RUSH: Bob in Orlando. Hi, Bob. welcome to the program, sir.
CALLER: Mega dittos, Rush.
RUSH: Thank you.
CALLER: I was reviewing today’s articles in your Stack of Stuff on the member site, and I noticed that many of the articles with regard to Iraq appear to be trying to convince this country that we are divided on the moral principles involved with returning Iraq to its people by focusing the articles on the evil of war itself without regard to the moral outcome. For that matter, nearly every article in the stack is negative on America, regardless of the topic. I honestly believe that the liberal press is attempting to make the divide in this country worse than it is so that the Democrats can come in and reunite us under their socialist agenda. Am I nuts on this view?
RUSH: No, I don’t think your fear is nuts, but I don’t think that this works anymore. I don’t think this divides the country. There’s too much news sophistication on the part of news consumers today. Just like you spotted it on your own. You spotted exactly what the purpose is. When people know how they’re trying to be manipulated they can avoid the manipulation and that’s where the press is losing. They’re trying to manipulate people rather than just report and they’re focusing on the negative about their own country and the people of this country don’t want to hear how their country sucks every day.
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RUSH: We just had a call, just had a great call from a guy who went to the Stack of Stuff that we put on the website every day. It’s mostly what we find in show prep here, some things that come in late that don’t make the Stack of Stuff on the website, but 95% of it’s there and he was looking at all the stories that we posted today just in the news that are totally opposed to victory in Iraq, totally negative, totally 100% not even concerned about the moral outcome of our winning, not even reporting on that, just reporting how we’re a bunch of evil Americans who are getting people killed for no reason whatsoever. I have printed out something yesterday from WorldTribune.com. It’s a very long letter written by lieutenant colonel Tim Ryan. He’s Commander Task Force 2-12 Cavalry First Cavalry Division in Iraq, he led troops into battle in Fallujah late last year, is now involved in security operations for the upcoming elections. He wrote the following during downtime after the Fallujah operation. It was published at WorldTribune.com. We will link to this at RushLimbaugh.com because I don’t have time. I can’t read the whole thing.
I mean, it’s single spaced, very small typeset, and it is almost four pages. But I do want to read you excerpts of this. This is LTC Tim Ryan commander in the First Cavalry Division in Iraq, served in Fallujah and is fed up with what he’s seeing in the news. He starts it this way: “All right, I’ve had enough. I am tired of reading distorted and grossly exaggerated stories from major news organizations about the ‘failures’ in the war in Iraq. ‘The most trusted name in news’ and a long list of others continue to misrepresent the scale of events in Iraq. Print and video journalists are covering only a fraction of the events in Iraq and, more often than not, the events they cover are only negative.
The inaccurate picture they paint has distorted the world view of the daily realities in Iraq. The result is a further erosion of international support for the United States’ efforts there, and a strengthening of the insurgents’ resolve and recruiting efforts while weakening our own. Through their incomplete, uninformed and unbalanced reporting, many members of the media covering the war in Iraq are aiding and abetting the enemy.
“The fact is the Coalition is making steady progress in Iraq, but not without ups and downs. So why is it that no matter what events unfold, good or bad, the media highlights mostly the negative aspects of the event? The journalistic adage, ‘If it bleeds, it leads,’ still applies in Iraq, but why only when it’s American blood? As a recent example, the operation in Fallujah delivered an absolutely devastating blow to the insurgency. Though much smaller in scope, clearing Fallujah of insurgents arguably could equate to the Allies’ breakout from the hedgerows in France during World War II. In both cases, our troops overcame a well-prepared and solidly entrenched enemy and began what could be the latter’s last stand. In Fallujah, the enemy death toll has exceeded 1,500 and still is climbing. Put one in the win column for the good guys, right? Wrong. As soon as there was nothing negative to report about Fallujah, the media shifted its focus to other parts of the country.
“More recently, a major news agency’s website lead read: ‘Suicide Bomber Kills Six in Baghdad’ and ‘Seven Marines Die in Iraq Clashes.’ True, yes. Comprehensive, no. Did the author of this article bother to mention that Coalition troops killed 50 or so terrorists while incurring those seven losses? Of course not. Nor was there any mention about the substantial progress these offensive operations continue to achieve in defeating the insurgents. Unfortunately, this sort of incomplete reporting has become the norm for the media, whose poor job of presenting a complete picture of what is going on in Iraq borders on being criminal.”
Now, this is all true, but the fact of the matter is it’s really upsetting that it’s getting to the troops now, starting to bother them, but I think it’s motivating them in strange ways. But it’s not fooling the American people. The American people, if the press and the Democrats didn’t learn one thing from the 2004 election, they ought to try to learn it now — and it is that the people of this country are sick and tired of hearing their own country criticized. They’re sick and tired of hearing the president ripped apart daily, and they’re sick and tired of hearing the troops who on the one hand you say you support them, on the other hand you sell ’em out. You undermine their efforts.
The American people are not idiots anymore. They’re not unsophisticated. They’re sick and tired of the blame-America-first crowd and the blame-America-first crowd is getting stubborn and obstinate rather than realizing their mistake, they’re just forged on. Now, let me pick up just past the midpoint of Lieutenant Colonel Tim Ryan’s letter. “I believe one of the reasons for this shallow and subjective reporting is that many reporters never actually cover the events they report on. This is a point of growing concern within the Coalition. It appears that many members of the media are hesitant to venture beyond the relative safety of the so-called ‘International Zone’ in downtown Baghdad, or similar ‘safe havens’ in other large cities. Because terrorists and other thugs wisely target western media members and others for kidnappings or attacks, the westerners stay close to their quarters. This has the effect of holding the media captive in cities and keeps them away from the broader truth that lies outside their view. With the press thus cornered, the terrorists easily feed their unwitting captives a thin gruel of anarchy, one spoonful each day.
“A car bomb at the entry point to the International Zone one day, a few mortars the next, maybe a kidnapping or two thrown in. All delivered to the doorsteps of those who will gladly accept it without having to leave their hotel rooms ? how convenient. The scene is repeated all too often: an attack takes place in Baghdad and the morning sounds are punctuated by a large explosion and a rising cloud of smoke. Sirens wail in the distance and photographers dash to the scene a few miles away. Within the hour, stern-faced reporters confidently stare into the camera while standing on the balcony of their tenth-floor Baghdad hotel room, their back to the city and a distant smoke plume rising behind them. More mayhem in Gotham City they intone, and just in time for the morning news. There is a transparent reason why the majority of car bombings and other major events take place before noon Baghdad-time; any later and the event would miss the start of the morning news cycle on the U.S. east coast. These terrorists aren’t stupid; they know just what to do to scare the masses and when to do it.
“An important key to their plan is manipulation of the news media. But, at least the reporters in Iraq are gathering information and filing their stories, regardless of whether or the stories are in perspective. Much worse are the ‘talking heads’ who sit in studios or offices back home and pontificate about how badly things are going when they never have been to Iraq and only occasionally leave Manhattan. Almost on a daily basis, newspapers, periodicals and airwaves give us negative views about the premises for this war and its progress. It seems that everyone from politicians to pop stars are voicing their unqualified opinions on how things are going. Recently, I saw a Rolling Stone magazine and in bold print on the cover was, ‘Iraq on Fire; Dispatches from the Lost War.’ Now, will someone please tell me who at Rolling Stone or just about any other ‘news’ outlet is qualified to make a determination as to when all is lost and it’s time to throw in the towel? In reality, such flawed reporting serves only to misshape world opinion and bolster the enemy’s position.
“Each enemy success splashed across the front pages and TV screens of the world not only emboldens them, but increases their ability to recruit more money and followers. So what are the credentials of these self proclaimed ‘experts’? The fact is that most of those on whom we rely for complete and factual accounts have little or no experience or education in counter-insurgency operations or in nation-building to support their assessments. How would they really know if things are going well or not? War is an ugly thing with many unexpected twists and turns. Who among them is qualified to say if this one is worse than any other at this point? What would they have said in early 1942 about our chances of winning World War II? Was it a lost cause too? How much have these ‘experts’ studied warfare and counter-insurgencies in particular? Have they ever read Roger Trinquier’s treatise Modern Warfare: A French View on Counter-insurgency (1956)? He is one of the few French military guys who got it right. The Algerian insurgency of the 1950s and the Iraq insurgency have many similarities.
“What about Napoleon’s campaigns in Sardinia in 1805-07? Again, there are a lot of similarities to this campaign. Have they studied that and contrasted the strategies? Or, have they even read Mao Zedung’s theories on insurgencies, or Nygen Giap’s, or maybe Che’ Gueverra’s? Have they seen any of Sun Tzu’s work lately? Who are these guys? It’s time to start studying, folks. If a journalist doesn’t recognize the names on this list, he or she probably isn’t qualified to assess the state of this or any other campaign’s progress.”
This letter goes on and on and on. Again this is LTC, lieutenant colonel Tim Ryan, commander, Task Force 2-12 cavalry, First Cavalry Division in Iraq, led troops into battle in Fallujah, is now preparing for the elections. In his downtime, out of frustration, he wrote this note and it appeared yesterday at the WorldTribune.com website. As I say we’ll link to it. You’ve gotta read the whole thing.
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