Facts Are Stubborn Things #1

According to the L.A. Times on 8/20/03 “There was speculation that the U.N. may have been attacked because Vieira de Mello had recently expressed support for U.S. policy and the new Iraqi Governing Council.” So how come this relevent piece of information was completely absent from the TV News coverage of the Baghdad attack on the U.N.?

Could it be that they want us to see no other explanation than “an evil expression of these terrorists...an attack against all humanity” as Akila Al-Hashimi of the U.S. picked Iraqi Governing Council was quoted as saying in that same article.

Of course she'll say anything. Back in February when she still worked for Saddam she told the Arab League “the defense of Iraq is now the defense of the civilized world.” Sure she worked for Saddam, but now she's our Joe. Why should anybody doubt our democratic intentions or her intergity?

As a matter of fact the United Nations has recently moved away from all pretense of opposition to the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq. Just days before this attack, on August 15th, the U.N. passed a resolution that ``welcomes the establishment of the broadly representative Governing Council of Iraq.” That is another point over looked by the media in its frenzy to report the “terrorist act” against the U.N.

Well the fact is that by expressing support for a regime installed by a foreign invader purely by force of arms they were taking sides in a war. And now they are Shocked, Shocked to find that they are the target of attack.

President Bush called this a terrorist attack since the war is over, but the FBI has identified the bomb as about 1000 lbs. of military explosives from Saddam's army.

Recently Bush was responsible for exploding a bomb at least 20 times as big in Baghdad. Hey the “Mother Of All Bombs” as they liked to call it was just the largest of thousands he sent. But that wasn't terrorism because the TV just showed us the fireworks, not the carnage on the ground. Beside he was just doing what he had to do to rid Iraq of Weapons of Mass Destruction er I mean Freeing the Iraqi People.

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Facts Are Stubborn Things

Krugman Gives Clue to Why Endless U.S. Wars

Agent Orange, the toxic defoliate which America dumped on Vietnam to kill the growth of plants that were used as cover by the Vietcong. 19 million gallons of defoliates were sprayed on Vietnam, mostly Agent Orange, near Vietnam's borders north of Saigon and near the Mangroves lining Saigon's shipping channels, meaning it was not just killing trees, it was being breathed in by American soldiers who did not know exposure could later lead to potentially fatal conditions such as Hodgkin's disease, soft tissue cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

So said Keith Olbermann in Segment #4 GOP Vets "Not Helping" of last night's Countdown. This story focused on the effects on humans of Agent Orange and the need of many of our Vietnam veterans for treatment and compensation. It was a good segment as far as it went. The problem I had with it was that it didn't go far enough. Keith, Agent Orange was sprayed on the Vietnamese too, and you neglected to mention that. Even today, Vietnam has to care for about 3 million victims of Agent Orange. They range from their now aging war vets to the deformed babies still in the womb. What are they Keith? Chopped liver?

from Vietnam: American Holocaust This is rough cut when I narrate. Martin Sheen narrates the DVD.

In Tuesday's diary about Glenn Beck's Tea party on the mall, I said it was a characteristic of that crowd to ignore the victims of our war policies. I said it stemmed from the insipid racism that saw these people of color as not even worth an 'honorable' mention, but Keith, I expect better from you. How do you justify your continuing participation in a media conspiracy of silence with regards to the effect of Agent Orange on the Vietnamese? If my "conspiracy theory" is wrong here, please point me to all the MSM coverage of the effects of Agent Orange on the Vietnamese that I have missed. Effects that are today suffered by Vietnamese vets that fought on both sides of the conflict. Effects that are well known in Vietnam and recognized around the world but never reported here. And if you are not a participate in this conspiracy of silence, please explain your silence about the suffering of the Vietnamese last night since you were talking about Agent Orange anyway.

Not just our veterans but also our victims must be compensated for the crime of unleashing Agent Orange on humanity. America must recognize what we have done to the Vietnamese and start making it right by helping to clean up the toxic sites we left behind, for example. These sites will continue to add to the number of children killed by the U.S. in the Vietnam War until they are clean. Beck's show was a sham and a farce, but fixing this really is a question of restoring honor.

Resources on Agent Orange effects on Americans and Vietnamese:

Vietnam Agent Orange Relief and Responsibility Campaign

This project is supported by Veterans for Peace, here is a speech by VFP member David Cline who died in 2007:

Agent Orange - A Continuing Legacy of the US War in Vietnam

Headless Body Turns Up in AZ Governor's Debate

With our special captions, we reveal Gov. Jan Brewer's inter-monologue.

On a slightly more serious note, I think we should thank Jan Brewer for her admission that "Arizona has been brought back from it's abyss." Then we should ask her is it only Arizona that has been brought back from the abyss, or is it all the states? Is only Arizona saved from the abyss and all the other states now in it? Or have all the states been brought back from the abyss, in which case who is to be chiefly credited with bringing these United States back from the abyss?

Besides having a little fun at Jan Brewer's expense. I hope to clarify some questions that have been raised in my diary in that past two days. On Thursday my diary titled Keith Olbermann's White Blindspot started a fire storm as some Kossacks claimed that I was saying that KO is a racist. So maybe I can further clarify my understanding of these terms if I tell you that I don't think Jan Brewer has a white blindspot. I think Jan Brewer is a racist. And I would hate to be forced to lump KO and JB [Jumbled Brains] in the same category because I don't think KO is altogether perfect on the race question and one size must fit all.

Now I would ask you to help me understand the DKos community better. From the comments to my diaries, I have already isolated two areas were my views would appear to differ with this community.
1.) I think KO's view of the world and his reporting reflect a certain racial bias. Others disagree, he has no bias whatsoever.
2.) I think the Vietnam War was a racist war as conducted by the U.S. Others disagree.

Here are some other issues that have been in the news recently, that I frankly think are all about stoking racism among white Americans, but the self-reporters would disagree:

The Birthers oppose Obama because he is not an American. It has nothing to do with his race.

That 18% of American's falsely believe that Obama is a Muslim has nothing to do with him being Black.

The anti-immigrate hysteria is just about enforcing our laws and is not in the least bit motivated by racism.

The anti-Muslim hysteria of the Tea Party is just about whatever, but it certainly has nothing to do with racism.

You see, I would say all the above statements are false and furthermore, I would say they all represent and are unified by a dangerous racist trend that is currently growing in America. So now it occurs to me that in so much as so many have so strongly disagreed with me on 1.) and 2.) above, maybe I am in broad disagreement with this community about whether white racism plays a significant role in American culture and politics today. It would help me better understand this community's attitude on racism if you would answer the following poll.

Does White Blindspot equal Racist?

Fri Sep 03, 2010 at 10:53:36 AM PDT
Yesterday's diary was titled Keith Olberman's White Blindspot. In it I criticized a Countdown segment the night before about Alan Simpson, our vets and Agent Orange for doing what MSM always does, ignore the victims of our recent wars who are, as certainly was the case in Vietnam, generally people of color. Immediately a number of people condemned me for calling Keith Olbermann a racist. And that is what the discussion was all about. Thus a discussion of the real questions I was raising: 1. The vast majority of people suffering from AO are Vietnamese, 2. MSM including KO consistently ignore that when discussing AO, and 3. The role of white chauvinism in this contradiction.

It would seem that #3 can not be discussed at the DailyKos because people will charge you with calling someone a racist. For example to even suggest that KO not covering this very important aspect of the AO story has anything to do with his position as a relatively privileged white male and, you're calling KO a racist. How Dare You! And the real discussion is avoided.

In response to this I wrote in the comments to this diary yesterday:

I think Keith Olbermann is the strongest advocate for racial justice and against white privilege in MSM today and I include the corporate Tavis Similey in that group. Frankly, he is a lot more advanced in this area than a lot of my white 'socialist' friends that think themselves far to the left of KO. So no, I don't think he's a racist.

I said he has a white blindspot. That's not saying he's a racist. Saying you have a blindspot isn't even saying you're a bad driver. It's just pointing out a bit of reality of which you must remain aware.

Saying KO has a white blindspot on this issue, the effect of AO on the Vietnamese, is first of all saying that he doesn't even see the issue. A racist is one who is fully aware of the effect of AO on the Vietnamese, and just doesn't give a damn, or worst. Secondly, it is saying that his blindspot is a white blindspot. I am saying that it is very much related to the white privileged culture in which he is embedded.

So no, I will not change the title! And I will not be sidetracked by accusations that I called KO a racist! This is nothing more than a sleazy trick to obscure the important questions. So now, if you even suggest that someone's viewpoint is influenced by white privilege you are calling him a racist. Is that the logic at work here? Because I don't see any other.

having white blindspot = being a racist.

Now you have a position you can really condemn. Now that you have put words in my mouth, it's HOW DARE YOU CALL KO A RACIST! Because we all know it's a simple question of black and white. Either you are a racist or there's no problem. We don't have to look at the subtle influences of a culture that has been built on a bedrock of white supremacy. Suggesting those influences is tantamount to calling someone a racist. End of discussion.

The story last night was about Alan Simpson, AO only came up to critique him, but the story here is about AO effects on the Vietnamese, and that is a much more important story.

That story is little reported in this country and if I have given it a little more light and air with today's diary, then I have done what I set out to do. Now if my critic can just point me to some DKos diaries that handled this question in a better way, I will happily learn from them.

KO can take the hit, he's not perfect but I'll keep on working on making him perfect.

I see that as yet nobody has responded to it. In view of that, I would like to use today's diary specifically to call out the following people and ask them to justify their conclusions.

jethrock	your premise that Keith Olbermann is a white supremacist. You should be thanking him for his story... not calling him a racist.
raptavio	HRed for trying to call Keith Olbermann a racist
Colorado is the Shiznit	Just because he didn't cover it in last night's segment doesn't mean he's inherintly racist.
DiegoUK	When you say he has a 'White Blindspot' you are calling him racist. For that, I think you're an ass. And, again, thanks for calling him a racist. Classy.

If you are not building a straw man so you can burn it down by putting words in my mouth. Then will each of you please show us where I said KO was a racist or explain the logic by which you have concluded that it is synonymous with anything I have said?