I am not a Pat Buchanan fan. But, I give credit when it is due.
Kudos to Buchanan for writing this excellent column.
What does it say about American journalism that it gives its most prestigious prizes to reporters who acquire and reveal illicitly leaked U.S. secrets, when the result is to damage the U.S. government in a time of war? Both the Times and Post got their Pulitzers for fencing secrets of the U.S. government, criminally leaked by disloyal public servants they continue to protect.
Query: If McCarthy deserves firing, disgrace and possibly prison for what she did, does the Post deserve congratulations for collaborating with and covering up her infidelity, deceit and possible criminality?
Are journalists above the law? Are they entitled to publish secrets, the leaking of which can put their sources in jail for imperiling the national security? What kind of business has journalism become in 2006?
Scooter Libby is to be tried for perjury for allegedly lying to a grand jury investigating whether he leaked the name of CIA operative Valerie Plame, in a White House campaign to discredit war critic Joe Wilson. Larry Franklin of the Pentagon got 12 years for leaking military secrets to the Israeli lobby.
McCarthy deserves the same treatment. She should be prosecuted and, if convicted, spend the next decade in prison. Whether this war was a mistake or not, no one has a right to sabotage the war effort.
Not even journalists.
Who indeed are these journalists...and what have they become?
I am curious as to how these stories
"damage the U.S. government in a time of war?"
I also wonder are you defending the government for spying on US citizens, inside of the United States without a warrent? The other story dealt with the use of torture and secret prison used in distant countries. Do you condone that? Myself, I view these reporters in the same eye that many viewed Edward R Morrow. Only history will bear out who was right and whom was wrong.
Here is an interesting thought, if we went back 10 years, and someone told you that your country and government would sanction spying against it's own citizens without any warrent or checks and balances, would you believe that would happen in the Unired States? Next what if you were told that the United States would sanction torture in foriegn lands just to get around US laws. Again would you believe they were speaking about the United States of America? What has, and makes this country so great is out founding principles of freedom, and liberty. I know 9/11 has changed a lot of the way we live and has brought some fears we never could imagine. But has it changed us so muct that we would allow these thinsg and not question them at all? I for one never thought we would as a country give up on some of our founding principles. Ben Franklin said it best when he said
"Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety. "
Posted by: Greg | Tuesday, April 25, 2006 at 09:03 PM
I would never sanction torture. I would never accept spying on citizens with no checks or balances.
We do not, however, have any evidence that this is going on.
Isolated instances of torture and/or lawbreaking by the military has found people tried and punished.
That is not to say that our nation is without fault - nor that our leaders never make errors. But - what you speak of, Greg, has not been proved.
I only agree with Buchanan that our laws regarding classified information should be either upheld - or changed, if that is found to be the best solution.
I will agree with you, however, that it will take years for history to make pronouncements and judgements about current events.
Posted by: Peg | Tuesday, April 25, 2006 at 10:41 PM