Iraq Good News - Not Heard In Germany? / Gute Nachrichten aus dem Irak: In Deutschland nicht vernommen?

(Deutsche Version am Ende des Beitrags)

Good news from Iraq:

As Andrew Sullivan notes, US and UK military casualties in Iraq have fallen to a new low in February.

Also, the New York Times reports:

A Revival for Iraq's Oil Industry as Output Nears Prewar Levels

Iraq's oil industry has undergone a remarkable turnaround and is now producing and exporting almost as much crude oil as it did before the war, according to officials with the American-led occupation and the Iraqi oil ministry.

The good news from Iraq haven't arrived yet in the German press. Still checking...checking... Wait, here we go:

Sex Scandal Rocks the US Army

The largest sex-abuse scandal in its history is rocking the US Army. In the last 18 months, 112 cases of sexual harassment were reported by female soldiers in Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan.

Just glad the anti-American, Bush-bashing, hate brigade at SPIEGEL ONLINE is on careful guard against any good news from Iraq...

Deutsche Version

Gute Nachrichten aus dem Irak: In Deutschland nicht vernommen?

Gute Nachrichten aus dem Irak:

Wie Andrew Sullivan meldet, sind die Verluste der USA und von UK im Irak im Februar auf ein neues Tief gefallen.

Außerdem berichtet die New York Times:

Wiederbelebung der irakischen Öl-Industrie - Ausstoß nähert sich dem Vorkriegsniveau

Die irakische Ölindustrie hat eine bemerkenswerte Wende geschafft und produziert und exportiert nun fals so viel Öl wie vor dem Krieg, wie Offizielle der amerikanischen Besatzung und des irakischen Öl-Ministeriums mitteilen.

Die guten Nachrichten aus dem Irak sind noch nicht in der deutschen Presse angekommen. Wir suchen...suchen... Moment, hier haben wir's:

Sex-Skandal erschüttert US-Army

Der wohl größte Missbrauchsskandal ihrer Geschichte erschüttert die US-Armee. In den letzten 18 Monaten wurden in Irak, Kuweit und Afghanistan 112 Fälle von sexuellen Übergriffen auf Soldatinnen gemeldet. Den Einsatzkräften komme fern der Heimat der Sinn für Recht und Gesetz abhanden, so Politiker und Anwälte.

Wir sind nur dankbar, daß die anti-amerikanische Bush-Hasser-Brigade von SPIEGEL ONLINE uns vor guten Nachrichten aus dem Irak bewahrt...

Comments

[Jens Schmidt]

Is it likely that someone in Germany who has an understanding of politics becomes a journalist? If so, what are his chances to get away with it?

[scum of the univ]

While less a problem with the German press (it seems to affect every reporter), I still find the lack of a numerical context striking.

112 sexual harassment reports are nothing given the number of people involved. I have no idea how many people the US has in Afghanistan, but Iraq has had about 200,000 Americans in it over the past 12 months. If a corporate employer with 200,000 employees received only 112 sexual harassment claims over 18 months (not all 200,000 were there for the full 18 months, of course, but I'm not counting the Afghan deployment), they'd be very pleased with such exceptionally low results. In public they'd say, "This is a serious problem, and we can always do better," but in private they'd be positively gloating.

[Richard Heddleson]

Doug,

I suspect the 50 year H-Bomb reference is to the Bikini Atoll detonation that was the largest test by the U. S. The anniversary is being rolled out as an anniversary to reinforce U. S. guilt and shakedown the taxpayer.

[Karl B.]

Check out this article in Reason. It is based on travel last year and is a bit more pessimistic/uncertain, but from a writer who supported the war.

Faith, Shame, and Insurgency -- Life in occupied Iraq by Steve Vincent

http://www.reason.com/0403/fe.sv.faith.shtml

My favorite line in the article from an Iraqi artist:

"But the removal of Saddam shows me that history can actually smile."

The message from the article: We cannot allow Iraq to fail.

[Jens Schmidt]

>The anniversary is being rolled out as an anniversary to reinforce U. S. guilt and shakedown the taxpayer.

So shall I assume such a thing like "U. S. guilt" cannot exist, because it's only invented to "shakedown the taxpayer"? Didn't expect to hear that from a country where our industry and government constantly get blackmailed using our history in order to extort money (and I admit the guilt, but the extortion is not so easy to accept).

[Pato]

Jens- you call that the "blackmailing of germany"? Why try so hard to flatter your own self?
Sure, the past will be forgiven when you prove through noble valor that you, as a country, have no chance or prospect to re-create the horror of what the country of germany has given the world recently in a war that ended only 50 yrs ago.
Please do not consider the small jewish objections to a german paint firm being used to paint a Holocaust memorial, to protect against vandalism and graffiti as a form of "blackmail" when this firm was involved in development of the gas to kill jews. It is odd to begin with that you people need to protect a memorial to 6 million murder victims, but thats another issue.
If you feel uncomfortable with your country's past, you are simply paying the price for your fore fathers who did nothing to stop hitler. That image can easily be changed by your governments actions on the world stage.
You boldy proclaim on a constant basis that you have learned from your past. Well prove it then damnit!
When you see a murderous dictator amongs the worlds "leaders"- stand up and kick his ass, deny him a shower and a shave and then chase him into a hole. it's that simple.
It is a pity that image has not been fully erased from the world's minds after 50 long years.
But you know- who the hell wants to forget about 6 million murders or the perpetuators of this murder? It's best to stop these things before they grow.
It certainly is time to have a fresh and bright intellectul like Angel M to rule over the lot of you.