... well, sort of.
This blog recently offered the traditional media several pieces of advice on at least two points: (1) to pay more attention to the phenomenon of blogging; and (2) to readily admit one's past errors. It appears the New York Times has followed this advice, albeit in its own fashion. (Of course, it is just possible that these articles were in the works anyway. But I say, think positive.)
Ah, but let's look at how the Dame Grise has seen fit to interpret our sage counsel.
Shall we begin with Katie Hafner's blogging article? The Times seems to think that it can counter the threat of blogging (and make no mistake, we ARE a threat to the NYT) by writing a derisive article on it. Could the Times possible acknowledge the relevance of blogging for an audience disillusioned with the manipulations of the media? Too much to expect, I suppose. I'll have more to say on this later.
And then there was the Times' so-called "correction" of its Iraq coverage. Well, it would be nice if this "correction" included a re-assessment of the Times' anti-American bias, but that, too would be asking too much.
2004-05-27
Department of Flying Pigs
... from Little Green Footballs. Can they really mean that they want to invite ... a ... THIRD PARTY to that Muslim-Christian conference in Qatar?
And then there's this from MEMRI:
second thoughts about jihad
The end is near, people.
And then there's this from MEMRI:
second thoughts about jihad
The end is near, people.
Two Speeches
Jessica's Well from Midland, Texas compares notes from Bill Cosby's speech and E.L. Doctorow's. Worth reading.
Gay Muslims
Excellent piece by Johann Hari on gay Muslims. Expect more posts from me on gay and transgender issues soon.
Disaster!
Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler has the news on our so-called "catastrophe" in Iraq. Go check it out.
How to help Iraq
Fayrouz has a new post listing humanitarian organizations that need your support. Go check it out.
Your attention, please.
This blog will not be carrying any coverage of VV0nk3tt3 or VV@$h1ngt0n13nn3.
Just so's you know.
Just so's you know.
Zeyad's Original Post on Zaydun
Please go here to read the whole story from the beginning.
Zeyad's follow-up at the end of January may be found here.
Zeyad's follow-up at the end of January may be found here.
Excerpts from Slate Article on Zaydun
SAMARRA, IRAQ—On the night of Jan. 3, Marwan and Zeidun, two cousins, drove a small white flatbed truck carrying ceramic floor tiles and toilets into Samarra. The truck had broken down on the way, and they were late. The curfew that day was 11 p.m., and the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps manning the checkpoint into town waved them through probably just before 11. Inside the town, close to the famous spiral minaret, they were stopped by an American patrol as curfew violators.
What happened next is disputed. But two things are clear: The truck they were driving was destroyed, and the two cousins went off a bridge into the Tigris and one of them drowned.
...
Marwan told me his story with a mixture of misery and diffidence. On the table in front of us was a photograph of him and Zeidun. They were inside a car, and Marwan, big and chubby, was laughing at something with his mouth open and his eyes merrily screwed up. The man in front of me had a different face altogether.
"They just stopped us and put us in their car. It was five minutes before curfew. Usually, missing curfew just means detention for a short time. We didn't feel strange, we had no weapons, they had just checked us. We had no idea why we were being taken."
He says they were driven to the edge of the bridge.
"We pleaded. We said we didn't know how to swim. My cousin tried to hold onto one of the soldiers. He was just laughing as he pushed him in. Two of them were pointing rifles at his forehead and chest. Four of them pushed me off toward the dam, toward the current. I only had my nose and mouth sticking out of the water. I could see the Americans standing there, pointing their guns. They wanted us to die, but I survived to testify against them. My mind was in chaos, but I remember I was very concerned about my cousin. We shouted back and forth to each other. I did as much as I could, but it was God's will. I tried to swim to him. I got hold of his hand, but he slipped away in the current. Everything moved so fast, I don't know how long I was in the river. From the shock I didn't even feel the cold."
- Read the whole thing at the link.
What happened next is disputed. But two things are clear: The truck they were driving was destroyed, and the two cousins went off a bridge into the Tigris and one of them drowned.
...
Marwan told me his story with a mixture of misery and diffidence. On the table in front of us was a photograph of him and Zeidun. They were inside a car, and Marwan, big and chubby, was laughing at something with his mouth open and his eyes merrily screwed up. The man in front of me had a different face altogether.
"They just stopped us and put us in their car. It was five minutes before curfew. Usually, missing curfew just means detention for a short time. We didn't feel strange, we had no weapons, they had just checked us. We had no idea why we were being taken."
He says they were driven to the edge of the bridge.
"We pleaded. We said we didn't know how to swim. My cousin tried to hold onto one of the soldiers. He was just laughing as he pushed him in. Two of them were pointing rifles at his forehead and chest. Four of them pushed me off toward the dam, toward the current. I only had my nose and mouth sticking out of the water. I could see the Americans standing there, pointing their guns. They wanted us to die, but I survived to testify against them. My mind was in chaos, but I remember I was very concerned about my cousin. We shouted back and forth to each other. I did as much as I could, but it was God's will. I tried to swim to him. I got hold of his hand, but he slipped away in the current. Everything moved so fast, I don't know how long I was in the river. From the shock I didn't even feel the cold."
- Read the whole thing at the link.
For those of you just joining us ...
... Zeyad is the Iraqi blogger responsible for the "Healing Iraq" blog. He is also responsible for helping start several other Iraqi blogs, including "The Mesopotamian", "Iraq at a Glance", and "Iraq the Model". In other words, he is the main reason we can get information about Iraq that's not distorted by the moonbat media.
Early this year, four American soldiers stopped Zeyad's cousins Zaydun and Marwan on the street shortly before curfew. They detained the two Iraqis, and then forced them at gunpoint to jump off a bridge into the Tigris - despite their protests that Zaydun couldn't swim. Zaydun's body was recovered ten days later.
Zeyad isn't anti-American (in spite of everything) but he is mad as hell. You should be too.
Early this year, four American soldiers stopped Zeyad's cousins Zaydun and Marwan on the street shortly before curfew. They detained the two Iraqis, and then forced them at gunpoint to jump off a bridge into the Tigris - despite their protests that Zaydun couldn't swim. Zaydun's body was recovered ten days later.
Zeyad isn't anti-American (in spite of everything) but he is mad as hell. You should be too.
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