"I have never covered a president who actually wanted to go to war" 11/02

[bpilgrim]

Journalist Helen Thomas condemns Bush administration

Sarah H. Wright, News Office
November 6, 2002

I have never covered a president who actually wanted to go to war"


source...
http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2002/thomas-1106.html

we, who were pay'n attention, KNEW what was up, a long time ago, sure...

so NOW that we got DOCUMENTARY evidence of this HIGH CRIME can we cuff him and his cohorts NOW?!?

we on DU got REAMS of DOCUMENTARY evidence of these BASTARDS high crimes from way back, so when can we LOCK'm up?!?

those of us who read that article above or her speech when it came out will ALWAYS remember and RESPECT our REAL journalist who haven't sold out.

as we continue to express our OUTRAGE at the M$MWs we must always remind them that yes, we did KNOW and we haven't forgotten nor forgotten to DOCUMENT IT, for ourselves and OUR future.

I salute all our concerned citizens, especially right here on DU and in the Media who tirelessly work to get the TRUTH out :toast:

now where's that link to the email blaster ;->

psst... pass the word :bounce:

peace

(blast from the past)

listen to Helen on the Al Franken Show here...
http://news.globalfreepress.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pos=-936 (MP3)

[Pachamama]

1. I love that woman! A real Journalist! Thank you Helen!

:hug:

[tavalon]

22. That's why they put here at the back of the bus

or rather, the back of the WH press room. She speaks truth to power so she is very, very dangerous.

[TwentyFive]

2. Remember the picture of LBJ - his head in his hands - bent over his desk?

I imagine Bush does not have the brain cells to comprehend his actions.

[alphafemale]

6. I remember * playing cutsey with the camera, flippng the bird,...now watch

...this drive.

:mad:

dumphuck

[TwentyFive]

8. Bush is a true simpleton

He is like the guy with a 65 IQ who gets frustrated and kills somebody. He has the power to do something, but is unable to comprehend the consequences.

[tavalon]

23. Sure he does if he tries real hard

but what he lacks is a conscience. He's a sociopath. At best, he can fake the caring.

[mopaul]

3. bless her old heart, the last journalist with guts

i've been wondering where's the outrage, finally i found it.

[comsymp]

27. Yeah, what's kinda sad is

that the quote in your thread title was obvious to anyone that it's from HT before even clicking the link to this thread.

Guts, brains and a voice - and she isn't afraid to use all 3. She's definitely a national treasure.

[kittenpants]

4. has she written about the DSM yet?

I would like to hear her rip on the journalists who refuse to acknowledge its importance.

[bpilgrim]

13. i haven't seen anything, yet... but i sure can't wait to read it ;-)

:hi:

peace

[bpilgrim]

14. she let a DU'er know that she will write on it though ;-) - - - > LINK

: Helen Thomas just told me she would do her best to aggressively cover DSM

:bounce:

peace

[killbotfactory]

5. *pumps fist in the air*

Feels Good!

[DemBones DemBones]

7. Ironic that an 82 year-old woman is

the one journalist I'm sure "gets it."

Some quotes from the speech:


"I have never covered a president who actually wanted to go to war. Bush's policy of pre-emptive war is immoral - such a policy would legitimize Pearl Harbor. It's as if they learned none of the lessons from Vietnam," she said to enthusiastic applause.

Thomas ignored the clapping just as she once ignored the camera flashes and shouting matches of the Washington press corps.

"Where is the outrage?" she demanded. "Where is Congress? They're supine! Bush has held only six press conferences, the only forum in our society where a president can be questioned. I'm on the phone to Ari Fleischer every day, asking will he ever hold another one? The international world is wondering what happened to America's great heart and soul."

[killbotfactory]

9. Of course they didn't learn from Nam

They all got out of serving.

[tavalon]

24. No, it isn't ironic at all

Sad, yes, that there are no young journalists to take over that woman's mantle when she finally finishes her career.

She is old enough to remember the last time this happened.

[Cleita]

10. Hurray for Helen!

She never lets you down. A great journalist, IMHO.

[goclark]

11. Love you Helen!!

[KnowerOfLogic]

12. Exactly; that's why people should have been more skeptical about the 'case

It was so obvious that bush *wanted* war, that should have cast doubt and suspicion on everything he said in supporting it.

[MelissaB]

15. Thomas didn't let the press off the hook, though.

Thomas didn't let the press off the hook, though. "Everybody learned the lessons of Vietnam, including the Pentagon. In Vietnam, correspondents could go anywhere - just hop on a helicopter and report on the war. Now we don't have that access. It's total secrecy. The media overlords should be complaining about this. I do not absolve the press. We've rolled over and played dead, too," she said.

Asked to advise young journalists, Thomas pounced. "Remind the politicians you interview that you pay them, that they are public servants. Remember every question is legitimate. And don't give up. There's always a leak. There's always someone who's trying to save the country," she said.


I'm honored to push this to the "greatest" page.

Edited to add picture. ;)

[oblivious]

18. Nuremberg:Propagandists are as culpable as military and political leaders.

Time to post this again:

US prosecuted Nazi propagandists as war criminals
The Nuremberg tribunal and the role of the media

...In the American media there is barely a trace of serious analysis concerning the political and social realities of the Middle East. It long ago abandoned any sense of responsibility for educating and informing the public or carrying out the critical democratic function traditionally assigned to the “Fourth Estate,” i.e., serving as a watchdog and check on government abuses and falsifications. Instead it slavishly carries out the function assigned it by the ruling elite: to confuse, terrorize and intimidate the American public, rendering it less able to resist the reactionary program of the right-wing clique in Washington.

...in their arguments US prosecutors set forth a democratic legal principle derived from the international experience of a half-century of carnage: that planning and launching an aggressive war constituted a criminal act and that those who helped prepare such a war through their propaganda efforts were as culpable as those who drew up the battle plans or manufactured the munitions.

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2003/apr2003/nure-a16.shtml

[The2ndWheel]

16. And yet they all do it

Odd.

[Just Me]

17. I know she must have felt crushed by what was happening.

:hug: to Helen.

I mean, DAMN,...can anyone believe what this BushCO/neoCON regime has done to our nation, to our people!!! :grr:

This greedy, corrupt, SELF-SERVING, cabal has defrauded Congress and the American people in order to spend our lives and treasure on a preconceived plan to advance multi-national corporations (with no commitment to our people) and the geopolitical interests of another nation,...AND THEY DID SO INTENTIONALLY IMPEDING THE ECONOMIC AND SECURITY INTERESTS OF THIS NATION AND OUR PEOPLE!!!! :grr:

Traitorous cabal in charge. :grr:

BUSHCO & THE NEOCONS EXPLOITED OUR OWN PEOPLE!!!

Fuckers!!! They deserve to walk down the paths of torture and death that they have imposed upon the world. :grr: Let them MEET their own justice.

[Coexist]

19. Go Helen

[Catfight]

20. Will those new journalist listen to her advise or cower to their future

bosses that line Repug pockets? That's the problem with the press, they are as corrupt as this administration. Fake news is accepted, fake alerts have no repercussions, fake wars, lies and distortions, and a press that neglects to do their job.

[tavalon]

25. Sadly,

choice number two seems to be the choice of the day.

[dave123williams]

21. How did Yoda put it? 'Wars not make one great, young Skywalker'....

[nicknameless]

26. Thank God for Helen Thomas