I point you to this article only to make a point about media perspective. Every Arab opinion listed in the piece is from a commentator who currently resides outside of Iraq. Algerians, United Arab Emirates/Jordanians, Saudis, and Moroccans...but not one Iraqi. Last I heard, there was unprecedented access to the Iraqi people available. Given that the abuse took place inside Iraq, and that the only people directly menaced by this horrid event are Iraqi citizens, would it really have been too much to ask the Reuters correspondent to interview even one Iraqi?

It's funny, you know. All day long we hear from various media outlets that generalizations across ethnicities are nothing short of evil - that stereotypes are so morally depraved that we should leave ourselves open to attack to prevent their spread - and yet, whenever it comes to the Middle East, any old Arab commentator will do. So what if he's from Iran, or Syria, or Saudi Arabia - or any other country with a vested interest in seeing Iraq's reformation fail? He's Arab, ain't he? And aren't they really all the same?

[Bonus Points to whoever can detail the delicious irony in that last statement -- Ed.]
-- posted by Austin @ 12:49 AM (PermaLink/Comment) ¶