Dogged Blog

Another Kind of Media Hero

One of the most miserably under-covered stories of this whole filthy war in Iraq is the killing by US soldiers of Nicola Calipari, the Italian secret service agent who was escorting journalist Giuliana Sgrena to the airport after she was released from captivity after being kidnapped by Iraqis. 

From commondreams.org via a great commentary over on Body and Soul:

With Terri Schiavo and Michael Jackson to cover, it is pretty difficult for most media outlets to find the time to report on any of the more than 100,000 Iraqi civilians killed since the beginning of the invasion 2 years ago. That's why cases like Sgrena's become so important, because they represent a chance to show the world that part of the reality Iraqis face every day of their lives: They are kidnapped in alarming numbers; they are shot by trigger-happy US soldiers; their deaths are justified--if they are even acknowledged--by US officials floating flimsy cover stories that would never stand up in any US court (except perhaps a military court).

Are journalists in Iraq safe? Of course not. No one would expect them to be safe. But David Schlesinger said in the Herald Tribune:

My own company, Reuters, has lost three colleagues in military incidents in Iraq, and each time it has been in an unfortunate encounter with U.S. troops. Do I believe my colleagues were targeted because they were journalists? No. Do I believe that the military and we have done enough to ensure that these horrible accidents won't be repeated? Alas, the answer to that question is obviously no as well.

I won't pretend to understand exactly what got Giuliana Sgrena shot and cost Nicola Calipari his life, nor do I have the slightest shred of faith that the report, due out in April, from the US military will shed much light on it (especially since it's starting out with them refusing to allow the Italians to examine the shot-up car they were in when it happened).

And I won't deny I've been tough on journalists in this blog. Especially given that I basically abandoned my profession to become a full time dog writer,  some might find my pontificating on the downfall of journalism to be a bit mean-spirited. I couldn't stand the heat so I got out of the kitchen; I admit it.

But while some journalists undoubtedly go to war because they are adrenaline junkies or fame freaks or military groupies, most go to war because they know that governments and their armies have a vested interest in hiding the facts they can hide, and spinning those they can't. They go to make sure that secrecy and spin - or call it what it really is, propaganda - don't win the game, and that truth and reality get a fair turn on the public stage. (And lest I be accused of lacking the proper patriotic spirit, something like this was exactly what our nation's founders had in mind when they guaranteed freedom of the press in the First Amendment.)

It's a fact that sometimes heroes get killed. We just have to keep clear in our minds that journalists are good guys, not the enemy, and hope all those deaths are accidents of war, and not the ultimate form of censorship.

Hey, Schwarzenegger: Some 'Special Interests' Actually ARE Special

Schwarzenegger is doing a dazzling job of framing his attack on nurses, firefighters, and police officers as a populist, anti-government uprising. I don’t know how anyone can buy it, but it seems that many are (some apparently without really knowing what they’re buying).

As I’ve written before, I mostly feel shame at having actually gone to journalism school, seeing what’s become of my profession these days. However, this commentary from a journalism student at USC, Robert Iafolla, gives me hope:

Furthermore, people who are actually worth admiring – nurses, firefighters and teachers – object to Schwarzenegger’s agenda and see him as a genuine threat. Given their concern, both his words and deeds should be viewed with a healthy dose of skepticism.

So why do these civil servants have bones to pick with the governor’s agenda? Nurses are angry about the suspension of a law mandating a specific nurse-to-patient ratio. Firefighters are raging against a proposal to radically rework their pension plans. Teachers also object to pension changes, but are fighting budget cuts to education and alterations to their tenure system as well.

Thus far, Schwarzenegger has tried to demonize these critics by calling them “special interests.” This designation hardly seems appropriate. These are the people who earn relatively low wages while they keep us safe, care for us when we’re ill and educate our children.

Read the whole thing here.

Jon Stewart: Media Good Guy

In my pantheon of media gods, along with Laurie Garrett, Molly Ivins, and Mark Morford, is, of course, Jon Stewart. He was already there, but with the release of this clip of his commentary on the Culture of Life Crapathon, he is definitely top god on the Dogged Blog.

Even if you are on a slow dial up connection and it takes all day, if you haven't already seen it, you really have to. 

"Culture of Life" Update: The Idiots

I was up to my eyeballs in my usual Monday morning avalanche of work when my friend Gina Spadafori  snuck a link to this smart and snarky little gem into my email, courtesy of  the good, kind, gentle souls at the Democratic Underground. It's a Top Ten List of Idiots in the Schiavothon, and here is number three, a guy named George W. Bush:

  George W. Bush egged on the Cultists last week when he told supporters that "[Terri Schiavo's case] is a complex case with serious issues but, in extraordinary circumstances like this, it is always wise to err on the side of life." This, of course, marks the first time ever that George W. Bush has erred on the side of life. Oh, he's erred all right, but not on the side of life. For example, did he err on the side of life in the case of Karla Faye Tucker, the convicted murder turned born-again Christian who begged for clemency? Nope - in an interview with Tucker Carlson back in 1999, Bush mocked the death row inmate and impersonated her, pretending to cry and whining "please don't kill me." Did he err on the side of life when he executed  152 people - including the mentally ill - during his governorship of Texas? That's more people than any other governor in the recent history of the United States. Did he err on the side of life when he invaded Iraq, killing thousands of Iraqi civilians? Let's face it, when it comes to erring on the side of life, Our Great Leader's track record leaves a little something  to be desired.

Read the other nine here.

More Media Sleight of Hand

While distracting you with the Schiavothon 24/7.... the media tried to slip this one by you really really fast.

Dick Cheney is threatening to use what he calls the "nuclear option"—a parliamentary maneuver to overturn the 200-year-old right to filibuster judicial nominations. A filibuster is the right of 41 or more concerned senators to extend debate and delay controversial votes. If Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist can twist enough arms to get 51 votes in support of Cheney's ruling, the minority party will be completely silenced for the first time in American history.

Next Hurrah gets deep about it here. New York Times editorialized here. MoveOn is trying to do something about it here.

Pay attention to the man behind the curtain.

Don't Look Now, But...

We have it. The smoking gun. The evidence. The potential weapon of mass destruction we have been looking for as our pretext of invading Iraq. There's just one problem - it's in North Korea. -Jon Stewart

The increasingly dangerous situation in North Korea is just one more thing we're all being distracted from by the Schiavothon. Three stories, two from today, one from earlier this week:

China Says No Breakthrough on Talks with North Korea
Korean Ambassador Says North Korea Ready to Go to War Over Nuclear Issue
North Korea Says It Has 'Increased Nuclear Arms'

Calling Bullshit on the "Culture of Life"

Some people have expressed  bewilderment over the disconnect between polls showing that most Americans, even evangelical Christians, support the removal of Terri Schiavo's feeding tube, and the complete obsession of the media and Republicans in flogging this story for all its worth.

But I'm not surprised at all. This whole story is doing its job, which is to distract us. And it's working really well. Most political blogs are awash with Schiavo, and it's just chum in the water for the mainstream media.

Like a lot of bloggers I have tried not to write much about it, because I resent being manipulated.  So don't get distracted. Take back your brain.

Here is something you're not supposed to notice. And the next time one of Terri's friends in Congress starts to pontificate about the "Culture of Life," call bullshit.

Army officials have decided not to prosecute 17 soldiers involved in the deaths of prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan, a military report says. Military investigators recommended courts-martial for the soldiers in the cases of three prisoner deaths for charges ranging from making false statements to murder. Officers rejected those recommendations, ruling that the soldiers lawfully used force or didn't understand the rules for using force, or that there was not enough evidence to prosecute.

Full story here.

Bush's Priorities and the "Culture of Life"

From DFA’s Blog for America:

Others have asked about the confused logic behind the decision making process that led the president to stay on vacation through the peak of the Iraq war, intelligence warnings about Sept. 11, the South Asian tsunami, and one military funeral after another … yet brought him to the White House last weekend to sign a private bill affecting one American. But as Ron Brownstein of the Los Angeles Times points out, some Minnesotans have a better question.

Read it here.

No, I'm Not Always Serious and Ranting

On a light note, this site came across the Dogwriters list today .... What Dog Are You?

You have to hunt in the right hand column for the link to launch the game, but it's worth it. I'm a Pharaoh Hound, which is fine with me - great dogs, and the text says they resemble the god Aunubis and warns that if you meet a deity in the dog park, do try not to annoy her. Always good advice when hanging out with me.

Also on a light note, my friend Gina Spadafori, author of numerous great pet books, including Dogs for Dummies, and a nationally syndicated pet columnist, brought her friend Signe Beebe and her wonderful dog Ben for a visit this weekend. My friend Lisa Pesch came over for brunch on Saturday, and she and Signe, who are both holistic vets, shared trade secrets  while Gina tried to take the perfect photo of Ben and we all sipped decaf organic coffee out at the gazebo overlooking the creek.  Some days are just good days.

Dazzled with Fancy Fossils

Libertyordeath has a great diary on Daily Kos about the evolution "controversy." He quotes an editorial in the latest issue of Scientific American:

Why were we so unwilling to suggest that dinosaurs lived 6,000 years ago or that a cataclysmic flood carved the Grand Canyon?  Blame the scientists.  They dazzled us with their fancy fossils, their radiocarbon dating and their tens of thousands of peer-reviewed journal articles.  As editors, we had no business being persuaded by mountains of evidence.

Read it here.