Outrageous

There have been massive riots lately in Afghanistan and elsewhere in the Middle East to protest US abuse of the Qur'an in the Guantanamo Bay prison camp. These riots were sparked by a Newsweek story alleging that US Soldiers had flushed the Islamic Holy Book down a toilet. At least 15 people have died as a result of these riots. And guess what, in Newsweek's haste to discredit President Bush and the US Military, it apparently published a false report.

Nope, it never happened.

And what is worse is Evan Thomas's chillingly arrogant piece about the error. First, he tries to excuse the error by saying the allegations were believable, given all of the other horrible things our military has done and, in doing so, he describes an alleged event of prisoner abuse. Alleged! Don't these people get it? In an article about media screw up, the media again smears the military with an allegation.

Second, he points the finger and says that other news agencies reported similar stories first. But Newsweek just had bad luck because its report "arrived at a particularly delicate moment in Afghan politics."

Then he goes back to express wide-eyed wonderment at why the "protest and rioting...spread throughout the Islamic region." He again smears the US Military while excusing his colleague: "After so many gruesome reports of torture and abuse at Abu Ghraib and elsewhere, the vehemence around this case came as something of a surprise." Gosh, we didn't know they'd get so bent out of shape; they already know how horrible America is.

He finishes by pointing out that "Westerners, including those at Newsweek, may underestimate how severely Muslims resent the American presence, especially when it in any way interferes with Islamic religious faith." Wait a minute. I thought this story was about the fact that Newsweek does not know the allegations are true. By referring to the 'interference with Islamic religious faith,' Thomas implies, or at least tacitly assumes, that the allegations are true, since they provide an example of Americans interfering with the Muslims' beliefs.

Oh, and you know what the article doesn't say? "We're sorry."