Just further proof that our MSM plays a integral part in keeping the “Iraq is going badly” narrative going. Here is Robin Wright of the Washington Post and Barbara Starr of CNN being interviewed by Howard Kurtz about the silence on the decline in Iraqi causalities and troop causalities: (h/t Newsbusters)
So when the numbers have been going down for four straight months its not a trend, not worthy to write about. But if the numbers went up, just in one month, its newsworthy.
Yeah….
At one point one of these yahoo’s has the nerve to say that she needs to see more before she gets excited but the point is that these same people would be writing story after story about an increase in deaths after just one month. Noel Sheppard makes a great point here:
Wow. Numbers shouldn’t be reported because they’re “tricky,” “at the beginning of a trend,” and there’s “enormous dispute over how to count” them?
No
such moral conundrum existed last month when media predicted a looming
recession after the Labor Department announced a surprising decline in
non-farm payrolls that ended up being revised up four weeks later to
show an increase.And, in the middle of a three and a
half-year bull run in stocks, such “journalists” have no quandary
predicting a bear market every time the Dow Jones Industrial Average
falls a few hundred points.
This is the thing. They struggle to explain why this news isn’t being reported but we all know why. If it doesn’t fit their narrative, that being the “we’re losing in Iraq” storyline, then they want nothing to do with it. If they were true reporters they would report this stuff because it IS news. They could add little caveat’s or what have you, but at least report it.
But at least they don’t let us down. We have been saying for years how biased these people are, and today was just one more notch on the bias stick.
See author page
MSM plays right into it-“IT” being Al Queda propaganda. Seriously, those who condemned the Marines (see also Rep Murtha, DNC, left loons, etc) could not have done it better if they’d have been trading emails with the enemy:
http://warchronicle.com/TheyAreNotKillers/Exclusive/AlQaedaInHaditha-NatHelms.htm
PDF link to USMC report citing captured AQ’s detailed confession that it was a propaganda attack
http://warchronicle.com/TheyAreNotKillers/Documents/Encl_33__Optimized_19_Nov_Atks_and_Assess%5B1%5D.BATES.pdf
I don’t know, maybe they know that Ramadan was during September this year, and that fighting usually declines a bit during Ramadan. The thing is, though, I agree with you that they promote the bad news. But as to why ? because bad news that keeps us there. Your arch enemy Hillary will never leave Iraq to genocide – if things are going bad, that good for those who want to keep us there, and engage Iran.
If the sectarian fighting is over, Iraqi security forces are standing up, its time to leave, right ?
Ramadan doesn’t explain the decrease.
According to http://icasualties.org/oif/
Casualties before and during Ramadan are with one exception (sept 2005) average or substatially above average in numbers compared to the rest of the year. Hardly a peaceful religious holiday time.
That is until this year when we see a Ramadan casualties drop to below average.
Data follows……
2003 November was Ramidan and it was the Highest casualty month of the year with Oct the month preceeding it being 5th out of 10 months highest casualty. Note we are missing 2 months of no war.
2004 Ramadan was Mid Oct to mid Nov.
November was Highest casualty of year.
October was 7th deadliest month.
Sept was tied for 3rd.
2005 Ramadan was October
October had 2nd highest casualties.
Sept 11th highest.
2006 Ramadan = Sept/Oct
Aug = 7th highest, Sept 4th highest, Oct 2nd highest
2007 Ramadan = mid sept to mid october
Aug = 5th out of 9 months highest. And sept is in last place the 10th highest casualty month. And were still missing 3 more months though I hope for our troops that it doesn’t change the data.
Random Unicorn
I watched CNN’s This Week at War and while they were forced to report that both military and civilian casualties had dramatically decreased, it ended with the question, “But is it a fluke?”
Well, let’s use the same standard the MSM and Democrats have been using for the past few years in Iraq. If a single car bomb means the war is lost, a single kidnapping or suicide bomber means the war is irretrievably a failure, what does a systematic counterinsurgency strategy that works not only historically and on paper but also in Iraq mean when there is a notable decline in violence since the implementation of the surge?
In the real world this means it’s WORKING. In MSM lalaland it means “it could be a fluke”.
Even Al-Qaeda admits they’re almost defeated in Iraq and are fleeing to Afghanistan to regroup. They’ve all but lost their central front. But what the MSM hears is, “good news in Iraq = good news for Bush”. And they’re willing to help lose a war based on that.
Pathetic.
As per Ramadan, al-Qaeda uses these holy days as a way of exploiting their religion through violence. These are apostates, al-Qaeda is, and the spike in violence occurs during these months as R.U. pointed out.
And no, just because we’re gaining ground doesn’t mean we leave Iraq. That would do nothing but allow a retreated enemy to re-enter Iraq. They would be the Energizer Bunnies of the terrorist world given chance after chance to regroup and take hold of their desired area again.
Just trust GEN Petraeus. He is a philosopher and highly educated man. He understandds the war we’re in and the people he has to win over for victory and I’d suggest that rather than armchair QBing we honor his service and expertise and listen to what he has to say rather than what we believe is the best course of action.
I recently spoke with some troops who served under him in Iraq in 2004 with the 101st and they couldn’t stop saying good things about him. When a leader evokes this sort of devotion from the troops, he is a historic figure and gifted leader. The troops listen to him and we should as well. My husband served under him here at Ft. Leavenworth as well until he took command in Iraq to implement the new strategy. Our assessment of Petraeus is the same.
Here’s what GEN Petraeus said on Saturday about why we need to keep the pressure on al-Qaeda in Iraq:
“The actions against al Qaeda are encouraging. There have been substantial gains against al Qaeda. Al Qaeda remains the wolf closest to the sled, the enemy that is always bent on re-igniting sectarian violence, causing the most horrific casualties. … If you think we have our teeth into them, then we’ve got to keep them into them.”
My husband’s commander with the 82nd put it this way when he was in Iraq:
“We’ve got the enemy on the floor with our boots on his neck… now we just have to finish the sucker off.”
So just becauase we have al-qaeda on the run and dying doesn’t mean we can leave before it’s dead.
By that reasoning we are there forever, unless we kill them all – which isn’t likely. We can’t play whack a mole across the midde east forever.
I wish the media would address this more, so we had a better Idea of what’s going on. It may be that we backed off the number of missions significantly, it may be that the civil war is drawing to a close, and that certain sides have essentially taken control (and we are siding with the winners, like the brits did). It may be that the Iranians are having some influence. It may be that insurgents and AQ is regrouping. Who knows. Regardless, the real number to say what is working is Iraqi Civilian deaths, this may be down as well, but it is something we really never get good information about.
Don’t worry Galt, if we abandon Iraq then AQ will come here and play whack a mole with you and your family. Don’t expect much help from the American public. It is filled with surrender monkeys. Right now 50% of the public (democrats) would be scared to report a terrorists if they discovered an attack in the planning stages in their hometown. That’s the nature of the beast the left wing anti-american crowd has nurtured over the years.
“She’s a man, baby!”
Spot-on! Scrapiron.
It sounds like a cliche, but really.
Fight them over there or fight them over here. Your choice.
They are coming. Are you prepared?
Proof or STFU
Some people say just the opposite, see http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/news/news-britain-iraq-afghanistan.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin