"But now it's pretty clear that a key aim of the Bush administration's takeover of the NOLA situation is to cut off press access to report the story.josh isnt known for hyperbole.
[snip]
But a blanket ban serves only to prevent the public from knowing what really happened last week. And the right of FEMA or any branch of the federal government for that matter to issue such a ban on American soil seems highly dubious to me. It's one thing with military casualties: the military operates under its own legal code and not under normal civilian rules. But this is happening on American soil. This isn't a war zone. Nor is it any longer a situation where police or National Guard troops are in the midst of retaking control from mobs or looters. This is a recovery from a natural disaster.
[snip]
Take a moment to note what's happening here: these are the marks of repressive government, which mixes inefficiency with authoritarianism. The crew that couldn't get key aid on the scene in time last week is coming in in force now. And one of the key missions appears to be cutting off public information about what's happening in the city.
[snip]
This is a domestic, natural disaster. Absent specific cases where members of the press would interfere or get in the way of some particular clean up operation, or perhaps demolition work, there is simply no reason why credentialed members of the press should not be able to cover everything that is happening in that city.
Think about it."
i was gonna publish this picture and this picture from here to prove a point, but i'll leave it up to you if you wanna see it. it isnt pretty. it seems it wont be long till we only see military approved (and/or produced) pix, and probably military approved (and/or produced) text.
Ron wrote a piece on this already happening earlier this week in rawstory
4 comments:
i'm just surprized that the media were there as long as they were! we are getting reports here (ireland) of "100's dead" when it is quite clear to even a casual viewer that the total will be 10000's or even 100000's. it kinda makes you wonder how many rapes/murders/child molestations are represented by they few scanty reports that escaped from the dome? no country wants this sort of dirty linen displayed especially a country like america which holds itself up to the world as a beacon of light, hope and all that is wholesome.
malgaoth - i had the same thought - remember back on the first day the reports were coming out that there were 55 deaths! it reminded me of the early reports of the tsunami - i still remember the reports of 3 divers being killed somewhere.
its true that no country likes to have their dirty linen displayed - but thats exactly what is sposed to happen in democracies... freedom of the press and all that.
sorry just for a moment i thought you suggested that america was a democratic country.....please confirm that this was (a) a typo or (b) a momentary lapse
aha - you caught me out.
old habits die hard.
i still wanna believe that america is still a democracy... i fear it wont be long till we look back to these days and call *this* the goold old days of democracy
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