I wanted to post on Senator Obama's incredibly dishonest Spanish-language ad. I wanted to post on Amir Taheri's underreported claim that Obama has conducted inappropriate -- and illegal -- negotiations with Iraqi leaders, encouraging them to delay agreements with the U.S. until after the election. I wanted to post on the role the Carter-era Community Reinvestment Act may have played in our current financial and housing crises.
But I'm feeling weary today and not inclined to do much writing. For now, I'll just link to a piece on mythmaking and reality, written by an author I truly admire. I'll also add his blog, which features long essays that are as inspiring as they are inspired, to the list at the right of this page.
Perhaps I'll blog on those other topics another day. Or perhaps I'll just link to other writers who have already done them justice.
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3 comments:
The article is am interesting one. It calls to question the nature of patriotism and I think it's a relevent article with or without the McCain/Palin content.
I hadn't heard anything about Obama and negotiations with the Iraqis. Is there documentation? (I'm asking sincerely curious, not skeptically).
It's good to be skeptical.
Here is the original op-ed by Taheri: http://www.nypost.com/seven/09152008/postopinion/opedcolumnists/obama_tried_to_stall_gis_iraq_withdrawal_129150.htm?page=0.
Here is his most recent offering on the subject: http://article.nationalreview.com/print/?q=OWI3MDQyNGIwOTczMTU2YmI1NjE5OWMxMGJkYTQzZTg=
Senator Obama's own words from the NBC interview and his campaign's response to Taheri's initial opinion-piece are very troubling. I certainly don't know enough to have "found Obama guilty," but the accusations are serious and have yet to be rebutted.
Is Taheri's source reliable? Is the purported NBC quotation legitimate? Is the campaign's statement accurate and in proper context? How is one to tell when Taheri's reportage has essentially been ignored? And what possible justification is there for such an important story receiving such scant attention from the media?
Presidential candidate Ronald Reagan was accused of conspiring with the Iranians to delay the release of the hostages until after the 1980 elections. "After twelve years of news reports looking into the alleged conspiracy, both houses of the US Congress held separate inquiries into the issue, and journalists from sources such as Newsweek and The New Republic looked into the charges. Both Congressional inquires, as well as the majority of investigative reports, found that the charges were groundless."
There was a Playboy Magazine article in October 1988 entitled "An election held hostage." There was a multi-page New York Times op-ed in April 1991 called "The Election Story of the Decade."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_surprise_conspiracy
President Reagan was exonerated, but the accusations were considered serious enough for journalists and Congressional committees to examine them for over a decade. Don't Amir Taheri's charges -- which include a named Iranian source and statements from Obama and his campaign consistent with those charges -- deserve some consideration?
One can offer up plenty of anecdotal evidence for media bias against Republicans and conservatives, but it's impossible to prove because it's ultimately subjective.
Is it really so hard for honest people -- Democrats, Republicans, and Independents -- to see a double standard at play here?
Perhaps you don't know me quite as well as you and I thought you did.
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