David Warren: Bush Country

The Ottawa Citizen ^ | November 10, 2004 | David Warren

[quidnunc]

Is it my imagination, or has the very tone of the media — that "MSM", or Main Stream Media, to which they have been reduced in weblog shorthand — changed in the last week? I am trying to account for a little heading in the New York Times that reads, "With Our Troops". It is small, but it is a miracle all the same, for the grey lady's position before the re-election of President Bush was ambiguous.

The Pentagon's brilliant plan for embedding journalists with the military, in this latest case with U.S. Marines in the front of action to exterminate the Jihadis of Fallujah in Iraq, has been rolled back out. I call it brilliant because it subjects participating journalists to the rigors and dangers of frontline conflict. It thus appeals to those with the moral virtue of courage, while bringing them emotionally onside.

During the invasion of Iraq itself last year, we had much more accurate and reasonable reporting from the "embeds", who wasted no time striking poses about "quagmire", or asking, "Why are we here?" This in dramatic contrast with the press gallery that was already embedded in Baghdad, and which had previously made its accommodations with the Saddam regime, to occupy comfortable hotel space there. Working only with rumour and scuttlebutt, they gave an entirely different picture of what was happening throughout Iraq, and one which quickly proved false.

That "war never solves anything" was a kind of motto for this latter group, and of the "analysts" and desk-editors back home; when it was not their mantra. But in the immortal words of Richard Perle, confronted with the phrase in a TV interview, "It has a better track-record than social work."

-snip-

[quidnunc]

FYI

[SunkenCiv]

the next paragraph:

War does solve problems. It is what removed Saddam Hussein from power, uncovered his mass graves, failed to uncover specific nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, did locate and remove mountains of the "conventional" sort, and is now removing the Jihadis from Fallujah. It is what has brought elections to Afghanistan, sent little girls to school, brought food and hope to millions of starving, and as an unintended side-effect, increased the opium harvest and given the Afghan warlords a new lease on life. Nothing in life is perfect -- not even war -- but if there is going to be liberty anywhere in the world, there are going to be wars to obtain it.

To quote JRR Tolkien, "it takes but one side to make a war." Remember 9/11, always.

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[PeterFinn]

"War never solves anything."
- Neville Chamberlain

[Mamzelle]

Where does Tolkien say that? I'm a fan...would like to know.

[SunkenCiv]

In LOTR somewhere. Eowyn says it I think.

[Tolik]

David Warren PING!

       Let me know if you want in or out

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[WaterDragon]

I thought they were going in a month ago, but it turned out they were only starting the dress rehearsal, making feints, and using air and occasionally "smart" artillery fire to "shape the battlefield" for what is happening now. More than shaping it, they were creatively studying it, and testing the enemy's reactions. Also, drawing a noose around the town (with some underpublicized British help), to let civilians out but compel Jihadis to remain in situ. By the time the Marines go in, they know the map and their enemy quite well.

Brilliant! And a reminder to us at home to be patient and let the President and our heroes do their job!