Posted on 05/25/2010 7:42:06 PM PDT by MestaMachine
The best war journalist of our time has been kicked out of Afghanistan...
Let the administration boot Helen Thomas out of her seat in the front of a White House press conference and there would be outrage. Remove Jonathan Karl from the Capitol and media would revolt. Kick Andrea Kremer off Sunday Night Football and there would be pandemonium.
And yet nobody in the media seems to have much of a problem with Michael Yon being removed from the front lines by Obama/General McChrystal. Yon has openly stated the problems in Afghanistan right now and how we could lose this war, unless changes are made. He has been critical of the current rules of engagement that have put our troops in danger and could actually make this war like the Vietnam that the leftist media claimed it was early and often when Bush was president (it’s strange you don’t hear those comparisons from them anymore).
Yon’s reward? He’s lost his embed status, banished to Bangkok. Yon could return but his access might be limited and you can’t just pop in and out of that theater like it’s the neighborhood movie palace. Mess with Yon enough and his resources wear thin, but his patience will not. You will not stop this Marine. He is the ultimate warrior for those who fight and die for this country. His reports are honest, chilling, gripping and are as reflective of the battles they represent as anything I have ever read. But this administration is making it as difficult for him to do his job. You can’t believe this is by accident. The most critical battle in Afghanistan is about to take place, the battle for Kandahar, and the voice of the American soldier is not allowed in.
(Excerpt) Read more at bigjournalism.com ...
I don’t know what the truth is anymore.
I have known this for days. I wonder why it’s taken this long to get to FR breaking news?
MestaMachine, by the way I was not criticizing you personally. Thanks for the post.
One general officer resigning and then speaking the truth at 5:00 PM that day, in civilian clothes, would do wonders.
Who's got the stones to do it?
Where in the hell are we headed?
The NYT can leak secrets all over the place, but this one honest journalist can’t let us know what’s going on in a war?
Oh, wait. I get it. If we do well, that would make the ENEMY look bad. We can’t have that now, can we?
Didn’t take it that way at all. I wondered the same thing myself. Ihat’s why I posted it.
I searched for a story about this the other day. I was simply amazed it wasn’t on here yet, but I was at work.
And if we don’t, it will make McChrystal and bammy look bad...and we surely can;t have that.
I had not EVEN intended to post a thread tonight. I am tired and really need a break. But this made me so angry I couldn’t help it.
He tells it like he see it!
“...My experiences with the U.S. military as a soldier and then as a writer and photographer covering soldiers have been overwhelmingly positive, and I feel no shame in saying I am biased in favor of our troops. Even worse, I feel no shame in calling a terrorist a terrorist. I've seen their deeds and tasted air filled with burning human flesh from their bombs. I've seen terrorists kill children while our people risk their lives to save civilians again, and again, and again. I feel no shame in saying I hope that Afghanistan and Iraq “succeed,” whatever that means....”~Michael Yon
That kind of talk is likely to make those in this administration wee wee themselves and break out in tics and hives. It describes the enemy in the most plain language.
Blackfive.net and thisainthell.us carry Yon’s articles. They are a good place to look for info.
Thanks, MestaMachine.
Thanks for posting this. Yon is the very best war reporter out there.
I’m angry right beside ya, Mesta!
I don’t get how this “president” can go on and on and on cutting the American people off at the knees while he does his best to destroy everything that makes this a great nation!
It HAS to be on purpose.
We need Republicans with some spine in DC! It sure doesn’t look like we have many now.
BTTT!
Will Kandahar become the new Tet?
From Michael Yon's "Facebook" page:
"The Taliban attack on Kandahar Airfield (KAF), Afghanistan was little more than a mosquito bite. Common and irrelevant. Almost. The Taliban won a serious media victory. As with Iraq, and now Thailand, much of the fight unfolded or is unfolding in the media. Thailand is already recovering from its recent media setb...acks.
Watching/reading international coverage of the KAF/Bagram attacks from Thailand, it would appear that major bases in Afghanistan are under high threat. Some people might blame sensationalist media. There was sensationalism. A few who are knowledgeable of the media machine under General Stanley McChrystal and Admiral Gregory Smith realize that the Taliban media victories are as much the fault of General McChrystal and Admiral Smith. When McChrystal/Smith eliminate voices who could put trivial attacks into perspective, what's left include sensationalists and the Taliban media machine.
Many such trivial attacks on KAF were described on this Facebook page as they unfolded. Attack started. Attack ended. No fanfare. No Taliban media victory. Go to lunch. Forgotten.
Yet even as the recent KAF/Bagram attacks were military failures for the Taliban, they were great Taliban media victories.
In Afghanistan, censorship favors the enemy.
General McChrystal/Admiral Smith: No Confidence."
Yea, out of his usual base of operations but it isn't keeping him from making a total ass out of himself.
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