Posted on 05/11/2004 11:55:06 AM PDT by weegee
So now we’re told that it doesn’t matter whether or not the Iraqi torture pictures are fakes.
What’s important is that British soldiers are mistreating prisoners.
And if the phoney photos have drawn attention to this greater evil, then so well and good.
Yeah, right.
Curious how those putting forward this argument have always been first to scream “fit-up” when police are accused of fabricating evidence against known criminals and terrorists.
How many cases have collapsed because detectives have over-egged the case against villains they insisted were guilty?
How many guilty men have walked free because their “confessions” have been discredited?
The cops’ argument was that since they knew chummy was guilty, throwing in a bit of verbals to secure a belt-and-braces conviction was perfectly acceptable.
No it wasn’t.
Nor is it OK to mock up pictures of British troops abusing Iraqi detainees to support otherwise uncorroborated allegations.
We know some squaddies have crossed the line in Iraq.
The Sun has reported claims of prisoners being abused.
The Army has been investigating a number of cases for months.
Those found guilty will be punished severely. No one is trying to cover it up.
But there’s a world of difference between acknowledging and cracking down on wrongdoing and beaming fake photos across the Arab world, handing a spectacular propaganda coup to our enemies.
Those responsible are guilty of treason.
Let’s be clear, I’m only talking about the British photos.
No one doubts the authenticity of the pictures of American troops torturing prisoners in Baghdad.
President Bush took the unprecedented step of going on Arab television, describing what had taken place as “abhorrent” and promising that the guilty would be brought to justice.
Just because he didn’t use the word “sorry” don’t think this was anything less than a grovelling apology.
Believe me, Bush will have been genuinely mortified by these photos.
So will the American people, not just those who opposed the war.
The stupidity of a handful of morons has undermined the Coalition’s noble cause of bringing freedom and democracy to Iraq.
Bush’s apology should have drawn a line under it. But his opponents won’t stop there, especially in an election year.
We’re getting the steady drip, drip, drip of more photos, more allegations — even though the latest batch appear to feature the same dopey female soldier as the original bunch.
These images will be replayed time and time again.
But I can’t help thinking that if Damien Hirst put a pile of naked bodies with sacks on their heads on display at the Saatchi Gallery, it would be hailed as a work of genius and someone would pay £30million for it.
I also can’t help wondering if ever again it will be possible to win a war in an age of “human rights” and a hostile media.
Who needs al-Jazeera when you’ve got the Guardian and the BBC?
In the Second World War we were only up against Lord Haw Haw and the might of Nazi Germany.
These days we’ve got morale being undermined 24/7.
In this age of moral equivalence some people can see no difference between Saddam Hussein slaughtering and torturing millions and a handful of rogue US troops abusing a dozen internees.
I repeat, I’m not condoning the behaviour of the coalition soldiers responsible.
But I am trying to put it in the proper perspective of more than 200,000 brave, decent Allied servicemen and women who have put their lives on the line to liberate Iraq.
Not that the Bush-haters and the opponents of the war care less.
They’d have left Saddam in place and now they want troops out and the Iraqi people condemned to their fate.
If that means faking photos of British soldiers abusing prisoners, what the hell?
Hey what do you know? It's an opinion column for "our side".
This is an opinion piece and as such placed under "Editorial", not news.
I do.
So Leasher Lynndie, Charles, Chip, Sabrina et.al are mistaken in thinking they appear in the pictures?
Except this time it's personal.
Mirror: We have pictures
Sun: The're fakes
Mirror:No they're not ... well maybe just a little.
Sun: You're lying scum
Mirror: That's not important now. Can anyone prove similar abuse by UK troops did not occur?
Then you are just a great big fool.
I don't usually talk to people this way, but for heaven's sakes, we have a confession from at least one of them.
No one is saying that it didn't happen, not even the ones involved.
Instead they blame someone else for "telling them to do it".
Not one person involved has said they were staged. Not even the ones that are facing 15 years in prison or worse.
The Pentagon has been investigating since January and they are convinced it happened.
You are a fool.
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