I Cogitate

Check the December 27, 2004 Time magazine article written by Anne Berryman on Secretary of Defense Don Rumsfeld's less than chummy with Rummy meet 'n greet with his troops in Kuwait.

You know the one--where a soldier asked Rumsfeld about the continued lack of armor on Humvees and other military vehicles in use in Iraq. Yep, the same one where Rumsfeld replied that you go to war with the Army you have, not the one you wished you had.

Well, far too many on the right immediately blasted into rabid mode, just knowing there had to be a liberal media conspiracy behind such  an event.

That Edward Lee Pitts, a reporter for the Chattanooga Times Free Press, embedded with Tennessee's 278th Regiment, must have pushed, prodded and influenced (hey, you left out brainwashed) Thomas "Jerry" Wilson, a soldier in that unit, to ask such an "outlandish" question.

Shades of the Manchurian Candidate!

I guess the right never saw the television clips where Wilson's question was followed by a round of applause from other soldiers

Well, Wilson states in the article that journalist Pitts urged the soldiers to ask some intelligent questions because only soldiers would be allowed to ask questions.

He also states that Pitts suggested.a less confrontational way to query Rumsfeld about the concern.

Noted as a Bush supporter, Wilson, is quoted as responding: "I told him no, that I wanted to make my point very clear."

An officer is quoted that the question should have been asked in a different forum.

Wilson's response: "What would the proper forum be? If it costs me my career to save another soldier, I'll give it."

Those kneejerkers on the right were just adamant that the press was trying to start trouble where there was none and that this was simply a calculated attempt to embarrass the Secretary of Defense.

No, Rumsfeld did that himself with his feeble and glaringly dishonest response.

Yes, the uber-patriots who question the loyalty of anyone who doesn't reflexively shout out 'support our troops' fell on their own respective plastic sabers here. They were too busy calculating a Pavlovian blame response.

Supporting a soldier-developed/soldier-asked request for basic safety equipment shouldn't be turned into yet another appearance of the creaky liberal media shibboleth.

Have you no shame?

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