We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

A new year's resolution for the chattering classes

by DOCTOR EARL EVLETH PhD


For the United Nations 2006 was "The International Year of Deserts
and Desertification". For the Chinese it was "Year of the Dog".
And for the British opinion-forming classes - well, how about the
"Year of Conventional Wisdom"?



That conventional wisdom holds that Tony Blair and George Bush made the
world a much more dangerous place by invading Iraq. That we're losing
badly in Iraq, if we haven't already lost. That Mr Blair is "riding
pillion" to President Bush - and that if he didn't do so, we
would probably all be much safer.

In that sense, the Archbishop of Canterbury rounded 2006 off perfectly,
declaring in this newspaper that Anglo-American "firepower" in Iraq
had triggered an explosion of extremism that made life far harder for
Christians across the Middle East. His line is reminiscent of the old
Yiddish joke about two Jews in front of a firing squad in Tsarist
Russia. One suggests: "Let's make a run for it." Replies the
other: "Shhh, don't make trouble."

Never mind the ideological, political and physical assault on
Christians all across the Middle East and Asia since the 1970s -
fuelled by the rise of Wahhabist ideology. Never mind that Christian
communities there have been in decline for at least a century. Rather
like the Islamists, Dr Williams prefers to lay the blame for the
deplorable condition of the Middle East's Christians at the door of
Great Satan and Little Satan. Short of blaming the Jews for the tsunami
- as some Muslim radicals did in 2004 - the Archbishop did a
wonderful job of letting the real sources of evil off the hook.

But Dr Williams isn't alone. Earlier this month, Victor
Bulmer-Thomas, Chatham House's outgoing director, produced a report,
received with hushed reverence by the Today programme and others,
asserting that Iraq was a "terrible mistake". But what exactly was
"news" about Chatham House denouncing Anglo-American
"unilateralism"? Chatham House was never much in favour of robust
action against totalitarianism, even during the Nazi and Soviet eras.
Indeed, rather the reverse. As Elie Kedourie showed in his classic work
The Chatham House Version, this "respected" instititution has long
exemplified the moral defeatism of the English "radicals". Its
leading light, Arnold Toynbee, encouraged a premature retreat from
imperial responsibility out of a misplaced sense of guilt, thus
abandoning the Middle East to a "wilderness of tigers". Plus ça
change.

Moreover, there was no single dramatic new fact in the report. It was a
veritable cocktail of banal "liberal" prejudices - with ritual
obeisance to the glories of greater EU integration etc etc. But
original analysis? Give us a break.

Chatham House has other recent "form". Last year, it produced a
report blaming Iraq for giving al-Qaeda a boost. No doubt Iraq has
boosted al-Qaeda recruitment. But Iraq is a very long way from being
the only source of radicalisation. One of the most interesting stories
of the year that received scant attention in the British press was last
week's remarks by Jean-Louis Bruguière, the chief French
investigating magistrate for terrorism. He revealed that France had
averted three significant Islamist plots over the past 18 months,
including attacks on the Paris Métro and Orly. Algerian Islamists were
teaming up with veterans of Iraq. So would opting out of Iraq, as
President Chirac did so dramatically in 2003, really have reduced our

vulnerability? Elements of the Muslim population are in so febrile a
state that almost anything can send them into a tailspin. This year a
minority of British Muslims has been offended by many things - from
cartoons in obscure Danish newspapers to McDonald's logos.

One of the biggest losses of 2006 was Colin Cramphorn, the Chief
Constable of West Yorkshire, who died tragically young. After 7/7
Cramphorn did as much as anyone to bring the communities together. He
told me with dismay that an appreciable number of radicalised young
Muslim men in Leeds believed that the London bombings were invented by
the Jewish-dominated media. Why? Because they did not see any bodies
being pulled up from the Underground!

Too little of this complexity - and even medieval dottiness - comes
across loudly enough in the media. The parochial media classes
reflexively prefer to blame Mr Blair. No wonder the Prime Minister,
writing in the latest issue of Foreign Affairs, expressed such
frustration with the willingness of much of the Fourth Estate to
indulge the propaganda of the extremists.

In the same edition, Singapore's elder statesman, Lee Kuan Yew, sheds
fascinating light on another question dominating discussion in the last
year - are we losing in Iraq? Lee recalls that, not long after the
Vietnam conflict ended, he argued that America may have lost in
Indochina but that those 58,000 American lives were not sacrificed in
vain. They bought time for the rest of East Asia to attain economic
prosperity and stability - and the communists exhausted themselves in
the struggle. Judged by the snapshot of 1975, America lost the battle.
But in the longer term, it won the war for the wider region.

Many years hence, will Iraq come to be viewed in the same light? From
2005, the jihadi world was riven by a dispute between al-Qaeda's Abu
Musab al-Zarqawi and his mentor, Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi. Al-Maqdisi
stated that al-Zarqawi's priorities were askew. Iraq was the wrong
war, at the wrong place, at the wrong time. It was rapidly becoming a
"crematory" for the flower of Islamist youth. No energies were left
for wider Islamist revolution elsewhere in the region.

Although al-Zarqawi was killed, he has for now won the debate. Again,
this fascinating controversy received too little attention in the
British media - perhaps because it didn't fit into the easy
narrative of Anglo-American humiliation in Iraq.

Maybe the coalition is heading for disaster. But that isn't the only
possible outcome - and one of the least desirable. So can we
therefore enter a small plea - for 2007 to become the "Year of
Balance" in the coverage of the

From: "Earl Evleth"
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: 27 Dec 2006 05:25:46 -0800
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

A new year's resolution for the chattering classes

by DOCTOR EARL EVLETH PhD


For the United Nations 2006 was "The International Year of Deserts
and Desertification". For the Chinese it was "Year of the Dog".
And for the British opinion-forming classes - well, how about the
"Year of Conventional Wisdom"?

This post is not Earl's. It is yet another forgery by Stephen Bach, who
does this in the hope of making everybody mad at Earl. Don't fall for it.

Donna Evleth

"Donna Evleth" kirjoitti
...


From: "Earl Evleth"
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: 27 Dec 2006 05:25:46 -0800
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

A new year's resolution for the chattering classes

by DOCTOR EARL EVLETH PhD


For the United Nations 2006 was "The International Year of Deserts
and Desertification". For the Chinese it was "Year of the Dog".
And for the British opinion-forming classes - well, how about the
"Year of Conventional Wisdom"?

This post is not Earl's. It is yet another forgery by Stephen Bach, who
does this in the hope of making everybody mad at Earl. Don't fall for it.

Mene nyt vittuun siitä!

From: Markku Grönroos
Organization: Saunalahti Customer
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: Wed, 27 Dec 2006 16:19:26 +0200
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq


"Donna Evleth" kirjoitti
...


From: "Earl Evleth"
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: 27 Dec 2006 05:25:46 -0800
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

A new year's resolution for the chattering classes

by DOCTOR EARL EVLETH PhD


For the United Nations 2006 was "The International Year of Deserts
and Desertification". For the Chinese it was "Year of the Dog".
And for the British opinion-forming classes - well, how about the
"Year of Conventional Wisdom"?

This post is not Earl's. It is yet another forgery by Stephen Bach, who
does this in the hope of making everybody mad at Earl. Don't fall for it.

Mene nyt vittuun siitä!

Could you tell me this in a language other than Finnish? I speak only
English and French.

Donna Evleth

We do not need that to be mad at that guy !
You are not even touching

"Donna Evleth" a écrit dans le message de news:
...


From: "Earl Evleth"
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: 27 Dec 2006 05:25:46 -0800
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

A new year's resolution for the chattering classes

by DOCTOR EARL EVLETH PhD


For the United Nations 2006 was "The International Year of Deserts
and Desertification". For the Chinese it was "Year of the Dog".
And for the British opinion-forming classes - well, how about the
"Year of Conventional Wisdom"?

This post is not Earl's. It is yet another forgery by Stephen Bach, who
does this in the hope of making everybody mad at Earl. Don't fall for it.

Donna Evleth

french lol

"Donna Evleth" a écrit dans le message de news:
...


From: Markku Grönroos
Organization: Saunalahti Customer
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: Wed, 27 Dec 2006 16:19:26 +0200
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq


"Donna Evleth" kirjoitti
...


From: "Earl Evleth"
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: 27 Dec 2006 05:25:46 -0800
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

A new year's resolution for the chattering classes

by DOCTOR EARL EVLETH PhD


For the United Nations 2006 was "The International Year of Deserts
and Desertification". For the Chinese it was "Year of the Dog".
And for the British opinion-forming classes - well, how about the
"Year of Conventional Wisdom"?

This post is not Earl's. It is yet another forgery by Stephen Bach, who
does this in the hope of making everybody mad at Earl. Don't fall for
it.

Mene nyt vittuun siitä!

Could you tell me this in a language other than Finnish? I speak only
English and French.

Donna Evleth

Let is be knownst that on Wed, 27 Dec 2006 19:37:27 +0100, Donna
Evleth writted:



From: Markku Grönroos
Organization: Saunalahti Customer
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: Wed, 27 Dec 2006 16:19:26 +0200
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq


"Donna Evleth" kirjoitti
...


From: "Earl Evleth"
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: 27 Dec 2006 05:25:46 -0800
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

A new year's resolution for the chattering classes

by DOCTOR EARL EVLETH PhD


For the United Nations 2006 was "The International Year of Deserts
and Desertification". For the Chinese it was "Year of the Dog".
And for the British opinion-forming classes - well, how about the
"Year of Conventional Wisdom"?

This post is not Earl's. It is yet another forgery by Stephen Bach, who
does this in the hope of making everybody mad at Earl. Don't fall for it.

Mene nyt vittuun siitä!

Could you tell me this in a language other than Finnish? I speak only
English and French.

You don't speak Finnish?

No wonder people talk about ignorant yanks!
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--

From: Deeply Filled Mortician
Reply-To:
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: Wed, 27 Dec 2006 23:59:46 +0100
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

Let is be knownst that on Wed, 27 Dec 2006 19:37:27 +0100, Donna
Evleth writted:



From: Markku Grönroos
Organization: Saunalahti Customer
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: Wed, 27 Dec 2006 16:19:26 +0200
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq


"Donna Evleth" kirjoitti
...


From: "Earl Evleth"
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: 27 Dec 2006 05:25:46 -0800
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

A new year's resolution for the chattering classes

by DOCTOR EARL EVLETH PhD


For the United Nations 2006 was "The International Year of Deserts
and Desertification". For the Chinese it was "Year of the Dog".
And for the British opinion-forming classes - well, how about the
"Year of Conventional Wisdom"?

This post is not Earl's. It is yet another forgery by Stephen Bach, who
does this in the hope of making everybody mad at Earl. Don't fall for it.

Mene nyt vittuun siitä!

Could you tell me this in a language other than Finnish? I speak only
English and French.

You don't speak Finnish?

No wonder people talk about ignorant yanks!

I am so hurt! That was the blow that finnished me :-)

Donna Evleth
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--

Duh

"Donna Evleth" a écrit dans le message de news:
...


From: Deeply Filled Mortician
Reply-To:
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: Wed, 27 Dec 2006 23:59:46 +0100
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

Let is be knownst that on Wed, 27 Dec 2006 19:37:27 +0100, Donna
Evleth writted:



From: Markku Grönroos
Organization: Saunalahti Customer
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: Wed, 27 Dec 2006 16:19:26 +0200
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq


"Donna Evleth" kirjoitti
...


From: "Earl Evleth"
Organization: http://groups.google.com
Newsgroups: alt.activism.death-penalty,rec.travel.europe
Date: 27 Dec 2006 05:25:46 -0800
Subject: We shouldn't fall for pessimistic propaganda on Iraq

A new year's resolution for the chattering classes

by DOCTOR EARL EVLETH PhD


For the United Nations 2006 was "The International Year of Deserts
and Desertification". For the Chinese it was "Year of the Dog".
And for the British opinion-forming classes - well, how about the
"Year of Conventional Wisdom"?

This post is not Earl's. It is yet another forgery by Stephen Bach,
who
does this in the hope of making everybody mad at Earl. Don't fall for
it.

Mene nyt vittuun siitä!

Could you tell me this in a language other than Finnish? I speak only
English and French.

You don't speak Finnish?

No wonder people talk about ignorant yanks!

I am so hurt! That was the blow that finnished me :-)

Donna Evleth
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--