Patterico's Pontifications

8/21/2005

My Second “Outside the Tent” Piece in the L.A. Times

Filed under: Blogging Matters,Dog Trainer,Sheehan,War — Patterico @ 12:08 am



As I told you yesterday, I have an “Outside the Tent” piece in today’s L.A. Times, about the paper’s coverage of Cindy Sheehan. It’s titled Peacenik paper fawns over antiwar mom. I don’t write the headlines, folks.

As I also said yesterday, this is intended as media criticism, not as a personal attack on Sheehan. I hope that readers of the piece understand that.

Thanks to Sunday Opinion Current editor Bob Sipchen for the invitation and the excellent editing. I respect Bob greatly because he always works hard to make the “Outside the Tent” pieces effective — even when they harshly criticize the paper he works for. That shows admirable integrity.

Thanks also to Dafydd ab Hugh, Xrlq, and Armed Liberal for reviewing earlier drafts. Thanks as well to another blogger who gave me valuable advice, but who asked not to be thanked by name. You know who you are.

Let me know what you think. And if you’re new here, I hope you’ll bookmark the site and come back often. Bloglines subscribers can subscribe by clicking on this button:

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Cindy Sheehan Blames Bush More Than the Iraqi Who Killed Her Son?

Filed under: Sheehan,War — Patterico @ 12:01 am



I don’t know whether this is authentic or not — but if it is, it’s quite remarkable. It purports to be a reprint of an e-mail from Cindy Sheehan to an Iraqi blogger. It was apparently posted by the blogger on January 26, 2005:

Dear Faiza

Susan put me in touch with you.
My son was killed in Sadr City on 04/04/04. His name was Casey Austin Sheehan. He was killed in the Shi’ite uprising on that day. He was almost 25.

I want to let you know that I am so sorry what our leaders have done to your country. Casey was a peaceful, gentle guy, who joined the Army to protect America and to help people. He didn’t join to be misused by an arrogant administration who are murderers. I don’t blame the Iraqi who killed Casey…I blame Bush and his other followers.

Please keep in touch with me…I think we do need to do peace together. Us Moms in the US need to be in contact and solidarity with you moms in Iraq.

Love and hugs from America
Cindy Sheehan

(Emphasis mine.)

If this this truly authentic — and it is not terribly dissimilar to other rhetoric we have heard from Ms. Sheehan — it is very revealing of where she is coming from. (Via Rob Douth.)

UPDATE: A commenter notes a Friday entry from the National Review’s Media Blog in which Sheehan told reporters in a conference call transcribed here:

The person who killed my son, I have no animosity for that person at all.

The National Review notes that this quote does not appear to have made it into any of the reporters’ stories, saying: “Perhaps that’s because, reading the transcript, it becomes evident that the reporters are on Sheehan’s side.” Quite amazing, yet at the same time, quite predictable.

Krugman and the 2000 Election

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 12:00 am



Paul Krugman recently claimed:

Two different news media consortiums reviewed Florida’s ballots; both found that a full manual recount would have given the election to Mr. Gore.

Evan Coyne Maloney said Krugman lied; Mickey Kaus said “not so fast!”.

For my money, the best posts I have seen on the issue come from the “Morons” folder of my Bloglines account, where I saw two excellent posts on the topic from crazy old Richard Bennett, here and here. Bottom line: Krugman was not honest, but it’s not as simple as you think. Basically Gore screwed himself by trying to get too cute.


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