AP Photo Of Marine's Death Upsetting to High Command

[grydth]

Never assume I am not trying to change things.... and by now you should expect that I am as much of a bothersome nuisance everywhere I go as I am here.

Imperfect though I may be, I am a veteran. I vote. I write. I donate. I parent. Many do such things, and more.... but I sense "we" are losing.

I view part of changing things as coming here, exchanging views and supporting nonmainstream media sites. Sending in a Supporting Member check (my renewal is due) is a part of said effort, and I wish everyone here would do that.

 

[grydth]

I have no wish to incite you, Grydth but I cannot help but think that a refusal to even acknowledge an interpretation of an event other than your own is not a positive thing.

I happen to agree that the use of this photo against the wishes of the fallen soldiers family was not a socially or morally acceptable thing to do. That is really the issue this thread is covering but we are widening the scope with each post we make it seems.

The role of the media in war is always going to be troubling and it is always going to be suseptible to political manipulation of one order or another. It is either going to be used to propogandise 'success' or 'failure' and both of these are unimportant on the human scale when set against the lives lost (on both sides of any conflict). Sons and daughters not coming home are what any conflict boils down to at the level of families. It is up to them to decide if it was 'worth it' or not. It most certainly is not up to us.

If anyone wishes to start threads on the role of media in war or whether the war in Afghanistan is in anyones interest then that would be perfectly fine. It's probably not best to try and shoehorn those concepts into this discussion tho'.

Consider me unincited - or is it uninspired?

I should freely admit the possibility of error in just about anything I write here. Unlike our enemies, I claim no divine sponsorship by Allah or any other diety. I try to be always cognizant of mortality and limitations.

You and Tez could well be correct. I simply strongly believe that you - most unfortunately - are not.

 

[Tez3]

Consider me unincited - or is it uninspired?

I should freely admit the possibility of error in just about anything I write here. Unlike our enemies, I claim no divine sponsorship by Allah or any other diety. I try to be always cognizant of mortality and limitations.

You and Tez could well be correct. I simply strongly believe that you - most unfortunately - are not.

Nah, I'm a woman, I'm always right!!! I do believe strongly though that you can always turn things around to your own advantage, the photo may have been printed with the wrong motives but I believe you can turn that around on them and make the publishing of the photo a very positive thing. Shout at people that 'look, here is a hero' instead of oh this is disgusting, make them see that hero! make a big noise about it, drown out the negatives of it. Look at it differently yourself, study it and see a sacrifice for the greater good, friendship under fire and the hope of better things, then these people have lost haven't they, they haven't made you angry, they have made you proud and respectful of these brave men. Turn this on itself and the nay sayers lose.

I don't assume you aren't trying, I just think you are maybe looking in the wrong direction and are feeling down about it, we aren't losing, trust me, it just needs a little snowball to make the avalanche and it will come, I have no doubts!

Margaret Mead (American Anthropologist) "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

 

[blindsage]

Americans are sanitized to the realities of violence. We need to see images from the front lines so it can be made real, regardless of political ideology. That is not disrespecting anyone.

The U.S. media is largely sensational these days, though not entirely. That doesn't change the above.

 

[Makalakumu]

Americans are sanitized to the realities of violence. We need to see images from the front lines so it can be made real, regardless of political ideology. That is not disrespecting anyone.

The U.S. media is largely sensational these days, though not entirely. That doesn't change the above.

I am aghast that the MIC was able to rebrand the idea of reporting the realities of war into a slight against the troops. The marketing is so obvious and so self-serving and people have eaten it up without an ounce of critical thought. As was pointed out earlier, war photos have been published in all kinds of wars...and only now has it become verboten. People are making up all kinds of stories, but the bottom line is these excuses for sanitizing war's image are rooted in a marketing strategy that was cooked up in a think tank somewhere.

 

[KELLYG]

If this young man's next of kin said do not print it, it should not have been printed period. I also think that if the family wanted the images to be printed they should have been. Where is the respect owed to the parents of the child.

How it got printed I'll never know. I remember photos taken early in the war of caskets being loaded onto a cargo ship that caused a sharp debate.

I also feel that if war is sanitized too much then it cheapens the lives of the people that are called into service.

 

[grydth]

I am aghast that the MIC was able to rebrand the idea of reporting the realities of war into a slight against the troops. The marketing is so obvious and so self-serving and people have eaten it up without an ounce of critical thought. As was pointed out earlier, war photos have been published in all kinds of wars...and only now has it become verboten. People are making up all kinds of stories, but the bottom line is these excuses for sanitizing war's image are rooted in a marketing strategy that was cooked up in a think tank somewhere.

Why would you disbelieve the 'Military Industrial Complex', and yet trust the mega corporations which own and control the mass media?

It was no MIC rep that protested here - it was fellow veterans who despise what was done here, and why. Making a buck and engaging in sensationalism at the expense of a fallen patriot and his family is hardly in service to higher values.

Posting of war photos has not become "verboten"..... this film was not confiscated. It was published. If the mass media can publish under the First Amendment, then I can claim my rights under that same provision to call them the putzes they are. It is that simple.

 

[Makalakumu]

Why would you disbelieve the 'Military Industrial Complex', and yet trust the mega corporations which own and control the mass media?

It was no MIC rep that protested here - it was fellow veterans who despise what was done here, and why. Making a buck and engaging in sensationalism at the expense of a fallen patriot and his family is hardly in service to higher values.

Posting of war photos has not become "verboten"..... this film was not confiscated. It was published. If the mass media can publish under the First Amendment, then I can claim my rights under that same provision to call them the putzes they are. It is that simple.

Listen to the stories you are making up in response to what was once a commonplace act. These attitudes are a direct marketing response to the events of Vietnam when the journalists reporting on the war effectively stopped it. The bottom line is this, you don't know what this person's motivations were. The claim is that it was done to the true cost of the war. Why do you think that you need to question that intent? Where did that idea come from?

Also, I don't necessarily trust much that is reported on in the MSM, however, I don't think we are going to be privy to what the end result on these reporters' career will be. When news rooms are non-existent and press releases are published verbatim instead of being fact checked and reported on, I suspect a few more people will be added to a very long blacklist.

 

[grydth]

"Stories you are making up" ?

One ought to be able to disagree in a rational manner without accusing anyone who differs of being dishonest or brainwashed.

 

[Makalakumu]

"Stories you are making up" ?

One ought to be able to disagree in a rational manner without accusing anyone who differs of being dishonest or brainwashed.

I'm not saying any of those things. Just watch where those ideas are coming from. Hell, I could completely be full of ****. These reporters very well may just be *******s and the reason I am defending them is because I think this war should end and I think that the release of these photos is a good way to do it. They could have any motivation and the fact that the release of these photos coincides with something that I believe has me a lot more willing to take their word for it in regards to their motivations. So, there's the story I'm making up about it.

The bottom line is this, and we can agree or disagree if you like, I truly believe that the release of photos from this war will work to end it. US citizens need to see the real cost of this thing and, thus far, that cost has been hidden by an aggressive marketing campaign. This marketing campaign started after Vietnam and was responsible for many of the attitudes we see to day that are in opposition to the release of war images. The slogans they come up with play on our emotions and they have a particular end in mine.

"Don't release these photos, you'll upset the families of the deceased."

It's a clever message designed to sanitize the war through the manipulation of media consumers.

 

[grydth]

Listen to the stories you are making up in response to what was once a commonplace act....

Yes, you did say that thing. Everyone can see that.

One thing I'm done with on this Forum is getting into spraying contests that involve accusations like this. Its just not worth it.

 

[Makalakumu]

The "stories we make up" are assumptions. They aren't lies, however, they are dishonest if we don't recognize them for what they are. Anyway, here are some useful questions...

1. Why am I making this assumption?
2. Where does the assumption come from?
3. Who benefits from the assumption?
4. What are the results of the assumption?

 

[Archangel M]

I'm not saying any of those things. Just watch where those ideas are coming from. Hell, I could completely be full of ****. These reporters very well may just be *******s.

Finally! Something we can agree on. :rofl:

 

[MA-Caver]

UPDATE: Pentagon reverses the ban...

Military Reverses Ban on Publicizing Fatal War Photos



Tue Oct 20, 1:44 pm ET
The U.S. military command in eastern Afghanistan has rescinded a ban on the publication of photos depicting slain U.S. military personnel, a Pentagon spokesman said Tuesday.
The month-old ban had triggered concerns among lawmakers as well as from several media organizations.
"I am relieved that this short-lived attempt to control the media and the public's right to know has come to an end," Louise M. Slaughter, D-N.Y., chairwoman of the House Rules Committee, said in a written response to a query. "Prior restraint on photography is not a good policy for the Pentagon. It's always been my belief that the American people should see the hard reality of our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan."
A Pentagon official said the decision to undo the ban was internally driven and not caused by pressure from Congress. Some in the Defense Department expressed concern to the brass in Afghanistan that they had gone too far in censoring the press and urged reconsideration of the new policy, the official said.
The U.S. military has censored photos in previous conflicts, but the new rule was the most far-reaching restriction instituted for reporters covering the military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.


More here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/cq/20091020/pl_cq_politics/politics3226425

 

[Tez3]

Well, well, well!