Interesting thoughts here:
George W. Bush decrees again and again that every American killed in Iraq was killed for a noble cause. Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage, Sean Hannity and Melanie Morgan fill the airwaves with bellicose testimonials to the righteousness of the war. Tom Delay, Donald Rumsfeld, Rick Santorum, Elizabeth Dole and Kay Bailey Hutchison profess that the war is necessary for the safety and strength of America, and freedom and democracy in Iraq. Chickenhawk after chickenhawk forcefully proclaim the legitimacy of this war. Yet in appearance after appearance on NBC, NPR, CNN, ABC, CBS, FOX, MSNBC, CSPAN, PBS, et al, I have yet to hear a media host or reporter ask any one of them the most relevant question of all: 'Who in YOUR family is fighting in this war?' If this question were mandatory for those who tout the war, then its most vocal defenders would be silenced. For aloft in the bloggesphere, one can't fabricate for long.
And so, in the never-ending quest for truth, justice and the anti-war way, I launch this challenge to all media hosts and reporters. From this point forward everyone interviewed who supports the war must answer the question: 'Who in YOUR family has fought it?' If it's noble for one, then it's noble for all!
I know this is a lot to ask of hosts and journalists who've been spineless for five years, but allow me to offer an inspiration for their renewed attempt at courage: Cindy Sheehan. Thanks to Cindy and the whirlwind that surrounds her, the wimpy political press has been rescued from the customary news abyss of August, and awarded the biggest 'he said/she said' of our most recent time. Indeed, were I the political press, I would drop to my knees, kiss the hallowed ground of Camp Casey, and gratefully salute Cindy Sheehan. Then in her honor, and in honor of all men and women in service in this war, pose Cindy's poignant question to those who deploy them and to those who destroy them: 'Who in YOUR family is fighting and dying for YOUR war?'
True, Cindy has her detractors, but regardless of their disagreement with her 'tactics,' even her critics agree she has guts. Cindy's an inspiration, and a reminder to journalists that fierce independence, courage, and dedication to one's principles are not only admirable, but attainable. Cindy's individualism should remind today's reporters of the gumshoe days of old, when members of the press had guts, integrity and balls.
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