Iraq

Operation American Repression

"An Army Reserve staff sergeant who last week wrote a critical analysis of the United States' prospects in Iraq now faces possible disciplinary action for disloyalty and insubordination," reports Eric Boehlert. "If charges are bought and the officer is found guilty, he could face 20 years in prison. It would be the first such disloyalty prosecution since the Vietnam War. The essay that sparked the military investigation is titled "Why We Cannot Win" and was posted Sept.

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Press Conference From Hell

"I don't know what the news is from the rest of Iraq or even what's going on with the governor of Najaf," writes Chris Albritton, a freelance journalist who has been covering the fighting in Iraq. "I do know what's happening with the police department, however. They're raiding the Sea of Najaf hotel and rounding the 100 or so journalists at gunpoint and subjecting them to mass arrest." Albritton describes his recent experience, when police "raided the hotel and forced all the journalists out onto the street. We were terrified. The cops yelled at us and pointed their weapons toward us.

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Bush Campaign Grabs For Iraqi Gold

George W. Bush's re-election campaign has been accused of appropriating the Olympics for political means. A recent Bush/Cheney advertisement that links Iraq's and Afghanistan's participation in the Olympic games with the White House's "war on terror" is drawing criticism. "To the embarrassment of their media handlers in Athens, members of the Iraqi football team have reacted furiously to the news that their efforts are being used to aid Mr Bush's efforts to win a second term in the White House," The Guardian reports.

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Political Football

Iraqi soccer players at the Olympic games in Greece are angered at the Bush campaign for using the Iraqi Olympic team in Bush's latest re-election campaign advertisements. "Iraq as a team does not want Mr. Bush to use us for the presidential campaign," said Iraqi midfielder Salih Sadir. Another player, Ahmed Manajid, had even stronger words: "How will he meet his god having slaughtered so many men and women?" Manajid said. "He has committed so many crimes." Sports Illustrated writer Grant Wahl interviewed the players.

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Another Media Mea Culpa

An internal Washington Post review found that, before the invasion of Iraq, "Administration assertions were on the front page. Things that challenged the administration were on A18 on Sunday or A24 on Monday. There was an attitude among editors: Look, we're going to war, why do we even worry about all this contrary stuff?" - in the words of the paper's Pentagon correspondent.

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