Conservative attempt to paint it rosy

[Proud_Lefty]

My friend's Republican husband is furious with her for getting involved with the anti-Bush movement. A few weeks ago, I heard embedded reporter Dahr Jamail speak and I asked him about these rosy scenarios that the conservatives keep painting as they say the liberal media only reports the bad and not the good. He responded that some schools have been built, but the percentage is minimal. He said the hospitals are out of supplies, clean water and is in critical need of help. We have done very little for the Iraqi people. It was heartwrenching to hear him elaborate, but this same rosy b.s. keeps surfacing.

Can you help me with some more facts to send to my friend to respond to her husband? She desperately wants him to open his eyes, but he continually listens to the liars.

Thanks.

----

DID YOU KNOW ?

Did you know that 47 countries have reestablished their embassies in Iraq?

Did you know that the Iraqi government currently employs 1.2 million Iraqi people? Did you know that 3100 schools have been renovated, 364 schools are under rehabilitation, 263 schools are now under construction and 38 new schools have been built in Iraq?

Did you know that Iraq's higher educational structure consists of 20 Universities, 46 Institutes or colleges and 4 research centers, all currently operating?

Did you know that 25 Iraq students departed for the United States in January 2005 for the reestablished Fulbright program?

Did you know that the Iraqi Navy is operational?! They have 5- 100-foot patrol craft, 34 smaller vessels and a naval infantry regiment.

Did you know that Iraq's Air Force consists of three operational = squadrons, which includes 9 reconnaissance and 3 US C-130 transport = aircraft (under Iraqi operational control) which operate day and night, and will soon add 16 UH-1 helicopters and 4 Bell Jet Rangers?

Did you know that Iraq has a counter-terrorist unit and a Commando Battalion?

Did you know that the Iraqi Police Service has over 55,000 fully trained and equipped police officers?

Did you know that there are 5 Police Academies in Iraq that produce over 3500 new officers each 8 weeks?

Did you know there are more than 1100 building projects going on in Iraq? They include 364 schools, 67 public clinics, 15 hospitals, 83 railroad stations, 22 oil facilities, 93 water facilities and 69 electrical facilities.

Did you know that 96% of Iraq! i children under the age of 5 have received the first 2 series of poli o vaccinations?

Did you know that 4.3 million Iraqi children were enrolled in primary school by mid October?

Did you know that there are 1,192,000 cell phone subscribers in = Iraq and phone use has gone up 158%?

Did you know that Iraq has an independent media that consists of 75 radio stations, 180 newspapers and 10 television stations?

Did you know that the Baghdad Stock Exchange opened in June of 2004?

Did yo! u know that 2 candidates in the Iraqi presidential election had a televised debate recently?

OF COURSE WE DIDN'T KNOW!

WHY DIDN'T WE KNOW? OUR MEDIA WOULDN'T TELL US!

Instead of reflecting our love for our country, we get photos of flag burning incidents at Abu Ghraib and people throwing snowballs at the presidential motorcades.

The lack of accentuating the positive in Iraq serves two purposes.

It is intended to undermine the world's perception of the United States

thus minimizing consequent support, and it is intended to discourage American citizens.


---- Above facts are verifiable on the Department of Defense web site. !

[kikiek]

1. Yeah that sounds reliable.. the DOD..when did they lie to us before?

Really..you need proof to show it isn't so rosy? Check out the body count.

[Proud_Lefty]

7. I don't need proof that it's not rosy

I need help convincing people drunk on the kool-aid in a very red county that this cannot be trusted. This is their only defense of taking us into this war. We know it's a lie, but we're considered nutty and paranoid to people around here.

[kikiek]

8. What would convince people who are drunk on kool-aid? I don't believe

the proof exists unless they actually are willing to open up their eyes and minds to reality. Look at the DOD website. It repeats all of the propaganda for a war on terror etc. What makes anyone think that anything posted on that is fact. This is the white house. Would they tell us anything different?

[Atman]

2. This is all you need to know to know it is all a pack of lies...

"---- Above facts are verifiable on the Department of Defense web site. !"

The DOD never lies. *coff coff*

[mwb970]

3. There's been "good news" right from the beginning, apparently.

I found a copy of the same facts (?) in an article by Melvin Murphy here:

http://www.chronwatch.com/content/contentDisplay.asp?aid=15965

Mel's been bringing us good news from Iraq for some time. Here's an item he wrote in December 2003, quoting one Mark Davis of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

http://www.chronwatch.com/content/contentDisplay.asp?aid=5297

This older article contains these quotes from a gushing Geraldo Rivera:

"When I got to Baghdad, I barely recognized it," (Geraldo) began, comparing his just-completed trip to two others he made during and just after the battle to topple Saddam. "You have over 30,000 Iraqi cops and militiamen already on the job. This is four months after major fighting stopped.

"Can you imagine that kind of gearing up in this country? Law and order is better; archaeological sites are being preserved; factories, schools are being guarded."

But what about the secondhand griping that the media have been so efficiently relating about power, water and other infrastructure?

"To say that Iraq is being rebuilt is not true," answered Rivera. "Iraq is being built. There was no infrastructure before; we are doing it. I just think the good news is being underestimated and underreported."

[kikiek]

4. Yeah it is typical of one of those deceptive mass e mailings. If it were

true it would be on every news station 24/7.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

5. I guess the DOD doesn't have a dog in this fight, so they could fairly

be considered an objective source. :eyes:

[Johonny]

6. If it's so good

Why are we still there again?

[BeFree]

9. That's It?

For $200 billion, that's all we got?

Did you know Iraq had almost all of that, and more, before we Shocked and Awed them?

Iraq is a hell hole, if they think its so fine they should move there.

Iraq is shaping up to be just one more big government spending program. Already $200 billion has been spent and with no end in sight. Do they really trust our government with that kind of money?