The Common Ills: About those Christopher Columbuses who just rediscovered Iraq this week?

Friday, November 01, 2013

About those Christopher Columbuses who just rediscovered Iraq this week?

That's Alanis Morissette performing her song "Narcissus." The track first appears on Alanis' Under Rug Swept. For those who prefer a studio version to a live track, click here.

Community member Julie e-mailed asking what song I thought summed up those covering Iraq this week as it gets into the news cycle? You know, these people who've ignored it and their crappy writing demonstrates that to even the people who only discovered the writers this week?

Dear momma's boy I know you've had your butt licked by your mother
I know you've enjoyed all that attention from her
And every woman graced with your presence after
Dear narcissus boy I know you've never really apologized for anything
I know you've never really taken responsibility
I know you've never really listened to a woman

Dear me-show boy I know you're not really into conflict resolution
Or seeing both sides of every equation
Or having an uninterrupted conversation

And any talk of healthiness
And any talk of connectedness
And any talk of resolving this
Leaves you running for the door

[. . .]

You go back to the women who will dance the dance
You go back to your friends who will lick your ass
You go back to ignoring all the rest of us
You go back to the center of your universe

Or maybe it's this section that best describes them:

And any talk of willingness
And any talk of both feet in
And any talk of commitment
Leaves you running for the door

Does anything better describe these liars and whores who showed up this week to pretend to care about Iraq?

Because of the meeting with Barack, Iraq became a water cooler topic. The useless will now drop it as they had in the weeks before.

They know nothing.

And they don't want to know.

How many times have we noted Tim Arango (New York Times) reported in September of 2012:

Iraq and the United States are negotiating an agreement that could result in the return of small units of American soldiers to Iraq on training missions. At the request of the Iraqi government, according to General [Robert L.] Caslen, a unit of Army Special Operations soldiers was recently deployed to Iraq to advise on counterterrorism and help with intelligence.

Too many times to count. But it's not just us noting it here.

Community members have called out -- in e-mails -- various people and outlets for lying or stupidity.

I have no idea why Norman Solomon, for example, refuses to note Arango's report. But as four forwarded e-mails from community members attest, he is aware of it. He became aware of it late this year and replied to the e-mails. But he's never written about it, has he?

Norman's just one 'name' I can toss out.

Community members always forward e-mails (that will probably be a topic in Saturday's entry, barring anything else popping up).

The Progressive knows about Arango's article and they're going to work it in . . . or so they wrote in an e-mail five months ago. Still waiting on that, Matt Rothschild. In These Times knows.

It's not that they don't know, it's that they won't tell.

Even, as Ann's pointed out, Antiwar.com can't get with the truth when it comes to that.

So many liars.

Foreign Policy in Focus, add them to the list because two members forwarded the e-mail replies they received from Foreign Policy in Focus.

They're all liars or chickens, I don't know which. And don't get me started on the December Memo of Understanding -- allowing for joint-patrols (US and Iraqi) in Iraq. We reported it in real time, we analyzed it in real time. Since then? Only the Congressional Research Service has noted it. And their analysis matched what I offered here last December.

Let's include the links:

December 6, 2012, the Memorandum of Understanding For Defense Cooperation Between the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Iraq and the Department Defense of the United States of America was signed. We covered it in the December 10th and December 11th snapshots -- lots of luck finding coverage elsewhere including in media outlets -- apparently there was some unstated agreement that everyone would look the other way.

But they don't care.

They write about Iraq 'today' but they won't tell you about the flooding during the rains, the houses that collapse, the sections of Sadr City where water is so backed up it's above knee level. Or that each time this now expected development takes place, it's the Iraqi Red Crescent (part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent) providing relief, not the Iraqi government. They won't point out that all the billions raked in each month off oil never go to fixing the sewage system or providing potable water (drinkable water), reliable electricity or any other public services.

Instead, they're like the idiot W.J. Whitney Jr. (CounterPunch) who strings together a list of old topics and pretend like their pieces that could have been written in 2007 are fresh, needed and make some form of a contribution.

You know when you're supposed to (legally supposed to) lose US aid? When you attack the people in your own country.

September 28th in print (27th online), Tim Arango (New York Times) broke the story that Nouri al-Maliki (prime minister and chief thug of Iraq) is supporting Shi'ite militias that are killing Sunnis. Arango noted:

The group, which is backed by Iran and split off from the Sadrist movement several years ago and was responsible for many deadly attacks on the American military when it was here, has seen its political wing welcomed into the government by Mr. Maliki. And as the security forces have proved ineffective in stemming attacks by Sunni insurgent groups, the group’s armed unit, according to militiamen, is increasingly working in secret with the government.

“We don’t do anything until the government asks us,” said one of the group’s leaders, who gave his name as Abu Abdellah. “We have a direct connection with the leaders of the security forces.”

In supporting Asaib al-Haq, Mr. Maliki has apparently made the risky calculation that by backing some Shiite militias, even in secret, he can maintain control over the country’s restive Shiite population and, ultimately, retain power after the next national elections, which are scheduled for next year. Militiamen and residents of Shiite areas say members of Asaib al-Haq are given government badges and weapons and allowed freedom of movement by the security forces.

That should have been noted long ago. We've noted it repeatedly -- like the town crier.

But did you see it in the 'reporting' and 'commentary' this week?

No.

They weren't interested in that or in Iraq today. They wanted to be lazy and lie in their own filth while pretending to care about Iraq.

Next week, like it's been since 2004, we'll be covering Iraq here.

And the 'caring' voices that emerged this week in the US?

They'll be gone:

You go back to the women who will dance the dance
You go back to your friends who will lick your ass
You go back to being so oblivious
You go back to the center of the universe

And we won't suffer from their absence.

Ruth's "Benghazi road blocks" and Rebecca's "harrison ford is insane" aren't showing up on the list but here are the other community sites that updated last night and this morning: