Posted on 02/02/2006 1:26:34 AM PST by madconserv
NEW YORK A Tom Toles editorial cartoon published in The Washington Post on Monday and on its Web site has drawn a very rare and very strong protest letter to the editors from all six members of The Joint Chiefs of Staff, E&P has learned.
The letter, written on Tuesday, charges that the six military leaders "believe you and Mr. Toles have done a disservice to your readers and your paper's reputation by using such a callous depiction of those who have volunteered to defend this nation, and as a result, have suffered traumatic and life-altering wounds. ... As the Joint Chiefs, it is rare that we all put our hand to one letter, but we cannot let this reprehensible cartoon go unanswered."
A Pentagon spokeswoman confirmed the contents of the letter to E&P late this afternoon. That the newspaper had received such a letter was reported on the popular AmericaBlog site, which is run by John Aravosis, this morning.Download a copy of the letter (PDF)
The spokeswoman said a letter from all six joint chiefs to anyone, let alone a newspaper, is rare, but the cartoon so offended them, they wanted to let their feelings be known. "It was expressing their disappointment with the paper and outrage at using that image to make a political point," said Lt. Col. Diane Battaglia. "That is a rare occurrence, but the level of inappropriateness prompted a response of unanimous support."
Battaglia said Post editors told her office that the letter would be published in Thursday's paper. Editorial Page Editor Fred Hiatt declined to comment on the letter. "My policy is I can't talk about letters until we publish them," he told E&P. "If and when a letter runs, I'd be happy to talk about it."
Reached by E&P, Tom Toles said, "no comment."
For more GOTOhttp://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001955937
The left envies and hates anything that includes real men.
No. They ARE the enemy--just as much as the Islamofascists. This is just the "continuing story" of the Left's war on America.
This cartoon should be made part of a handout to the US soldiers, a small booklet or pamplet, under the title: How Far The Press Will Go In Its Hatred Of The Military.
And the theme of the handout would be: Do Not Believe The US Press.
It's obvious the WaPo has no idea of the relationship between rights and responsibilities. As for the Joint Chiefs...Bravo. It's about time!
LOL!
Excellent letter. I'll send one as well. If I still subscribed it would be a pleasure at this time to cancel and tell them exactly why: final straw.
Thanks for the ping. Outrageous.
Thanks for the ping.
"...I bet if asked a soldier would say it was over the top but it is folks like them that give them the right to have freedom of speech..."
Exactly. Which is what makes this more galling and deserving of our anger. It is that injured segment of the military population which is MOST deserving of consideration here, because it is they who have given nearly everything that had to guarantee the right of people like Tom Toles to use them as a tool for their own partisan political purposes.
Yes, this cartoon is heartless towards our military, it reveals the heart of the cartoonist. At least in OUR country the cartoonist will not be beheaded! We are free to boycott the newspaper that prints it......
Toles is the epitome of the humanity-hating liberal elitist. He'd call for your abortion if you had a wart on your nose. There's a reason we don't read the Washington Post.
FReepers: If you would like to express your own feelings to the Washington Post, please use the following link to their contact page...
http://www.washpost.com/contactus.nsf/contact?OpenForm&Generic
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