For many Americans the information presented during Frontline's "Bush's War" must have come as a shock; perhaps some simply disbelieved what they were watching & hearing. That is, if any of those people were watching.
For those relatively few Americans who have stayed highly informed about what has been happening in this country and Iraq since Sept. 11th, it was an excellent recap yet also contained new information. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of Americans will ever see this special, which can be viewed here: http://www.pbs.org/... .
But what struck me the most were the images presented. Here's what I saw during those two nights:
IED explosions that were astonishing in their force; huge fireballs suddenly expanding outward from a point, obliterating everything within reach. People who were outside the fireball were thrown to the ground from the concussion. Now I understand why even the most armored military vehicles were susceptible.
Dead bodies with limbs gone, huge pools of blood - no make that ponds of blood, footage of Americans and Iraqi forces alike dead and dying as we watched. In one memorable 3 second video, an American soldier at a checkpoint is shot by someone in a passing automobile and he dies instantly, hitting the ground in a grotesque position. That could have been my neighbor's kid. The image will remain with me for the rest of my life.
Footage from Fallujah of the American contractors being burned and then dragged through the streets was incredibly difficult to watch. I'd never seen any footage of this incident, only still photographs.
Iraqi citizens including women and children dead on the streets or being carted off to hospitals amid blood and carnage. At one point I had to turn away from the television.
My point? If the war was necessary and justified, this could be barely tolerated. But given the real reasons for the war, I am beyond outrage, infuriation, at our American news media. None of this was shown at any time during this war. Yes, we all know that this was the goal of the Bush administration. But HOW did they succeed in obtaining the nearly 100% blackout of such footage? Yes, yes ... conservative corporations own the news media. But in my naive optimism, I'm just shocked that somewhere, some producer or editor didn't get struck by a case of morality and decide to run this type of footage.
WHY did the news media agree to this blackout? Did they think they were being patriotic? Was there some reason they were forced to agree to the Administration's blackout? How? Why? They had the footage. They could have shown it at any time. Is this nation's news media so completely and utterly dominated by radical conservatives?
Had Americans been exposed to this unsanitized version of the war, they would have demanded an end to it long before the tide actually did turn. Long before November 2004. We know it was the administration's plan to limit showing of violence and death in Iraq. But I just can't fathom why not one news organization didn't run it. And although they get my thanks for running "Bush's War", keep in mind that PBS was one of those organizations that didn't run this footage until Bush was the most lame duck of Presidents.
At some point, America will need closure and I believe that our current leaders should be tried in a court of law (not that it will ever happen). But so too, our news media must answer for their partnership with the Bush administration in this atrocity.