Nir Rosen on Al-Jazeera

Remember, it was George W. Bush supposedly joked about bombing al-Jazeera’s headquarters in Qatar during the Fallujah siege back in 2004, and its was, of course, his armed forces that attacked the network’s offices in both Kabul (2001) and Baghdad (2003). (I don’t think the Pentagon ever presented persuasive evidence that it had not specifically targeted al-Jazeera, and I suspect that Bush wasn’t joking.)

In any event, read Nir Rosen’s piece on al-Jazeera’s role in the ongoing intifadas rippling through the Middle East. Then consider which has been the greater force for human rights and democracy in the region: George W. Bush and those freedom-loving neo-conservatives who served him, or their nemesis, al-Jazeera.

Oh, and while we’re on the subject of neo-conservatives and democracy, don’t miss Peter Beinart’s piece on the subject on The Daily Beast website, entitled “The Right’s Hypocrisy on Freedom.”

Jim Lobe

Jim Lobe served for some 30 years as the Washington DC bureau chief for Inter Press Service and is best known for his coverage of U.S. foreign policy and the influence of the neoconservative movement.

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8 Comments

  1. Someone else covered it for you? No, that doesn’t cut it. And that’s obvious by the comment Scott’s left deflecting from the issue. No one’s said a thing about whomever assaulted her. But there’s Scott yammering away with nonsense. The fact is, as Ava and C.I. pointed out (and did so before Juan Cole got around to it), the story should have been: Look at the amazing Egyptian women. Unarmed, seeing another woman being assaulted and rushing in at their own risk.
    http://thirdestatesundayreview.blogspot.com/2011/02/damned-dont-apologize-ava-and-ci.html
    Scott’s responding to things that have nothing to do with the comments. As a Black woman, Mr Lobe, I guess what you’re telling me is that if Nir Rosen’s remarks were racist, you’d still be linking to him? His remarks were disgusting. You never weighed in and now you’re linking to him. Leonard Pitts Jr. is one of the few MSM columnists worth reading and he made time to call out the remarks and Rosen. I doubt in his next column he will be saying, “Wow, great reporting by Rosen!” As a woman, I don’t trust his reporting. We now know that he believes some women deserve assaults. That’s not how it works. But pretending that any woman deserves to be sexually assaulted is the mentality of a predator.

  2. Actually Martha, several commentators have written on the “nature of her attackers.” Who pretended that Lara had it coming? Who here? I would say assault is assault. The same people that attacked Lara, attacked Anderson Cooper and attacked other far worse than little Lara. You haven’t shown any concern for those ladies, but they suffer a different racism, their names are stained, marked as some say you are, as an African American. They have non-Christian, non-Jewish names, so they don’t matter at all.

    As to Nir Rosen making crude remarks, he, unlike Lara Logan wasn’t quick to cheer war, abet paper thin cases for war, coddle murderers and attacks on people who’s families wish they had only been raped.

    I have a dream, that one day we will learn to listen to arguments and views regardless of the mouth they issue from. I have a dream today, that the logic of the argument will stand taller than the shadow of their past sins, and flaws. For MLK was not without sin, nor any man among us. I would hope you would address the arguments and learn to forgive.

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