Tom Brosz - "Hearts and minds" is being fought, not on the streets, but on the television sets of Iraq. While alternatives are coming on line, the lack of an outlet for non-al-Jazeera news for much of this year is one of the areas where I would agree that war planning fell flat."

It never seems to cross your mind that WHAT is being reported is the problem, not THAT it's being reported.

Conservatives would love to keep the public unaware of what is happening because it might influence voting. "It's all political" is the cry! I've seen it on this board a lot - for instance, about the 9-11 commission.

That's called censorship, and when done simply to protect a political regime is completely undemocratic. It's what dictatorships do. It's what GWB & Co. do.

And it's what incompetent politicians have to do to stay in power. Otherwise, people might hold them accountable.

It's not the media. It's the events. And people have a right and duty to know.

Arf