Category: Grave

U.S. Army 1st Battalion, 24th Infantry soldiers relax near a space heater after a traditional Thanksgiving dinner of turkey and ham was delivered to their outpost in Mosul, Iraq Thursday, Nov. 25, 2004. Insurgents rose up this month in Mosul, Iraq’s third-largest city, during an offensive by U.S. and Iraqi forces in Fallujah. (AP Photo/Jim MacMillan)
Related: Somebody Tell Lt. Brandon Turner That He’s Insane [Under The Same Sun]

The Spirit: “Why won’t this damn ghost stop followin’ me around?”
One of 1,229.
Earlier: Thanksgiving 2003: The Mourn of Plenty

As today’s Washington Post covers American troops’ latest movements into the war-ravaged region surrounding Baghdad, there seems to be a new element of self-doubt and, dare we say it, anti-patriotism creeping into the paper’s coverage of the war in Iraq. In other words, that unique sort of “what the fuck is happening here?” angle that we thought only Michael Wolff wasn’t afraid to touch! To wit, take notice of the following bit which appears at the outset of “Offensive Launched South of Baghdad”, focusing on the second and third paragraphs of the news item by Anthony Shadid:

BAGHDAD, Nov. 23 — More than 5,000 U.S., British and Iraqi troops launched an offensive Tuesday against a swath of territory south of Baghdad where armed insurgents have roamed through the streets, imposed stringent Islamic law and carried out kidnappings and summary executions at checkpoints along the main roads.
The campaign began with a series of raids this morning in Jabala, a town east of the most restive region, which Iraqis have dubbed the “Triangle of Death.” The U.S. military said in a statement that it had detained 32 men believed to be insurgents. In the past three weeks, it said, U.S. and Iraqi forces have arrested nearly 250 insurgents.
The military statements were impossible to confirm independently. The territory, inhabited by a mix of Sunni and Shiite Muslims, has become too dangerous for foreign reporters to visit.

Also impossible to confirm was Post executive editor Leonard Downie‘s newfound sense of doubt in administration propaganda. Because, as we all know, in March 2003 it was far too dangerous for American news reporters to congregate around independent booksellers and alternate news outlets while engaging in research on reasons as to why the invasion of Iraq may have been a bad idea at the outset…
I mean, responsible journalism? What the fuck is that?

“After enduring a brutally fought election campaign, Americans are optimistic about the next four years under President Bush, but have reservations about central elements of the second-term agenda he presented in defeating Senator John Kerry, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll.”
– Americans Show Clear Concerns on Bush Agenda, by Adam Nagourney and Janet Elder, The New York Times, Nov. 23, 2004.
“President Bush is heading into his second term, with his job approval rising to 55 percent, a new poll shows.
“Bush’s post-election bounce and growing public support come at a time when 72 percent of Americans say the country is deeply divided, according to the nationwide Gallup/CNN/USA Today poll.”
–W. SOARS IN POST-VOTE POLL, Deborah Orin, The New York Post, Nov. 23, 2004.
And they say there’s no consensus in this country.

Life and Debt (Less of Both, Actually): Finally, they’ll be able to own a home.
“The world’s leading industrial nations agreed Sunday to cancel 80 percent of the nearly $39 billion debt owed them by Iraq, a critical step in rebuilding the country’s devastated economy and an important precedent for its other creditors to follow.”
Major Creditors in Accord to Waive 80% of Iraq Debt, by Craig S. Smith, The New York Times, Oct. 22, 2004.
Related: Life and Debt, which is a fantastic film.

Many Who Voted for ‘Values’ Still Like Their Television Sin, by Bill Carter, The New York Times, Nov. 22, 2004

“He’s not worth it, man.” “C’mon, bro, let’s just get another beer and forget about it.”