Prisoner Abuse Photos from Iraq the Media Refuse to Show
Rusty Shackleford posts a large number of photos of prisoners being abused and even murdered in Iraq that, unlike the Abu Ghraib photos, have not seen the light of day in the mainstream press.
Rusty Shackleford posts a large number of photos of prisoners being abused and even murdered in Iraq that, unlike the Abu Ghraib photos, have not seen the light of day in the mainstream press.
Yes, where is the outrage? Where are the cries about ‘free speech’?
And the reason is because it’s not “news”. News by definition are stories that are compelling by their uniqueness. Terrorists kill and torture people, that’s why we call then terrorists. Printing photos of people being killed and tortured by terrorists is “dog bites man”.
The US is a democratic country dedicated to the ideals of fair play and being something other then terrorists. When the US kills and tortures people it is unusual, it is out of the ordinary in the extreme (or at least it ought to be), therefore it’s “man bites dog”. I would be much more concerned if the killing and torturing of captured enemies where so commonplace that it didn’t warrant the status of “new” and you all should be too.
Additionally, did you see one of there very first comments in the post.
Unfortunately, this attitude is all too common among the great unwashed here in the US where “nuke ‘em all and let Allah sort them out, is considered by some to be erudite foreign policy. If I were a moderate Muslim, being feed a steady diet of cherry picked “quotes” (and what they will get is), it would be a difficult choice for me to figure out whom to support after reading such “thoughtful” analysis.
Rick:
Your statement that these abuses are not commonplace is refreshing. However, it is perceived by some in the U.S. and many abroad (Al Jazeera), because of the reporting, that it is in fact common and a matter of policy. Meanwhile, there is little acknowledgement that there ARE terrorists.
Perhaps the Jordan attack and almost all of the Iraq attacks will change the minds of some in the M.E. The question should be how can the insurgents/terrorists/extremists kill so many of their own, violently, and remain protected in the media. To say, ‘that’s what terrorists do’ simply isn’t good enough.