Led by the
New York Times and the Washington Post, the verdict has
been the subject of vindictive celebrations involving the major
newspapers and television news outlets. Cosby’s conviction has been
proclaimed a victory in the months-long #MeToo witch hunt
against alleged sexual harassment, in which the careers and lives of
scores of prominent artists, entertainers, television personalities and
politicians have been ruined on the basis of unsubstantiated and often
anonymous allegations in the media. Many of
these allegations involve situations that would not provide adequate
foundation for a criminal prosecution.
One
of the most fundamentally illegitimate aspects of the ongoing media
campaign is the attempt to amalgamate
Cosby with the past and future targets of the #MeToo campaign, as
though the conviction of Cosby in some way establishes the guilt of
Geoffrey Rush, James Levine, Aziz Ansari, Kevin Spacey, Dustin Hoffman,
Garrison Keillor, Tavis Smiley and many others. On
the contrary, Cosby’s conviction does not prove anything as to the
allegations against these other figures, all of whom have been targeted
and humiliated in the media without a trial.
The
central argument that is being advanced in the aftermath of the trial
is that Cosby’s conviction should be
seen as some sort of legal precedent, establishing henceforth that
allegations and accusations made by women be given greater weight by
juries than male defendants’ claims of innocence. In other words, in
cases involving charges of sexual assault, the trial
opens with the defendant confronting a presumption of guilt.
I’m really tired of it – the whole White MeToo# crowd. I agree 100% with what C.I. wrote last night:
Right
now, the METOO# movement is a hijacking in broad daylight. This was
supposed to lead to the real victims: children. A lot of the stories
instead
are about the 'horror' of a come on. I'm not surprised. A leading
lefty tried to rape me. I pushed him off and hit him where it hurts.
That didn't stop him, years later, from showing in my hometown and
trashing me on radio airwaves. He's a creep and everyone
knows he is. A rape attempt is something horrible -- an actual rape is
much worse. Having to tell someone, "No, I won't give you a massage"?
It's something to laugh about. But instead it's become the "I was
victimized!" story. No, you weren't.
The assaults on children are very real and they're apparently going to be shoved aside so we can hear more 'testifying' about how some bad actress would have had a career if only she hadn't turned down ____. No, you probably wouldn't have had a career. It didn't work that way.
Harvey could only prevent you from being hired for his films. And then he could only do that if the director didn't fight back.
A lot of women have taken up a lot of time and space with b.s.
I stand by Rose McGowan. She's the real deal. And she seriously suffered -- both in terms of her career and certainly in terms of being raped.
But, before the movement was hijacked by Alyssa and her CAA husband (CAA who whored women out for years -- including a French actress who's considering telling her story -- you better pray she doesn't, Alyssa), it was supposed to be headed to exposing the pedophiles.
METOO# (in it's White version) is nonsense and a distraction.
The press self-congratulating over it is nonsense as well.
But that's what the press does -- and it's never self-aware, let alone self-critical.
Ronan Farrow? The great hero? I thought Ronan believed his sister Dylan? (I don't.) Well isn't the story there that she was abused as a child? So why has Ronan refused to explore that? It's not because people haven't opened up to him. Many adults have shared their experiences of being abused as a child. But Ronan chooses not to write about that.
He colors in the lines very well, he just doesn't do anything independently or worthy of praise.
In that regard, he truly has become the press.
The assaults on children are very real and they're apparently going to be shoved aside so we can hear more 'testifying' about how some bad actress would have had a career if only she hadn't turned down ____. No, you probably wouldn't have had a career. It didn't work that way.
Harvey could only prevent you from being hired for his films. And then he could only do that if the director didn't fight back.
A lot of women have taken up a lot of time and space with b.s.
I stand by Rose McGowan. She's the real deal. And she seriously suffered -- both in terms of her career and certainly in terms of being raped.
But, before the movement was hijacked by Alyssa and her CAA husband (CAA who whored women out for years -- including a French actress who's considering telling her story -- you better pray she doesn't, Alyssa), it was supposed to be headed to exposing the pedophiles.
METOO# (in it's White version) is nonsense and a distraction.
The press self-congratulating over it is nonsense as well.
But that's what the press does -- and it's never self-aware, let alone self-critical.
Ronan Farrow? The great hero? I thought Ronan believed his sister Dylan? (I don't.) Well isn't the story there that she was abused as a child? So why has Ronan refused to explore that? It's not because people haven't opened up to him. Many adults have shared their experiences of being abused as a child. But Ronan chooses not to write about that.
He colors in the lines very well, he just doesn't do anything independently or worthy of praise.
In that regard, he truly has become the press.
If you missed it, a famous director
(THE LAST EMPEROR, THE LAST TANGO IN PARIS) said he would work with
Kevin Spacey and some people were outraged. Last time I checked he had
yet to be convicted of a crime. So on charges and whispers,
Kevin’s to be denied employment?
This is C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot :"
Monday, April 30, 2018. THE WASHINGTON POST announces that US major
combat operations have ended in Iraq . . . seemingly forgetting that
they never announced that US major combat operations had begun in Iraq.
Tamer El-Ghobashy (WASHINGTON POST) types, "The headquarters coordinating the activities of American ground forces in Iraq closed down on Monday, marking the end of major combat operations against the Islamic State, said U.S. officials." Huh? Why are those laughable words so strangely familiar?
Hmm. A bulls**t reporter for a bulls**t outlet 'reports' a laughable claim that, in fact, echos Bully Boy Bush's own words from 2003.
Is it a story?
Yes, it is. Because following the strikes on Syria, US President Donald Trump Tweeted "Mission accomplished" and the press felt there was a need to compare it to Bully Boy Bush's speech above -- even though Bully Boy Bush did not say "Mission accomplished" in his speech (he did stand under a banner sporting those two words). The press was highly critical of Donald, in fact, here's the opening of one piece:
Does Tamer recognize those words? Does THE POST? Because they are from THE WASHINGTON POST, specifically Cleve R. Wootsen Jr.'s "Trump's 'Mission Accomplished' tweet, and the premature declaration that haunted George W. Bush." In fact, five years after Bully Boy Bush declared the end of major combat operations, CBS NEWS noted:
Now in its sixth year, the war in Iraq has claimed the lives of at least 4,058 members of the U.S. military - 3,924 of whom have died since Mr. Bush landed on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln. Tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed (the true number may never be known, since the Iraqi government does not record tallies of the dead), and millions have been displaced from their homes. And there are currently more U.S. troops in Iraq than there were when the U.S. invaded with a contingent of other coalition forces.
Major combat operations had not ended when the government said they had in 2003 but the lazy and lapdog press repeated the claim as if it was true. All these years later, THE WASHINGTON POST does so again. Without questioning, please note, and after they've slammed and ridiculed Trump for using the term "Mission accomplished."
Does the press ever get that they are the problem?
Nope. They just mindlessly finger point while never going for even a minute of self-examination -- even when it's THE WASHINGTON POST -- second only to THE NEW YORK TIMES in selling the Iraq War.
What's really going on? Seth J. Frantzman (JERUSALEM POST) speaks with US Brigadier General Andrew Croft and offers, "THE COALITION is now focusing on transitioning from the anti-ISIS combat operations of last year to securing and stabilizing Iraq 'as the ISF [Iraqi Security Forces] become more capable,' says Croft."
Not only does THE POST miss that, it misses so damn much.
It repeats what the Pentagon tells it to type, major combat operations have ended.
But, golly, gee, it doesn't question at all.
Meaning, not just that it doesn't question the so-called end, but also that it ignores what just took place. Major combat operations. The US troops involved in major combat operations in Iraq.
This despite two presidents -- Barack Obama and Donald Trump -- denying that US troops sent into Iraq in 2014 and after were involved in combat operations.
Dropping back to October 26, 2014 for Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Barack Prepares."
Isaiah's latest The World Today Just Nuts "Barack Prepares." A confused Josh Earnest asks, "What's he doing?" Valerie Jarrett explains, "Ballet slippers on the ground are not boots on the ground." Isaiah archives his comics at The World Today Just Nuts.
The press let two presidents lie about what was taking place in Iraq. Today, when the press whispers in their ears that major combat operations have ended, THE WASHINGTON POST can't even grasp what a revelation that claim is. It's an admission that the troops were involved in combat operations despite repeated assurances and lies otherwise from two sitting presidents. It was always combat operations, despite the press denials. When you are bombing from planes, as the US was, that is a combat mission. Yet the press has repeatedly let two presidents lie and, even now, cannot get honest about what the words actually mean.
They do not mean combat operations have really ended anymore than they meant that when Bully Boy Bush made the claim in 2003.
But they do mean that the American people were repeatedly lied to and that, once again, the press did not do its job.
Tamer El-Ghobashy (WASHINGTON POST) types, "The headquarters coordinating the activities of American ground forces in Iraq closed down on Monday, marking the end of major combat operations against the Islamic State, said U.S. officials." Huh? Why are those laughable words so strangely familiar?
Hmm. A bulls**t reporter for a bulls**t outlet 'reports' a laughable claim that, in fact, echos Bully Boy Bush's own words from 2003.
Is it a story?
Yes, it is. Because following the strikes on Syria, US President Donald Trump Tweeted "Mission accomplished" and the press felt there was a need to compare it to Bully Boy Bush's speech above -- even though Bully Boy Bush did not say "Mission accomplished" in his speech (he did stand under a banner sporting those two words). The press was highly critical of Donald, in fact, here's the opening of one piece:
If there was a new employee
handbook for people who’d just obtained the position of “leader of the
free world,” there would be some surefire entries in the section about
presidential phrases to avoid:
“I am not a crook,” would be an easy one, for reasons both obvious and historical.
So would “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.”
New hires would also be discouraged from summing up economic policy stances with the phrase: “Read my lips. No new taxes.”
And then there is “Mission Accomplished,” the historically loaded phrase President Trump tweeted Saturday after U.S.-led airstrikes in coordination with British and French forces that struck the “heart” of Syria’s chemical weapons network.
Does Tamer recognize those words? Does THE POST? Because they are from THE WASHINGTON POST, specifically Cleve R. Wootsen Jr.'s "Trump's 'Mission Accomplished' tweet, and the premature declaration that haunted George W. Bush." In fact, five years after Bully Boy Bush declared the end of major combat operations, CBS NEWS noted:
Now in its sixth year, the war in Iraq has claimed the lives of at least 4,058 members of the U.S. military - 3,924 of whom have died since Mr. Bush landed on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln. Tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed (the true number may never be known, since the Iraqi government does not record tallies of the dead), and millions have been displaced from their homes. And there are currently more U.S. troops in Iraq than there were when the U.S. invaded with a contingent of other coalition forces.
Major combat operations had not ended when the government said they had in 2003 but the lazy and lapdog press repeated the claim as if it was true. All these years later, THE WASHINGTON POST does so again. Without questioning, please note, and after they've slammed and ridiculed Trump for using the term "Mission accomplished."
Does the press ever get that they are the problem?
Nope. They just mindlessly finger point while never going for even a minute of self-examination -- even when it's THE WASHINGTON POST -- second only to THE NEW YORK TIMES in selling the Iraq War.
What's really going on? Seth J. Frantzman (JERUSALEM POST) speaks with US Brigadier General Andrew Croft and offers, "THE COALITION is now focusing on transitioning from the anti-ISIS combat operations of last year to securing and stabilizing Iraq 'as the ISF [Iraqi Security Forces] become more capable,' says Croft."
Not only does THE POST miss that, it misses so damn much.
It repeats what the Pentagon tells it to type, major combat operations have ended.
But, golly, gee, it doesn't question at all.
Meaning, not just that it doesn't question the so-called end, but also that it ignores what just took place. Major combat operations. The US troops involved in major combat operations in Iraq.
This despite two presidents -- Barack Obama and Donald Trump -- denying that US troops sent into Iraq in 2014 and after were involved in combat operations.
Dropping back to October 26, 2014 for Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Barack Prepares."
"
Isaiah's latest The World Today Just Nuts "Barack Prepares." A confused Josh Earnest asks, "What's he doing?" Valerie Jarrett explains, "Ballet slippers on the ground are not boots on the ground." Isaiah archives his comics at The World Today Just Nuts.
The press let two presidents lie about what was taking place in Iraq. Today, when the press whispers in their ears that major combat operations have ended, THE WASHINGTON POST can't even grasp what a revelation that claim is. It's an admission that the troops were involved in combat operations despite repeated assurances and lies otherwise from two sitting presidents. It was always combat operations, despite the press denials. When you are bombing from planes, as the US was, that is a combat mission. Yet the press has repeatedly let two presidents lie and, even now, cannot get honest about what the words actually mean.
They do not mean combat operations have really ended anymore than they meant that when Bully Boy Bush made the claim in 2003.
But they do mean that the American people were repeatedly lied to and that, once again, the press did not do its job.
it's wild that the media is more self-critical about the white house correspondents dinner than its coverage of the the iraq war
It is wild but it is also very telling and goes to the fact that nothing in the press has really changed. No lessons were learned from their Iraq War coverage, from their cheering on a war with dubious claims that they presented as facts.
Moving over to a different topic . . .
#IraqElections
Grand Ayatollah Ali Al Sistani will issue words of guidance next Friday in regards to the upcoming May 12 parliamentary elections.
May 12th, elections are supposed to take place in Iraq. Ali Jawad (ANADOLU AGENCY) notes, "A total of 24 million Iraqis are eligible to cast their ballots to elect members of parliament, who will in turn elect the Iraqi president and prime minister." RUDAW adds, "Around 7,000 candidates have registered to stand in the May 12 poll, with 329 parliamentary seats up for grabs." AFP explains that the nearly 7,000 candidates includes 2014 women. RUDAW also notes that 60 Christian candidates are competing for the five allotted minority seats. The chief issues? Mustapha Karkouti (GULF NEWS) identifies them as follows, "Like in previous elections, the main concerns of ordinary Iraqis continue to be the lack of security and the rampant corruption."
As noted in the April 3rd snapshot, pollster Dr. Munqith Dagher has utilized data on likely voters and predicts that Hayder al-Abadi's Al-Nasr will win 72 seats in the Parliament, al-Fath (the militias) will get 37 seats, Sa'eroon (Moqtada al-Sadr's new grouping) will get 27 seats, Nouri al-Maliki's State of Law will get 19 seats, al-Salam will get 18 seats (KDP and PUK parties for the Kurds), Ayad Allawi's Wataniya will get 15 seats. There are others but Dagher did not predict double digits for any of the other seats. The number are similar for the group of those who are extremely likely to vote (Hayder's seats would jump from 72 to 79 seats). Other predictions? The Middle East Insstitute's Fanar Haddad insists to Sammy Ketz (AFP) that the post of prime minister will come down to one of three people: Hayder al-Abadi (current prime minister), Nouri al-Maliki (two time prime minister and forever thug) or Hadi al-Ameria "a leader of Hashed al-Shaabi, a paramilitary network that played a pivotal role in defeating IS. Ameri comes from Diyala province and is a statistics graduate from Baghdad University. He fled to Iran in 1980 after Saddam executed top Shiite cleric Ayatollah Mohammed Baqr al-Sadr. The 64-year old is widely viewed as Tehran's favoured candidate."
Women running for office in Iraq this go round have been targeted with rumors and smears. This is not a good thing. Unless you're a sick f**k. Zvi Bar'el (HAARETZ) offers:
But if in the past, harassment of women candidates was rare, this time it’s clear that Iraqi women are perceived as a political threat that makes them a target for harassment. This is a major headliner in the Iraqi media and is stirring public debate. Some Iraqi pundits have said they consider the harassment a positive sign that women are gaining more power in Iraqi politics.
Again, what a sick f**k. This is not progress. It is not as if Iraqi male politicians have been accused of having affairs during campaign seasons and now this is being applied to women as well.
This is not progress. It is another attempt to run women out of politics in Iraq.
To see this attack as progress is to voice your extreme stupidity in public.
Cindy Sheehan and Jody Watley have updated at their sites:
New content at THIRD:
- Truest statement of the week
- Truest statement of the week II
- A note to our readers
- Editorial: A correspondent for whom?
- TV: QUANTICO gets retooled one more time
- Ty's Corner
- Film classics of the 20th century
- Once, twice, three times a rover
- She's no movie star
- Read a book?
- This edition's playlist
- Workers of the World, Unite! -- May 5 Online Rally...
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