AlterNet Interview With Seymour Hersh: Man On Fire

SEYMOUR HERSH: MAN ON FIRE

Lakshmi Chaudhry, AlterNet

In an astonishingly candid and far-ranging interview, Seymour
Hersh, the journalist who exposed major stories from the My Lai
massacre to the Abu Ghraib scandal, proves that his voice is every
bit as powerful as his pen.

http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/20309/

An interview with Seymour Hersh is never dull – to put it mildly. The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist can be contentious, just as willing to challenge a question as answer it. He can be unpredictable, ever able to throw a hapless reporter off-balance with the unexpected. "Did you ever take a stewardess' course?" he might inquire just as you're trying to get him to discuss the role of the media.

When Hersh does answer the question – which he will, with eloquence and at great length – he is likely to make your head reel as he follows four separate lines of thought – at the same time. In other words, it's a bit like being on a roller-coaster: often disorienting and a little daunting, but always a hell of a ride.

For when Seymour Hersh speaks, he does so with unparalleled insight, passion, and candor. He is willing to say what most other star journalists rarely permit themselves to even think in this era of celebrity journalism, when image is king. When Hersh speaks, it's for two simple reasons: it's important and he cares. It's why we care to listen.

Be it his coverage of the My Lai massacre during the Vietnam War or his recent work exposing the Abu Ghraib scandal in Iraq, Hersh has been a dedicated watchdog for democracy. His latest book, ""Chain of Command: The Road From 9/11 to Abu Ghraib," builds on his reporting as a staff writer at The New Yorker. The book – among other things – reveals how National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice was made aware of human rights abuses in Guantanamo Bay two years before the torture in Iraq took place. It is a searing indictment of the Bush administration for its willful ignorance, ideological agenda, and above all, a profound failure of leadership.

He spoke to AlterNet from his office in Washington D.C.

..more..

if there is justice in the world.

I dont think there is one for Reporting and he already has a Pulitzer.

perhaps?

He stood firm against the tide and spoke the truth, while most others were caught jelly-legged in the under-tow.

and of Vietnam war crimes to the list, he should go down in history as a most important figure.

Her has been doing his part, we are still waiting for Kissinger and now Bush and buddies to be held accountable.

Where the HELL is the press????? You know when JK is elected they will start caring about the civilian carnage! :grr:


~snip~
Now, one of the things I've heard from people who found themselves supporting the war is that whether the UN went in or not, the fact is that there was a moral imperative. That Saddam was doing terrible things to his people and suppressing the Shi'ites, violating human rights and so on.

The only problem with that thinking is that it's been more than a year and a half since we went in. And right now, the abuses in the prisons, the bombings, and the attacks, the violence in the country are now being caused by us. Is that a moral position we want to be in? Of course, it is an unintended consequence, but it is still very much a consequence.

If Bush wins re-election, he will bomb and bomb and bomb. He's been doing that steadily every since the Allawi government was put in place by us. Since June 28, the bombing has gone up exponentially. Bombing, bombing, bombing. Civilian targets, civilian neighborhoods.

But I don't see anyone in the press worrying about it. I don't see them demanding to know how many sorties we're flying – have they grown? Are more bombs being dropped? What's the tonnage? We don't know any of that, do we?

:( :( :( :( :(

"the bombing has gone up exponentially. Bombing, bombing, bombing. Civilian targets, civilian neighborhoods."

..again they haven't learned shit from Vietnam.
Did more and more bombing win that war?

:kick:

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