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Thursday, May 26, 2005

I Thought So

Just wanted to post a link to this report from the ACLU (and to this story, where I originally heard this) (and, if you can follow the bouncing ball, this story). It seems that the plot is sickening--oh wait, I meant to say thickening. Recently declassified documents from the FBI detail abuse of the Koran, including flushing it down a toilet. The ACLU fought the federal government to release the documents under the Freedom of Information Act.

Shall we examine this from the "conspiracy" viewpoint? Yes, we shall. What is the government's interest in attacking Newsweek for having to retract a story? I said that I had a feeling that something else was going on with the adminitration's full frontal assault on Newsweek, blaming them for mobs of angry, rioting muslims. Now I am certain of it.

The administration knew damn well that the ACLU would be receving those documents. It's quite possible that the whole thing was carefully orchestrated, and that they attacked Newsweek to deflect some of the fallout from the release of the official documents. Perhaps the "anonymous source" was part of the plan. We'll never know, because that's the kind of thing you're not likely get in writing, even with a FOIA ruling.

People hear one story, then they hear it was false, then they hear it was true, then they don't know what to believe. That kind of thing makes people uncertain, and distrustful of the media. Also, when the real report comes out, the blow has already been softened. The right wing has been waging a campaign against mainstream media for years, so a campaign to manipulate the news wouldn't be surprising.

Who knows, maybe I'm wrong. I don't even know what to believe these days.

posted by Skrambled Egghead Reborn @ 9:58 PM

2 Comments:

It's nice to see the ACLU actually act upon the incident regardless of Newsweek's withdrawal. Although I agree, it does seem a little too pat: media releases story, muslims enraged, newpaper cannot back up story, muslims demand justice, ACLU investigate and get documents released - from the sensational to the factual, softening the blow, as it was - but are the muslims satisfied?

I do like the part of the ACLU article:
"The United States government continues to turn a blind eye to mounting evidence of widespread abuse of detainees held in its custody," said ACLU Executive Director Anthony D. Romero. "If we are to truly repair America's standing in the world, the Bush Administration must hold accountable high-ranking officials who allow the continuing abuse and torture of detainees."

Though I expect the ACLU to say such things. Some ballance seems restored, but perhaps that feeling is exactly the idea. Ergh, I hate feeling manipulated.

By Blogger mysfit, at 11:04 AM  

Yeah, the whole thing makes me sick. Not everyone will hear the truth about the actual documents. Now, when people (in America) hear about the ACLU report (if they hear about it from our corporate-owned propagandist media), a good percentage will only remember that Newsweek retracted the story, so they'll dismiss the ACLU report as inaccurate.

As for the Muslim world, I think they've come to expect the worst from America, and they never accepted the retraction anyways. So I don't think the blow was softed for them.

By Blogger Skrambled Egghead Reborn, at 2:16 PM  

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