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May 13, 2004 In times past, America excelled in many fields: we were the richest nation on Earth, the most free nation, a nation of "Can-do" and "Yankee ingenuity" among others Today our leadership has diminished but thanks to our free press and our Congress, there remains one field of endeavor in which we can never be outstripped: No nation on Earth can better us at the fine art of breast-beating Rogue soldiers, bored out of their minds at keeping watch over a cellblock, humiliate their prisoners and - stupidly - take pictures of their actions. But boredom is no excuse and each of those soldiers should be punished in a form commensurate with their crimes. However, that is not enough for certain senators, representatives and media commentators. The only thing that will even begin to set things right is if we go to our knees and beg for the forgiveness of terrorists. We are good at that and, during the past two weeks, have raised it to a high art. Of course, the American apologists must also be appeased and someone in high government circles must be sacrificed:Rumsfeld, Bush, anybody important enough to stand as a symbol of the political game being played. Things have a way of evening out, however, and I'm certain that in the Muslim world and on the Arab street, there will be an equal amount of breast-beating over the beheading of Paul Berg. I'm just as certain that Osman bin Laden will convene a court of high-ranking Al Quaeda officers to try and to convict the terrorists guilty of the crime. And I am equally certain that if my uncle had wheels, he'd be a teacart. Was there no one in the CBS 60 Minutes organization who said, "This material could be inflammatory. Maybe we shouldn't run it."? Let me tell you how a responsible press conducts itself: When the US embarked on the Manhattan Project to build an atomic bomb, newspaper editors across the country were furnished a long list of words such as uranium, plutonium, fission, etc. The government respectufully requested that these words not be used in print. The unstated reason, of course, was that the words might furnish our enemies with a clue as to what we were doing. The government had no power to enforce the request, but it didn't need power. The press complied because they had a sense of responsibility to the country and to the war effort. Another example: No photograph, no newsreel, showed President Roosevelt sitting in his wheelchair or relying on his crutches. Many in the media disliked FDR, but if they did not respect the man, they did respect the office. One more example: Shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, reporter Edward R. Murrow and his wife were invited to dinner at the White House. Following the dinner, FDR took Murrow aside and confided his deepest fears: The Pacific Fleet was crippled; our armed services were small and weak; he had grave doubts about whether we could defend ourselves, let alone liberate Europe and the Pacific. As the Murrows left the White House, Mr. Murrow told his wife, "I've just been given the most important story I'll ever have, and I can't write a word of it." Respect and responsibility. Lacking respect and responsibility, the media have adopted a substitute: Political Correctness. PC is the guiding principal that reminds our media that they cannot insult or demean our enemies; that whatever terrible things happen must be the fault of Washington politicians rather than the poor terrorists; that continually reminds us we brought it all - including 9/11 - on ourselves. PC is the magic balm that makes the vile tortures of Saddam Hussein and the Saudis lesser events that a dozen prisoners humiliated by being naked. And PC is that which continually denies religion has any part in the current war - even though the other side continually refers to it as a Holy War. In the end, it is a simple matter: Political Correctness in the media has us groveling before the enemy, pleading with them for another chance to "make nice". Respect and responsibility would show the world a united America, standing tall. Perhaps the next recepients of the Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Broadcasting could reflect for a moment on what it means to support the nation that provides their livelihood. ------------ About the author: Erv Bobo is the author of many short stories and articles and is a past Contributing Editor for Computer Monthly and Computer Shopper magazines. Email: Dasher1945@aol.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ |
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