The enemy media campaign
...The voices for victory are still trying to break through the negativity of the media and the democrats. The Victory Caucus is one place where those who want to win the war are banding together to work against those who want to surrender now.The media has increasingly become a battlefield in the war on terror. In the past two months, the Iraqi hostiles have increased their efforts to shoot down helicopters. Such attacks, which can kill as many as a dozen Americans in a single attack, are intended to make a big media splash. The enemy has sought to generate media coverage in order to weaken the will of the American people. This is what happened with the crashed helicopters in Somalia after the 1993 firefight. The media coverage of two shot-down Blackhawk helicopters, and dead American troops being dragged through Somalian streets, was what forced the pullout. In reality, the American troops had won a tactical victory in the 18-hour firefight.
One recent example of what has led to this frustration with the media coverage from Iraq is the latest tape from Ayman al Zawahiri, the number two man in al Qaeda. Zawahiri's tape not only carried personal shots at President Bush, it also had comments directed towards the Democrats, reminding them of their opposition to American efforts in Iraq. The fact that Zawahiri is calling out the Democrats does indicate a sense of nervousness about the American " surge" (21,000 additional troops in Iraq) and changes in the rules of engagement. At the same time, the media seems to be glossing over this fact.
The tape by Zawahiri leads to another question: Are the changes in the rules of engagement and the deployment of additional troops working? Again, reports ignored by the mainstream media can answer the question. Moqtada al Sadr. and senior elements of his Mahdi militia, have apparently fled to Iran to avoid capture or being killed. Also largely ignored is the fact that many people in Baghdad have welcomed the surge. One would think that much of this would be relevant to the recent debate over the non-binding resolution in Congress. But it doesn't appear, and is ignored, as many other signs of progress have been over the nearly four years since the start of the war.
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Most of enemy activity in this war is for PR purposes and is not capable of defeating the military. Unfortunately, it appears to be winning in Washington what they cannot win on the battlefield. In the media battle space right now they are dominating.
Flopping Aces looks at how the media likes to elevate those with military experience that oppose the war, even if they know little about the current conflict. His Odom's Razor theory appears to b e right on.
It's simply absurd to posit the media as being responsible for the grinding down of public support. Prior to the war, polls found that the American people supported a short, cheap war.
ReplyDeleteThat's how it was sold to them, and they would have been fine with that. Once they were asked if they'd support the war if it went on for a few years, the support number plummeted to around 35%.
Bottom line: Americans are rational. Whether or not the media puts a Pollyanna face on this debacle, the American people never wanted this war.