Jingo Bells
The US Military now confirms five, count 'em, FIVE cases of mishandling of the Koran. Hmmm. Let's take a trip down memory lane:
Newsweek, in reckless pursuit of a scoop that might score the daily double of embarrassing the Bush administration while heaping more disrepute on the Left's favorite punching bag, Guantanamo Bay, falsely reported a martial toilet-flushing of the Koran. -- Andrew McCarthy, NROAnd now, if you'll excuse me, I think I need a bath.
This story has been marked by two features, I think: lousy reporting, and a desperate desire on the part of leftists worldwide to believe that assertions made by Guantanamo detainees, no matter how outlandish and uncorroborated, are true. -- The Artist Formerly Known as Hindrocket, Powerline
There is lasting damage to our image because of this report, and we would encourage Newsweek to do all that they can to help repair the damage that has been done, particularly in the region, and I think Newsweek can do that by talking about the way they got this wrong and pointing out what the policies and practices of the United States military are when it comes to the handling of the holy Koran. -- Scott McClellan
I mean, it's appalling, really, that an article that was unfounded to begin with has caused so much harm including loss of life. And one would expect as the facts come out of how this story was written, one would in fact expect more than the kind of correction that we've seen so far. -- State Dept. Spokesman Richard Boucher
I think what we make of it is that, despite our review of the situation, we can't find anything to substantiate the allegations that appeared in Newsweek magazine. And we've looked at, I think, something like -- reviewed 25,000 documents, and there's no indication that anything like that happened. other than what I mentioned in the press conference the other day, one last week, where I think more -- now more than one detainee tore pages out of the Koran and put it in the toilet in protest, to stop up the toilet. But we've not found where -- any wrongdoing on the part of U.S. service members. -- Gen William Myers
Just to step back for a second, I think it was Mark Twain who said that something that's not true can speed around the world three or four times in a matter of seconds, while truth is still trying to put their boots on. -- Donald Rumsfeld
Do you know who actually has been confirmed in one report to have said that a Koran was flushed down the toilet? A terrorist prisoner was doing it! A terrorist prisoner ripped the Koran into shreds, put the paper in a toilet and flushed it, and this got reported...It is apparent that the terrorists know who exactly who their friends are and they know how to play them. The media is their Stradivarius. All they have to do is plant rumors, stories, get them published in local newspapers about how evil and mean US soldiers and troops and prison authorities are -- and, bam! The US media will believe it. -- OxyLimbaugh
Occasionally there are allegations of mistreatment. But if you trace those back, in nearly every case, it turns out to come from somebody who had been inside and released to their home country and now are peddling lies about how they were treated. -- Dick Cheney
Newsweek Lied. People Died. -- Michelle Malkin
posted by Jane Hamsher @ 6/04/2005 12:00:00 AM
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