Mainstream Media Blows it Again

Alright. How about that - the Koran flushing incident was totally bunk. Shame on them. Seriously. Did we not learn anything from Judith Miller's unnamed sources spouting lies? Although I guess we have known for some time that truth and accuracy are secondary to being "first."

But what I'm actually fascinated by is the Pentagon's manufactured indignance on this subject. Perhaps it's not manufactured, but if not, it's definitely ironic. Check out some quotes:

The chief spokesman at the Pentagon, Lawrence Di Rita, called the apology "very tepid and qualified," adding: "They owe us all a lot more accountability than they took.

Oh, like how Bush took responsibility for the intelligence failures that led to 9/11, the lies and faulty intelligence leading to the invasion of Iraq and the unnecessary deaths of over 100,000 people? Like that? Oh wait. Or did he instead give the head of the CIA a fucking medal?

"My reaction and I think our reaction is that Newsweek reported something that was factually inaccurate on several points. It's demonstrably wrong, and Newsweek has acknowledged that. But they have not retracted it, and have tried instead to water it down.

Like how the Pentagon has retracted all its statements about candy and flowers greeting our troops? Like how Bush retracted his "Mission Accomplished" press conference? Jesus Christ. I appreciate that Newsweek royally fucked up and they now have blood on their hands. But if anyone in the whole world should just keep their trap shut about fucking up a story and causing the deaths of innocents and soldiers, I think it should be the fucking Pentagon who got us all into this mess in the first place.

"They printed a story based on an erroneous source or sources that was demonstrably false and that resulted in riots in which people were killed. I don't know how else to parse it."

They need an irony detector. Like some kind of geiger counter that starts beeping like mad when they make statements like that.

UPDATE: It's come to my attention that a) The Pentagon had 10 days to object to Newsweek's story, but when presented with the story merely declined to comment rather than denying it outright. b) The Pentagon has admitted to and apologized for soldiers treating the Koran with contempt in the past, including but not limited to putting it in the toilet. and c) Last week, Richard Myers said that the Koran toilet story had nothing to do with the riot in Afghanistan. Now they're saying that it does. My point being that perhaps Newsweek doesn't have blood on its hands. But that doesn't change the wildly ironic and now it would seem entirely hypocritical comments coming from the Pentagon.

It's eerily reminiscent of the Dan Rather situation. They printed a story in which the essence of the story is true, but instead of the right-wing attack dogs weighing the merits of the story, they're going to find a tiny niggling detail to attack and blow wildly out of proportion. All sound and fury signifying nothing. But Bush's bread and butter is sound and fury, innit.