162,000 trapped. Fatalities reach 3,864 and are expected to rise

[FightingIrish]

You won't see that headline about our mounting losses in Iraq but you will see 24/7 media coverage of the latest domestic disaster of the week. On the day the 35W bridge collapsed, more than 140 Iraqi civilians were killed. Certainly the loss of eight lives in a freak accident is tragic and the fate of six trapped miners has gripped us emotionally. Am I cynical to believe that the incessant coverage of domestic tragedies that pale in comparison with the hell we have unleashed in Iraq is meant to divert our attention from the unending disaster that is this war and lunatic leaders who made it happen?

[The_Casual_Observer]

1. Iraqis aren't real people, they are like rag dolls. The only real people

are white people who buy SUVs & attend baseball games.

[countmyvote4real]

2. There is so much "getting out" on our plate. I'm furious none of it is on the table.

If any of these elected "representatives" from either party were actually representing the people, they would have already found a way out. Instead, they play political chess and obstruction.

Where is the power of the purse? Failing that, where is impeachment of the monarchical tyrants? Where is justice?

I say a pox on both their houses.

[Richardo]

3. Oh crap.

Coal mine disasters and collapsed bridges are legitimate news stories. If they hadn't been reported, some would say the media was obviously hiding the stories of inadequate mine safety and crumbling infrastructure to protect the Bush administration.

How did you hear that 140 Iraqi civilians died on August 1st, the day of the Minnesota bridge collapse? I'm guessing it came from a news report. So much for quashing the story.

News happens, even in the United States. Not every domestic news story is a distraction from Iraq - probably none of them are. We all know what's going on in Iraq and how unbelievably bloody and fucked up it is, and who is responsible.

[FightingIrish]

12. I learned of the Iraqi deaths on the Internet, not the MSM

I'm not saying tragic events like the bridge collapse should be ignored. What I object to is the saturation journalism that drowns out the rest of the world for the sake of one story. Maybe some viewers like to believe that there is no longer a debacle in Iraq as they watch a story analyzed from every possible angle. I object to all the absurd sidebars and vignettes that just use up air time and tell us nothing.

[HEyHEY]

4. You're not cynical, just ... silly

I work in media, the war has been going on for years now. When something NEW comes... you run with it.

[OneBlueSky]

5. Irazi citizens don't count, don'tcha know . . . they're not Americans . . .

and their skin is brown . . . as Barbara Bush once said, why should be pollute our beautiful minds with meaningless drivel like this? . . .

[KharmaTrain]

6. We May Not,, But The World Does

One marvel of our modern technology is the ability to watch BBC and other international newscasts...a vast contrast to the dog and pony shows on American corporate media cable "news" operations. The other day, their top stories were about the ongoing bloodshed in Iraq, then the situation in Darfur and elections in Sierra Leone. It's a far different world than the one our corporate media tries to paint...but it's been that way since the television age.

I don't compare one tragedy to another...each needs to be reported and evaluated in light of its impact to those watching. More people could relate to the 35W bridge or the mine collapse in Utah as these are dangers they could face...far moreso than what is going on in Iraq. The good thing, if such a thing can be said, about the 35W tragedy is it shined a light on a long neglected topic of infrastructure and pointed to the Repugnicans "tax cuts" as a major reason for these problem...and it also dovetailed into the billions squandered daily in the killing in Iraq. Indirectly these other stories don't push Iraq off the page...I doubt its far from many minds these days, as all war coverage would be "boring" or desensetize the sheeple more than they already are.

[angrycarpenter]

13. amazing

how the government controlled media in England is more balanced then our "free press" here

[Bosso 63]

7. I spent years living within walking distance of the 35w bridge.

I remember thinking Minnesotans are going to think of August 1st and this tragedy for years to come. However, I also thought that if this were Baghdad, this day would be remembered as "Wednesday."

[Ilsa]

8. K&R. It's not necessarily a distraction. Just more "real" since

it happened to US citizens and workers, not our military so far away. I swear that absence does not make the heart grow fonder.

[Fly by night]

9. Agreed. It's also why the corporate media is obsessed with the next Presidential election ...

... while bemoaning the early start to the competition (which they fueled). Anything to keep us distracted from the criminals now in charge.

Your post puts this all very nicely in perspective. My heart goes out to anyone dealing with tragedy, whether it is due to willful neglect (of our highways and mines) or to the murderous and larcenous impulses (Iraq, Afghanistan) of the election thieves in charge of our country.

At least the world is safe for heroin production again.

[lonestarnot]

10. FightingIrish

:toast:

[malaise]

11. Good point

but the bridge disaster, the mine disaster and Iraq are all connected. They all speak to neocons, corporations owners and shareholders who value profits over the lives of human beings.