malice plumbs new depths."
--If you have a friend that is looking for some truth, pass this on.
Although I am not a fan of Geraldo Riviera, his comments below are worth reading.
Probably each of you has wondered if things could be as bad in Iraq as Brokaw,
Jennings, et al, have been painting it.
Interesting, isn't it?
The buildings that AREN'T burning in Iraq
"They have a saying in the news business," Geraldo Rivera related last week. "Reporters don't report buildings that don't burn." And with that introduction, he told a TV audience about the story that is being systematically denied to our entire nation; the success story of post-Saddam Iraq.
Are we losing some soldiers each week? Yes.
Is there some frustration in the Iraq public about electricity and water
service? Yes.
Are some Saddam Hussein loyalists throughout the land, making trouble? Yes.
Has this opened a window for some terrorist mischief? Yes.
But that's ALL we hear. No wonder our country is in a mixed mood about Iraq. If you hear about the buildings that are not burning, though, it is
a different story indeed.
[Rivera is no shill for George W. Bush. But Bush, Condi Rice and Colin Powell together could not have been as effective as Geraldo was Thursday
night on the Fox New s Channel's Hannity and Colmes program.]
"When I got to Baghdad, I barely recognized it," he began, comparing his just-completed trip to two others he made during and just after the battle to topple Saddam. "You have over 30,000 Iraqi cops and militiamen
already on the job.
"This is four months after major fighting stopped. Can you imagine that kind of gearing up in this country? Law and order is better; archaeological sites are being preserved; factories, schools are being guarded." But what about the secondhand griping that the media have been so efficiently relating about power, water and other infrastructure?
"To say that Iraq is being rebuilt is not true," answered Rivera. "Iraq is
being built. There was no infrastructure before; we are doing it. I just
think the good news is being underestimated and under reported.
At this
juncture, one must evaluate how to feel about the voices telling us only
about the bad news in Iraq, whether from the mouths of news anchors or Democratic presidential hopefuls. At best, they are under informed. At
worst, their one-sided assessments of post-Saddam Iraq are intentional falsehoods for obvious reasons.
"If I hear one more person mock that "Mission Accomplished" banner beneath
which President Bush thanked a shipload of sailors and Marines a few months
back, I'm going to spit. That was a reference to the ouster of Saddam's
regime, and that mission was indeed accomplish ed, apparently to the great chagrin of the American left. No one said what followed would be easy or
cheap, and that's why the dripping-water torture of the cost and casualty
stories is so infuriating.
"Remember we pay our soldiers whether they are in Iraq or in Ft Bragg, North Carolina.
"We should all mourn the loss of every fallen soldier. But context cries
out to be heard. Our present news media is not performing this task. As
some dare to wonder if this might become a Vietnam-like quagmire, I'll remind whoever needs it that most of our 58,000 Vietnam War toll died between 1966 and 1972, during which we lost an average of about 8,000 per
year. That's about 22 per day, every day, for thousands of days on end."
"Let us hear NO MORE Vietnam comparisons. They do not equate.
What I hope
to hear is more truth, even if we have to wrench it from the mouths of the
media and political hacks predisposed to bash the remarkable job we are doing every day in what was not so long ago a totalitarian wasteland. Local elections are under way across Iraq", Rivera reported. "Where Kurds
and Arabs have been battling for decades, things have been settling down.
Administrator Paul Bremer is doing a great job."
So does Geraldo think his media colleagues are intentionally painting with
one side of the brush? "I'm not into conspiracy theories,..but there's just more bang for your buck when you report the GI who got killed rather
than the 99 who didn't get killed, who make friends, who helped schedule
elections, who helped shops get open for business, who helped traffic flow
again.
"The vast majority of Iraqis are very happy to have us there. I would like
to see a bit more balance. This needs to be reported to the American Public who are presently being duped. I expect the dominant media culture
to nitpick and attack Bush, and Democrats to blast him with reckless abandon. But when that leads to the willful exclusion of facts that would
shine truthful light on the great work of the American armed forces, that
level of malice plumbs new depths."
--If you have a friend that is looking for some truth, pass this on.
Comments
I'm willing to bet that in the first four months of U.S. deployment in Vietnam (dating back to the Eisenhower administration), casualties were "acceptable" too.
And pray tell, why are we spending billions of dollars to get Iraqis jobs when we're losing millions of jobs here?
Good news in Iraq doesn't translate into good news here. Maybe I'm being greedy and self-centered, but shouldn't Americans come first?
Someday, you're going to have to see through the politics to the truth. You have become too slanted and blinded due to your hatred of Bush. I'm sorry, but you beginning to loose my respect. It's one thing to have a political opinion, but another to pull a hard party line and deny the truth. Man, you can't even admit something good can happen as long as Bush is in office. ALL presidents do some good and some bad. I have plenty of issues with Bush, but he has done a lot of good that you will never admit. I'm sorry man, your hatred is just ignorant.
How you doin'!
If I think hard enough, I can think of things that Bush has done that I do agree with. But Iraq is not one of them.
At a time when America has lost 2.2 million jobs during his administration, he spends hundreds of billions of dollars to get Iraqis work.
Now tell me, how is that a good thing? How are those who are are out of work supposed to feel good about that? Bush is willing to hand out cash hand over fist to the very same Iraqis who are blowing our soldiers to pieces while at home he's promising 2.6 million jobs this year alone and not delivering?
The man has been say-one-thing but do-another since day one. "Fiscal responsibility." "National security." "War on terrorism." He talks a good game (when he has a teleprompter), but when it boils right down to it, we're broke, insecure, and he diverted troops AWAY from the hunt for Bin Laden.
This isn't the party line. When I see a f$#k up, I call it like I see it. Now if you can provide me with solid data that rebuilt schools in Iraq make my life safer and more secure, I'll be happy to recant. But as Iraq had nothing to do with 9-11 or selling nuclear weapons technology, you're going to have to look pretty hard to find that info.
My opinions are based on the news I read and the research I conduct and the experiences of myself and my family and friends. I try to have an informed opinion and when I'm wrong, I admit it. My opinions may differ from yours and if that difference causes you to lose respect for me, then we've both lost. I admit that I rarely pull my punches, and if my brusque manner is what offends you, then I will try to tone myself down. But if you're asking me to change my opinion because they're unpopular on these boards, then I must respectfully decline.
Everyone should remember that most of us were born free
We don"t know what it's like not to be free.
As for unemployment!!!! There is always a job out there it may
not pay $100,000 a year but it will put food on my table.
Since thay are hiring in Iraq maybe some people should go and get 1.
quote:Originally posted by dheffley
Monkey,
Someday, you're going to have to see through the politics to the truth. You have become too slanted and blinded due to your hatred of Bush. I'm sorry, but you beginning to loose my respect. It's one thing to have a political opinion, but another to pull a hard party line and deny the truth. Man, you can't even admit something good can happen as long as Bush is in office. ALL presidents do some good and some bad. I have plenty of issues with Bush, but he has done a lot of good that you will never admit. I'm sorry man, your hatred is just ignorant.
How you doin'!
0341USMC
SEMPER FI
Christian
American
heterosexual
PRO GUN
conservative
Any Questions?
I still look at Iraq as "our" new airbase/foothold in an area that we had trouble getting to previously. The shape of the world is different now. We will have altercations in that area for years to come. At least now we do have bases we can depend on and when the oil starts flowing the cost will be reduced.
No doubt the "news" reports are slanted, no doubt there are hidden motives as to why. Politics is a big part of it.
My opinions are based on the news I read and the research I conduct
Monkey,
That's my point! You evidently only listen to the reports that are anti-Bush. Why don't you listen to some of the soldiers who were there? Why don't you get facts from those who have seen? Why did you immediatly reject Geraldo's accounts in the original post? I think it's because you have let your bias take over.
I can still respect you as a person, and a good American, but not as an open minded political analyst. Thank God we live in a country where we have the freedom to have an opinion. Next time you are thinking about that, think of the millions in Iraq who now enjoy that same freedom. Also remember how they got it, and remember what you see on the CBS (and others) news is only the bad, and only what the left bias news agency wants you to know. I think you are smarter than that.
All I ask is, don't fall victim to the "I hate Bush" side to the point that you begin to deny truth. Look over your post of the last two months, and you will see what the rest of us see. I don't think that is the real Monkey, and I don't think that is who you want to represent.
Feel free in this great nation of freedoms to ignore anything I say. It's a right that has been earned for you by the blood of brave Americans, and should be respected.
PS, What I'm asking is that you don't instantly reject a fact as "can't be true" because it might imply that this administration was right or did something for the good. I have yet to see you admit that, and that shows bias. I disagree with 30% of what Bush has done, but I give him credit where credit is due. I did the same thing with Clinton, and I'll do the same thing with or next President, regardless of party affiliation.
How you doin'!
"It is hard to soar with Eagles when your surrounded by Turkeys"
"I dont care how thin you make a pancake, it still has two sides"
"A wise man is a man that realizes just how little he knows.
but it didn't start when Bush took over.
It's been going on for years.
Taxes, insurance, wages, workplace laws, etc. driving business away.
If you owned such a business, with stockholders to answer to,
ya might have a different opinion.
I agree that many Iraqis now enjoy freedom unknown to them since forever (given that the Ba'athists seized power in the 1960's I believe and before that it was a dictatorial monarchy). But even then, what will that freedom entail?
If we give them the vote, we're looking at another Iran. The majority of Iraqis want a Shi'ite-dominated government.
If we skew the vote, we're likely to end up with a seperatist north (which Turkey will no doubt attack) and a disenfranchised south.
And what if the sovereign government of Iraq tells us to leave? That's their right and many Shi'ites have made it a point that they want American troops gone. What if they gain power?
In the short term, yes, I will agree, things are great... car bombings, roadside bombings, a rise in the rate of rapes and theft, and drive-by shootings aside, the Iraqis never had it so good. But eventually we will have to turn their governance over to them.
Will we have American-flag-waving Iraqis, all smiles and handshakes, willing to do anything and everything for America? Or will we have a theocratic mullah-dominated Iraq who would just as soon spit on us as say hello?
And as for reading only "liberal dominated" sources, the Pentagon itself issued a report saying that Iraq was a diversion from the war on terror. If the Pentagon is a liberal bastion, then I'm the president of the United States.
Several conservative commentators whose articles I read have said that Iraq is a money pit and an unecessary diversion.
Maybe I'm guilty of retaining only what I want to from my research. I won't deny that my views lean to the left. But I am open-minded enough to admire and respect any actions I see as worthy. Bush's diversionary war in Iraq is NOT one of them.
And for those who like to compare Iraq to postwar Japan and Germany, they forget one thing: Germany and Japan were homogenous populations with a common heritage and culture. Iraq has no fewer than three major ethnic groups (Arabs, Kurds, and Turcomans) and two major different religious groups (Shi'ites and Sunnis)... and all of them pretty much can't get along.
Quote:
Iraq has no fewer than three major ethnic groups (Arabs, Kurds, and Turcomans) and two major different religious groups (Shi'ites and Sunnis)... and all of them pretty much can't get along.
Sounds like home doesn't it? [:D]
Just to clear up one thing you may have misunderstood from my post, because I didn't make it real clear.
I like opinionated people. It tells me they are smart enough to make up their mind and form an opinion. I also don't want or expect them to agree with my opinions. My point was, when you first arrived here, you seemed much more open minded. What I have seen is, your disagreement with the Bush administration has made you much more ridgid in your thoughts, and more closed minded to facts. I hope you can get back to the old Monkey. He was interesting to talk to. This one seems to spew hate and discontent regularly. That tells me he's not a happy camper. Take a chill pill and relax a little. All things including this administration will pass. I really liked the old Monkey, and I am looking forward to his return.
PS, We still disagree on Iraq, and I think you will see it differently some day.
How you doin'!
admins. and then compareing todays present to them
ask that in all instances, are we not better off in
all aspects today. only the reduction in one,s
financies, in regard to the stock market are we
lacking. I for one have allways put the good of my
country ahead of my own personal gain. And all
you backers of the liberal minority in the senate
will most likely live to see the effect on your children
and grandchildren , of the unlawful blocking of
conservative judges to a route to the supreme court.
I will in all likelyhood be gone by then and
not witness to the mess made by this democrap
mis- manageing of the senate, but some will
remember and regret. Tho all being of the democrap
leaning will have the personal integrity to admit it.
l