On Zarqawi’s Killing

Ryan has said what I have been thinking, myself. Furthermore, this nonsense that somehow Zarqawi’s death will put a dent in the “insurgency” is laughable on its face.

When I was in journalism school many, many moons ago, I was taught (among other stupid things) to “personalize” the news as much as possible, and turn stories into personal struggles involving individuals. (This was not a quasi-Austrian attempt to emphasize the role of the individual; journalists and journalism training are collectivist to the core.)

Thus, we get the “Bush versus Zarqawi” angle as though this was a mirror of what really is happening. Bush has been pretty determined in this war — I will give him that — but he has been determined with the lives of other people. His war has exacted huge costs on so many people that it is difficult to comprehend the utter destruction he and the Neocons have wreaked.

This business of putting the dead Zarqawi’s picture everywhere is absolutely morbid. Perhaps they also need to put the pictures of the dead innocents killed in the same bombing that killed Zarqawi.

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6:08 am on June 15, 2006