Judith Miller - Ms. Miller has
written four books and contributed chapters to several others. Her most
recent book is “Germs: Biological Weapons and America’s Secret
War.” (Simon & Schuster) Written with two colleagues from The
Times, the book topped the best seller‘s list. - excerpt from bio.
It's interesting to note that
miller's bio does not mention the authors that joined her in the pulitzer
work, William Broad and Stephen Engelberg, and at least William
Broad seems to have much more experience on this subject matter than
miller.
Would her contribution come from her being a "Middle East expert"?
Seems these days middle east experts in this country are a stones throw
away, even Condoleeza Rice has been listed as a middle east expert.
Miller employed her middle
east expertise in the controversial book "God has Ninety-Nine
Names".
Miller here is listed as the sole author so it's not entirely clear
who wrote
the
book. It could
very
well of been miller considering the controversy.
This controversy, not so much
about unearthing dark secrets or deep insight into the Islam world
but rather how poor the book was written. Reading reviews I get the
impression this
book
could've
of
been just
as easily provided by some undergraduate reporting on a summer vacation
to the middle east, although the undergraduate would not have been
able to bring the seasoned ignorant bias miller has cultivated over
the years through her swing from "progressive" to stagnant.
Not having read the book,
as life is far too short and the party line too predictable,
this article is not meant as a critique of the book. But it's noteworthy
to consider reviews of miller writing in her field of expertise by
normal joe I ain't got nothing better to do than read shit I could
just as
easily smell in the breeze.
It seems the common thread
running through both positive and negative reviews is limited expanse
and this is a good book for people with no knowledge of the middle
east.
Which
would suggest a cut and paste job from the local library with a "sissyhawk"
slant would of sufficed for those in favor.
<BACK
|
Skip all the one-star reviews, is
suggested by a five star supporter in his pre-babel to one review
and perhaps indicates the one-dimensional mindset of his star-studded
comrades as well.
Not only
do
they want to tell you
their opinion they want you to ignore anything to the contrary.
Of course the above suggestion
drives one to the one-star reviews; *More of
a fictional novel than a report. *Worthless
*Pity for the Money *Lacks depth and below-the-surface understanding
*More inadequacies and distortions of Islam in our Media *What a silly
book, when I compare it with works of serious historians, like Hourani,
Said or Schlaim.
Let's not
ignore the positive - *****If
the idea of a monolithic Muslim "world" or
Jihad-like movement scares you the way it did me, this book will tell
you all you need to know
*****Although this book may seem a bit dated, it is still
relevant, and quite essential for understanding why the West is hated
by some in
the Middle East. *****I
have read David Pryce-Jones review of Miller's book and, although I
agree with Pryce-Jones that Miller misses the real root of the problems
that plague the badly-named "Middle East.., The
reader will not get the depth that a profound analysis of the region
should have."
|
It
seems that everyone agrees on some level that Judith Miller is not
the Middle East expert she plays on t.v.
So miller believing her own
hype, infected with the WMD bug, and what a career boost this could
be - like Geraldo Rivera and his Al Capone's safe episode, - set
out as an imbedded reporter looking for illusive weapons of mass
destruction.
But
unlike
Geraldo, who needed to blow up a wall to find nothing, miller needed
to participate in the blowing up of an entire country and heavy innocent
human suffering
and death at an attempt for glory and headline news. And until
the powers that be break down and just plant the shit,
her
yield
on
this
project
is
equally
as embarrassing as Geraldo's while far more destructive.
New York Times reporter Judith Miller accused of “hijacking” military
unit in Iraq More on the “newspaper of record” and
WMD lies
By Bill Vann Melbourne Indymedia -
27 June 2003.
Three months into their occupation of Iraq, US military
forces have failed to find any evidence of the supposed stockpiles
of chemical and biological weapons that Washington claimed as the principal
justification for invading the country. It is no longer possible to
conceal the fact that the Bush administration lied to the American
people to promote an unprovoked war of aggression.
In a column published June 25, the Washington Post’s media critic
Howard Kurtz sheds new light on the integral role played by the media
itself, and, in particular, the “newspaper of record,” the
New York Times, in this act of criminal deception.
In a war that saw “embedded” journalists
functioning as cheerleaders for the American military and the media
serving as a propaganda arm of the Bush administration, the Times played
an especially sordid role. Its duplicity was exemplified by one of
its senior correspondents, Judith Miller, who is reputed in media circles
to be an expert in weapons of mass destruction as well as on Islam,
despite her lack of a science background and her inability to speak
Arabic.
NEXT>
|
