Subject: Letter from an Army Chaplain in Iraq:
Dear Friends and Family:
I am addressing this letter to you to express a frustration that I
know has been voiced time and again, yet is met with little change. It
concerns the media coverage of this war and the effect of that coverage
on the morale of our troops. As a battalion chaplain I hear the comments
and complaints of soldiers who, while performing an incredibly difficult
job under hostile and stressful conditions, constantly see their efforts
portrayed as futile. NBC's coverage this morning (your Thursday
evening, 16 September 2004) is a prime example that I believe shows the
gulf that exists between the truth of what is happening here and the deceitful
agenda of the mainstream media at home and abroad.
Only 24 hours ago the NBC media crew arrived here and filmed hours of
footage with our unit. They were told of numerous projects in which our
unit is involved, not only in the area of force protection and Troop
Medical Clinic support, but also in humanitarian aide to a local village
here in Baghdad. Here is an example of some of the projects to which
they were introduced:
1. The reconstruction and furnishing of a clinic
2. Miscellaneous enhancements for a local elementary school and a
local day care center
3. Reconstruction of the decimated electrical, sewer and water
systems
4. Reparation of exterior walls and gates surrounding the village
5. Rubble and garbage removal projects to clean up the entire
village
6. Construction of a protective chain link fence around the local
Shi'a Mosque
7. Studies to examine the development of agricultural systems and a
garment industry to help the locals provide for themselves
8. The ever-growing clothing and school supplies drive for the
children of the village
In the roughly one minute clip that they drew from their day of
filming, what did they show? The First Lieutenant who is the primary
driver of these projects was shown with one quote about never believing he
would be in Iraq, being a National Guard soldier. This was followed by their
interview of another soldier's wife, saying her husband was supposed to
have retired this summer, that his responsibility to the military should be
over and that he should be home. They showed NOTHING of the great
humanitarian efforts that are going on here!
It is coverage like this that is convincing more and more soldiers that
the consistent media agenda is to show you, the American people, the
futility of our current efforts and how everything is going wrong. There is no
apparent attempt to show all the good that is happening that, for those
of us who are here, far outweighs the very weak, though spectacular,
moments of insurgency. And we see it via satellite, just as you do.
In a day of great violence across the country, last Sunday, where the
insurgency failed to take one American life, what one film clip was shown
over and over.
They showed the lone burning Bradley fighting vehicle, with Iraqis
dancing on and around it, waving flags of the insurgency. Out of the
thousands of troops who made it safely around Baghdad and the country
that day, the media focused on one piece of impressive footage and
repeated it over and over until the viewer receives the message that this
is all that went on in Iraq today - an insurgent victory. I also remember
how the body count, for two days thereafter, was printed in ever-increasing
increments, never mentioning who the casualties were - giving the
impression that they were American casualties.
The despair and depression, as well as the thankfully limited anti-war
sentiment, over our country's efforts in Iraq are not based upon all of
the facts. They are rather based on what the media has chosen to
show - and what they have chosen NOT to show. The media knows
that they can always find those willing to complain, grouse, protest
and disagree. And they splash those voices all over their screens and
pages, drowning out the voices that will tell you, as I am, that there
is good going on here.
There are things going on here you would be proud of, things that would
bring tears to your eyes; like the looks of parents whose children are
going to school for the first time in years, equipped with pencils, pens and
paper and clothed with clean new clothes. There are essential services
being provided to people to whom they were denied under the oppressive
regime of Saddam Hussein. There is a trial going on for that man and at least
eleven of his evil cronies who, let us remember, killed over 300,000 people
under the watchful eye of the United Nations (pun intended) during the 12
years they had responsibility for the health and welfare of this nation (yes,
the> same, inept organization that is currently ignoring the Darfur, Sudan
slaughter of Christians by Islamic fundamentalists). This was the same
time that the oil-for-food program monies were being used to line the pockets
of Saddam and his friends and build luxurious palaces like the ones our
forces now occupy as he had quarters all over this nation. And Saddam all the
while complained that it was "American Sanctions" that were killing his
people. I don't remember a sanction that required a mass grave.
Please know that the media is NOT giving you the right picture, much
less the WHOLE picture. They have an agenda, it is clear, and that agenda
does not include the current administration claiming success in this
endeavor.
It is unclear if their sensationalist "reporting" will change if the
administration changes. The one thing I know as I watch the morale of
the men who are here doing the job is that every time the enemy's paltry
attacks are made out by the media to be marker events in Iraq, it becomes a
little harder for soldiers to see value in even the greatest things we are
doing. Your care packages, your letters and your constant prayers are the only
things that remind us that the majority of thoughtful Americans are
truly behind this effort and that what we are doing has great value. Don't
let that go. Keep supporting your troops, not just in word, but in action.
Remember this: You cannot support the troops AND denigrate the war
effort. It is a logical and a practical inconsistency. While the soldier fights
the enemy, he needs those behind him to offer support to his back, not
daggers. The news media is one of the greatest threats to this war. Just
ask a terrorist. Every time he can do something desperate and spectacular
and have the effect with one man blowing himself up in a crowd that an
entire U.S. Brigade has in securing a city, the media has thrown terror the
victory. It is not the side that wins the most ground anymore that is
victorious, but the one that can satiate the blood-hungry media. We
have given them the stories they need to show how much we are truly doing.
The question then must turn to why they have a fascination with making the
villain the victor. If we win this war, it may not be much of a story
for them, but if we lose it...
Your troops are doing amazing things here - things many of them are not
even trained to do, like a medical platoon leader doing public works
projects! I hope that either the media start showing the REAL stories
here or that you will show your contempt of their deceitfulness with your
complaints and, ultimately, with your vote. Don't watch the news media
that thrives on the death of American soldiers to bump their ratings! And
remember your troops. Support of victory is support of your troops.
Sincerely, CH (CPT) Chris Bassett Baghdad, Iraq,
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