August 10, 2003

HELLO, BOB

What happens when Robert Fisk meets Iraqis who've read his reports?

Salam is intently watching a middle-aged European man with the demeanour of an exceptionally erudite tourist.

"Isn't that Robert Fisk?" he murmurs. It is. Salam and Maz go over to debate news coverage of the war with him.

What could they have possibly debated? Here's a clue about how the above-mentioned Maz, who has returned to Iraq after living in London, felt about the balance of war coverage:

"I was asked by somebody to go on an anti-war demonstration and I refused. I said that if the placards said 'No to war, down with Saddam' I would go, but I never saw anything on those placards against Saddam.

"How would the demonstrators feel if the same cameras that filmed people suffering during the war had been filming the Iraqi army and secret police killing and torturing civilians for 35 years? There were no cameras there. They were silent victims."

Bob might’ve feared another beating. By the way, this story is a few days old; I’ve had email trouble, so reader tips (like this one, which is run as it was sent) are coming through on a long delay.

Posted by Tim Blair at August 10, 2003 03:15 AM
Comments

Dude, I don't usually suggest this, but maybe you should check out Hotmail.

Posted by: Andrea Harris at August 10, 2003 at 04:35 AM

Here's my thing. I'd love to meet R.F. on the field of battle. I'd love to see him and Noam walking to get a a meal of "takeout meatballs and potatoes." I clicked on the article, read it.....but it's like, "Hey, I met Martin Luther King....oh look, a piece of string." There's been some editing here. What happened when they met R.F.? What was said. Maz doesn't have the benefits of Paul Wolfolwitz (i.e. internet posted transcripts). What was edited. Am I overreacting?

Posted by: gimpy at August 10, 2003 at 10:04 AM

It's the Guardian. I expect just about everything interesting has been edited out. They only leave interesting stuff in if it makes the coalition look bad. If nothing does so, then the editorial scissors get busy.

Posted by: Andrea Harris at August 10, 2003 at 10:15 AM