Turning Shame Into Outrage

LA Times ^ | May 13, 2004 | Charles Paul Freund

[neverdem]

Charles Paul Freund is a senior editor at Reason magazine.

It's a tough call whether Abu Musab al-Zarqawi — the Jordanian militant who is reportedly responsible for the videotaped butchery of Nicholas Berg — is more stupid than he is brutal, or whether he is a bigger monster than he is a fool. Zarqawi's own nauseating videotape makes the case for his indescribable brutality and may have inadvertently delivered his enemy from its own demoralization.

Americans were feeling so shamed, dishonored and demoralized by the repulsive images of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib that even many prominent war supporters were reconsidering the effort.

Dispirited analysts at the conservative National Review Online began looking for an exit from the occupation; blogger Andrew Sullivan asked himself whether, if he had known in advance how the occupation would proceed, he would have supported the war; New York Times columnist David Brooks even concluded that the United States misconceived the effect of its own power, and he pronounced the occupation an intellectual failure, even if it ultimately succeeds in establishing a liberal Iraq.

[FlashBack]

"Americans were feeling so shamed, dishonored and demoralized by the repulsive images of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib that even many prominent war supporters were reconsidering the effort."

Shamed? Dishonored? Demoralized?
Not this American!!!!!!!!!!
At the least maybe abit confused as to WTF were they thinking....but ready to throw in the towel??? I don't think so.
This is a war, not a couple of lawyers serving papers on someone requesting that they appear in court anymore...

[Captainpaintball]

Zarqawi's own nauseating videotape makes the case for his indescribable brutality and may have inadvertently delivered his enemy from its own demoralization. Americans were feeling so shamed, dishonored and demoralized by the repulsive images of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib that even many prominent war supporters were reconsidering the effort.

That would be 100% true if: 1.)the "nooz media" actually showed the slaughter with the regularity of the prison "tortures" 2.)El Presidente used the slaughter of Berg to make a more passioned, forceful, and angry speech than the one we heard yesterday. He and his spokesman used stronger words to describe the Babu Grabarab photos than Berg's cowardly slaying.

[prophetic]

the proper American response from the American people is to unliaterally unite under Bush to eradicate these vermin!!

Howbeit it now seems that more of their ilk is already in the midst of the leaders in Washington and serving as the leaders of most of the mainstream media.

[Adrastus]

The eminent statesman Arlen Specter allowed as how with CIA identification of Zarkawi as the murderer of Mr Berg, we now have enough to actually indite(sp?)Zarkawi for the crime. I'm glad Mr Specter has identified this as a law enforcement problem. It puts things right in perspective.

Now, what law enforcement agency do you think we might get to serve the papers on Zarkawi?

Is Specter some sort of idiot, or what? Maybe he'll cite some obscure Scottish law for a reason to laeve the papers unserved....Moron!

[CWOJackson]

"Now, what law enforcement agency do you think we might get to serve the papers on Zarkawi?"

You don't have to be law enforcement to serve papers. I'm sure there are a couple of military groups who could handle the job quite well.

[Adrastus]

I'm sure there are and I look forward to it happening. At the same time I think his hide wont hold shucks when it happens. My point was: how simple-minded does Specter sound...again. He seems to nake a habit of it.

[CWOJackson]

I believe he hasn't reached the level of proficiency he's striving for...he continues to practice his techniques.