Our Pathetic Media, Part Infinity Squared Now those of us on the infobahn...even those of us who run little pissant blogs of green and orange [It's like an Irish "Peace Train"] have managed to see the panoply of disgusting images of American troops debasing Iraqi prisoners. And, of course, it has gotten enough traction to even merit a Presidential response of "disgust" and punishment of the perpetrators. But to understand the magnitude of the story and its gravity to the U.S. and the World and our prospects in Iraq, well the coverage of the media isn't too great. A perusal of my local paper reveals a small story tucked into the newspaper, below the fold of roughly 300 words. On the other hand, the "Nightline Episode" is front page stuff, and Michael Jackson gets a far more substantial write up. While there is merit to the argument that this is not as terrible as what Hussein's regime did (in which case the folks giving the ol' thumbs up in the picture would be framing the picture on their walls and being promoted, rather than derided and facing criminal charges), it will still be like gasoline on a fire in the Arab world. CNN has a relatively non-sensical beginning to a quote given the context of the article (you'll notice if you read it) which I've edited as noted, its meaning is profound: Abdel Bari Atwan, editor of Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper [said] "It is absolutely shocking. I think this is the end of the story, the straw that broke the camel's back, for America," he told the UK Press Association. "People will be extremely angry. ... Sexual abuse is the worst thing in that part of the world. It is shocking to all Muslims. America has lost the battle completely. I believe there will be more attacks." UPDATE: I was obviously channeling the suave and debonair Juan Cole this morning, as the Middle Eastern expert and historian writes pungently: In any case, this incident is in significant part a direct result of Rumsfeld policies--the Pentagon's kidnapping of unprepared reservists for long-term military duty in Iraq, supplemented by unregulated cowboy security firms. It has already been forgotten that some of the fighting around Najaf was done by US private security guards, who even deployed an attack helicopter! I really wonder whether, with the emergence of these photos, the game isn't over for the Americans in Iraq. Is it realistic, after the bloody siege of Fallujah and the Shiite uprising of early April, and in the wake of these revelations, to think that the US can still win the hearts and minds of the Iraqi Arab public?