Un-freaking-believable. The Government recently released a few potentially embarrassing outtakes from a tape made by terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and the NY Times can't wait to come to Zarqawi's defense. If the article had any length, no doubt they would have gotten around to telling us he had a bad childhood just like the Moussaoui defense team did on Moussaoui's behalf.
The weapon in question is complicated to master, and American soldiers and marines undergo many days of training to achieve the most basic competence with it. Moreover, the weapon in Mr. Zarqawi's hands was an older variant, which makes its malfunctioning unsurprising. The veterans said Mr. Zarqawi, who had spent his years as a terrorist surrounded by simpler weapons of Soviet design, could hardly have been expected to know how to handle it.
It's just not fair. The Government shouldn't be making fun of these poor terrorists just because they can't afford nice shiny new weapons to target American soldiers. Perhaps the US should adopt a terrorist funding program so the battlefield will be equal - perhaps machine gun or IED stamps, akin to our food stamp program might work. What better way to win the heart and mind of a terrorist than improve their weaponry, right?
The release of the captured video reflected the dueling public relations efforts between the American-led forces fighting in Iraq and the terrorists and insurgents. It also reflected increasing interest by the military and civilian strategists in trying to ridicule Mr. Zarqawi.
Well, duh! Now there's a scoop. I doubt serious people ever thought the tape was anything else. But at least the above statement highlights precisely which side the liberal media as exemplified by the NY Times is actually on. I wonder if Zarqawi pays them a retainer, or perhaps they work on spec, if not simply free.
"In Arab and Muslim societies, pride and shame are felt much more profoundly than they are in Western culture," said J. Michael Waller, a professor at the Institute of World Politics, a graduate school in Washington. "To find video like this that can cut him down to size and discredit him is a real way of fighting terrorism." A paper written by Professor Waller advocating the use of ridicule against the insurgents has been circulating at the Pentagon and among military commanders with experience in Iraq recently, according to several military officers.
But the retired and active officers said the public presentation of the tape did not address elements that were disturbing, rather than amusing: the weapon was probably captured from American soldiers, indicating a tactical victory for the insurgents. And Mr. Zarqawi looked clean and plump.
Well, it is possible that the Government could have manipulated the video to make him look more rattled, perhaps worn down. But of course then the NY Times would be doing a story on how the government committed fraud.
In the final analysis the government seized whatever tape they could and used it as effectively as the tape would allow. The NY Times response was to rush out and do everything they could to undermine the propaganda. That tells you all you need to know as regards whose side the NY Times is actually on.
"I see a guy who is getting a lot of groceries and local support," said Nick Pratt, a Marine Corps veteran and professor of terrorism studies at the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies in Germany. "You cannot say he is a bad operator." He added, "People should be careful who they poke fun at."
Yes, it's fine to poke fun at America's leaders, but not those on the other side. Heavens, we might make them mad. And the NY Times wonders why fewer and fewer Americans are reading them. Maybe it's because the rise in alternative media now allows more people the opportunity to point out, just as with Zarqawi, the NY Times is increasingly obvious and bumbling, not to mention exposed, when they handle their weapons in the propoganda war, too.
They don't like having their team booed.
Posted by: bandit | Monday, May 08, 2006 at 01:22 PM