sigh I apologized once (not that I needed to), I’m not going to do it again.
Against whom? What countries are you now willing to bomb? We don’t even know yet who is responsible. Yes, we have plenty of justification, and yes, Americans are angry. I never disputed this, so stop putting words in my mouth.
First of all, it’s hardly knee-jerk. It’s well studied and documented. Second of all, you seem to be taking this as a personal attack. It’s not, so get off it.
Look at it this way: Suppose the news throws stories at us 24 hours a day (not inconceivable) about a poor homeless girl in Afghanistan. Who hasn’t had a meal in 3 weeks. And she has a puppy named Fluffy. Now, imagine the news instead showing Afghanis burning American flags and shouting “death to the infidels.” In which of these two scenarios do you see Americans more willing to bomb them? Do you really think it makes no difference?
It has happened many times before. It’s a standard wartime tool. I am not making this up.
No, I reveal a phenomenon that we’ve seen in many nations for millenia. The fact that you are taking it as an attack on America shows a real misinterpretation.
Well, I find that your use of the terms trickery and brainwashing are a bit strong. But, OK, why do some Muslims hate us? Did they arrive at that by rational thought? Or was it propaganda? If I say the latter, am I bashing the Arab media? And if it was propaganda, what makes Americans immune to the same thing?
It was not media criticism, it was an explanation of how the politics of war are conducted. If you want to continue to take it as a personal attack, that is your prerogative.
I was ready to fire off a nasty retort - but we’re all hurt and angry right now. But I still think tdn is right.
No, we don’t need justification to fight back and go to war. We’ve got all the justification we will ever need. But tdn’s right…there will be media manipulation and imaging. There always has been in every war or action we’ve ever been in. A little basic research would show that very quickly.
From the Spanish-American was, through to Korea and VietNam, Americans have see LOTS of media manipulation. In WWII, it was used to keep up unification and a fighting spirit. In VietNam, the daily images brought the war into our living rooms and that’s what finally ended the war…the American public simply didn’t want to support the war any longer…and that was media manipulation too. They could have chosen to edit the coverage and show successes - but that didn’t happen.
Watch what the media does over the next few months and then make up your mind.
Well, watch it right now. Clips of bloody victims. Clips of reunited lovers. Clips of cheering Palestinians. Clips of Bush saying “This was an act of war.” All of which will get the mildest mannered of us into a blind rage.
And I don’t know about you, but I’ve gotten 100% of my information from the media. I wasn’t in Palestine yesterday. I didn’t see it with my own eyes.
BTW, I’m not indicting the media for being evil and manipulative. They report what they feel is the best story. If it bleeds, it leads. Usually, this is very emotional stuff. And can well incite anger.
I AM indicting those in power for leaking stories to the press that will invoke such anger (and garner support). Count on it having happened in the past (once again I cite the Kuwaiti girl). And while America is guilty of this, we are not alone in it. In fact, I’m sure the Arab nations engage in much more heinous form of propaganda. And I suspect that the Germans may have dabbled in it a bit.
If you don’t want to read the whole thing, skip to the Analysis section, and be sure to read the last 2 paragraphs. Well written and relevant to our situation. Recommended reading for all.
Then again, take her with a grain of salt. She ain’t no American. She’s from that Evil Canada. I heard they make parkas from the scalps of Lutherans.
(emphasis mine) Hang on. Am I reading this right? What I am reading is that people are donating to the SA specifically for this event, and making a point that their money not go into other worthy causes. Is your point that people don’t normally donate to the SA unless motivated by a Big Tragedy, as opposed to the countless small tragedies of everyday? Or is it that the SA may be inclined to use donations for the victims of this tragedy for other causes?
I am questioning this because either way, I would like to get into this a little further, but I need to know for sure what side I’m arguing on.
