Thought To Be Believed To Be
Keeping track of the farce otherwise known as the Iraq occupation, I was interested in this photo caption accompanying Spencer Platt's image from Diyala in yesterday's NYT Pictures of the Day. Whether or not the qualifiers signify journalistic caution, they also convey just how thoroughly we are operating under a qualified strategy riddled with jumbo-sized assumptions.
As for the shot itself, it almost conveys a Three Stooges quality. The ally -- presumably to protect his safety -- has his head cut off, while the (presumed) bad guys come in blindfolded, in a headlock.
Pictures of the Day, Feb. 27 (NYT)
(image: Spencer Platt/Getty. February 2008. Diyala Province. nytimes.com)
There is no empathy for the headless tormentor.
The two in headlock have more dignity.
One dreads what goes on there with the help of the occupation forces. Without their presence there could not be more evil going on than that goes on now!
Surge in Iraq is a farce only fools believe in.
Posted by: lytom | Feb 28, 2008 at 03:41 AM
Le Théâtre de l'Absurde
~ characters caught in hopeless situations forced to do repetitive or meaningless actions; dialogue full of clichés, wordplay, and nonsense ~
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theatre_of_the_Absurd
Posted by: jtfromBC | Feb 28, 2008 at 05:10 AM
"they also convey just how thoroughly we are operating under a qualified strategy riddled with jumbo-sized assumptions."
If by "assumptions" you mean "lies". I seem to remember similar language used to describe Saddam's "WMD Arsenal"...
Posted by: scarshapedstar | Feb 28, 2008 at 05:35 AM
Another case of bad writing masking the New York Times' simple inability to take a critical stance on the war (or anything else for that matter). Kowtowing it all the way...
Posted by: leo g. | Feb 28, 2008 at 09:29 AM
"Thought to be believed to be" is a great title for this piece. It links this utter nonsense to Gitmo and our evil black prison system by pointing out the absurdity of punishment before trial.
With no fair trial, presumption of guilt leads to harsh punishment. Once the punishment is carried out, there is no going back. This leads to the necessity of finding the individual guilty because they've already received the sentence.
Maybe America should re-establish the "innocent until proven guilty" maxim that we grew up being so god damned proud of. There's no pride in this bullsh*t we're pulling now. I'm ashamed and embarrassed.
We've deviated from the "high road" and presently we are free-falling off the cliff.
Posted by: gasho | Feb 28, 2008 at 10:47 AM
Even better is the last sentence describing a "homegrown extremist group" that is "led by foreigners" - perfectly oxymoronic, don't you think?
Posted by: Janet | Feb 28, 2008 at 02:46 PM
gasho : “ ‘Thought To Be Believed To Be’ is a great title for this piece. ”
oh, yeah! The only thing missing is the irritating irony of that rhetorical " ? " question mark qualifier ( = all innuendo forgiven :) at the end of the Headline? or image Caption? . . .
“ Thought To Be Believed To Be ? ”
. . . that The Question was, The News ?
Posted by: MonsieurGonzo | Feb 28, 2008 at 05:56 PM