Post-Gazette Editorial – 8/12/05This page was last updated on August 31, 2005. A mother’s vigil / The president owes military families an answer; Editorial; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; August 12, 2005. I purposely took my time posting this critique because I figured there was a lot more to the Cindy Sheehan story than the mainstream media – including the PG – was telling us. I was correct. The mainstream media has done its best to shield Ms. Sheehan’s associations and positions from the public. Indeed, columnist Maureen Dowd claimed Ms. Sheehan had “absolute moral authority,” hoping to dissuade reporters from doing their Sheehan research. Eventually, though, the truth began to leak out. I feel sorry for anyone who loses a child, friend, or relative in war. Though I sympathize with Ms. Sheehan’s loss, I believe her antics have nothing to do with the loss of her son. Ms. Sheehan’s so-called vigil has been unmasked as a publicity stunt. A person the press tends to downplay is Casey Sheehan. His mother wants us to believe Casey was duped into service. At 24 when he was killed serving his country, Casey Sheehan was no kid. Despite opposition from his mother, he enlisted in the Army in 2000. Further, he re-enlisted in August 2003 after the Iraq War began and after he knew it was more likely than not his unit (First U.S. Cavalry) would be sent to Iraq. I don’t know why Casey Sheehan enlisted and re-enlisted, but I believe it’s a disservice to him to claim he didn’t know what he was doing. Few reporters in the press have asked the obvious question, “Would Casey Sheehan approve of the actions being done in his name?” I don’t know the answer and I suspect few people do, but it’s a question we need to consider. I don’t know whether it’s related to Ms. Sheehan’s actions allegedly as a result of her son’s death, but on August 12, 2005, her husband (Patrick) sued for divorce. Based on this and the e-mail cited at the end of this critique, the Sheehan family has some major problems to overcome. Below is a detailed critique of the subject editorial. “A mother mourning the death of her son has a right to answers. In the case of Cindy Sheehan, the mother of Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, who was killed in April 2004, the search for facts goes beyond the circumstances of the ambush that led to his death.” [RWC] As you will learn below, Ms. Sheehan’s actions appear to have nothing to do with a “search for the facts.” Here are some quotes that also shed light on Ms. Sheehan’s agenda. In an August 8, 2005, speech to Veterans for Peace, Ms. Sheehan referred to President Bush as “that filth-spewer and warmonger.” According to FrontPageMagazine.com, Ms. Sheehan made the following statements during an “anti-war” speaking opportunity earlier this year. “George Bush and his neo-conservatives killed my son. America has been killing people on this continent since it was started. This country is not worth dying for.” “We have no Constitution. We’re the only country with no checks and balances. We want our country back if we have to impeach George Bush down to the person who picks up the dog sh*t in Washington! Let George Bush send his two little party animals to die in Iraq. It’s OK for Israel to have nuclear weapons but we are waging nuclear war in Iraq, we have contaminated the entire country. It’s not OK for Syria to be in Lebanon. Hypocrites! But Israel can occupy Palestine? Stop the slaughter!” The U.S. government is a “morally repugnant system.” Ms. Sheehan has even referred to the terrorists in Iraq as “freedom fighters” during an interview with CBS News. Does this sound like someone on a “search for the facts?” “Mrs. Sheehan wants what many of President Bush’s critics have howled for since the American invasion of Iraq in March 2003. The 48-year-old Vacaville, Calif., woman wants a coherent explanation for why her son and more than 1,800 other sons and daughters have died in Iraq. “Like the rest of the nation, she doesn’t buy the justifications, long since discredited, about the 9/11 connection and the existence of WMDs in that country. Most of all, Mrs. Sheehan wants an accounting from President Bush for a policy based on erroneous assumptions.” [RWC] As an alleged newspaper, you would think the PG would know the Bush administration never used an Iraq “9/11 connection” to justify the Iraq War. The editorial author needs to read the Iraq War Resolution. “Erroneous assumptions?” While the world’s pre-war WMD intelligence appears to have been wrong, President Bush didn’t base his decisions on “assumptions.” President Bush and Congress based their decisions on data and conclusions provided by both domestic and foreign intelligence agencies. “Last week, she began keeping vigil several miles down the road from the president’s ranch in Crawford, Texas. The Secret Service and the local police are monitoring the situation. Raw pain of the kind she’s expressed so articulately makes them nervous. Meanwhile, President Bush clears brush on his ranch in splendid isolation, insulated from criticism of all kinds.” [RWC] The very fact the PG published this editorial and the “news” media carry this story is proof President Bush is not “insulated from criticism of all kinds.” “Much has been made by conservative critics of the meeting last year that Mrs. Sheehan and more than a dozen parents of soldiers killed in Iraq had with the president; she left with kind things to say. Since most citizens never get a chance to meet with the president no matter how legitimate their complaint, the critics insist that George Bush need not sit down with her twice.” [RWC] The editorial glossed over the “kind things” said by Ms. Sheehan. Though not a supporter of the Iraq War even a year ago, here’s what Ms. Sheehan said about her meeting with President Bush in June 2004. “I now know he’s sincere about wanting freedom for the Iraqis. I know he’s sorry and feels some pain for our loss. And I know he’s a man of faith.” According to Sheehan’s hometown newspaper, Ms. Sheehan “asked the president to make her son’s sacrifice count for something.”1 Pat Sheehan (Casey’s father and Cindy’s husband) had the following to say at the time: “We have a lot of respect for the office of the president, and I have a new respect for him because he was sincere and he didn’t have to take the time to meet with us.” The article also stated, “Pat noted that Bush wasn’t stumping for votes or trying to gain a political edge for the upcoming election.” “They have also tagged her a ‘liberal propagandist’ in league with the likes of Michael Moore because she knows how to craft a press release. While she may have much in common with the president’s critics, that doesn’t make her a pawn of political interests. In fact, the longer she seeks an explanation from the president, the more this average citizen speaks for average Americans.” [RWC] I think you’ll find the “liberal propagandist” tag is for more than “she knows how to craft a press release.” At least some of the crew with Ms. Sheehan in Crawford is from MoveOn.org, Code Pink, and the usual “anti-war” groups. In addition, AP reported those with Ms. Sheehan were chanting, “W killed her son.” and “Impeach the Chicken-Hawk-in-Chief.” During the 2004 presidential campaign, Ms. Sheehan appeared in a MoveOn.org anti-Bush campaign ad. Sheehan appeared before Rep. John Conyers’ (D-MI) June “hearing” about the Downing Street “memo.” Sheehan is a co-founder of Gold Star Families for Peace. The list goes on. You can guess why the editorial failed to note these associations. We now also know a prime organizer (Lisa Fithian) of Camp Cindy was also involved with the violent riots in 1999 during the WTO meetings in Seattle. Regarding crafting a press release, those are handled by Fenton Communications, a firm that serves the PR needs of liberal groups. “Ben” of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream foots the bill for the services Fenton provides Ms. Sheehan. As of August 14th, Ms. Sheehan is also blaming Israel for terrorism in the Middle East. The Drudge Report quotes Sheehan as saying, “You get America out of Iraq and Israel out of Palestine and you’ll stop the terrorism.” If Ms. Sheehan doesn’t have some other agenda or is not “pawn of political interests,” how do we explain her change of heart? Of the June 2004 meeting Ms. Sheehan told Wolf Blitzer on CNN, “We wanted to use the time for him [President Bush] to know that he killed an indispensable part of our family and humanity. Every time we tried to talk about Casey and how much we missed him, he would change the subject. And he acted like it was a party. He came in very jovial, and like we should be happy that he, our son, died for his misguided policies.”2 How do you get from Sheehan’s 2004 comments about the meeting with President Bush to those she made on August 7th? At this point, Ms. Sheehan is simply regurgitating liberal talking points.
Ms. Sheehan is an “average citizen?” Ms.
Sheehan doesn’t think so. She now believes she’s a historical figure.
According to the LA Times, Ms.
Sheehan said, “When you read about the Camp “Any mother who lost her son to the Iraq war has a right to ask the president why. She has a right to ask, after all of the rejected rationales for this bloody episode, why the White House continues to seek more sacrifice, from more mothers and more soldiers. “Cindy Sheehan is simply doing what others like her don’t have the fortitude to do. Americans should applaud her courage and hope that someday the rancher in Crawford gives her an answer.” [RWC] This is a no-win situation for President Bush and the anti-Bush crowd knows it. If President Bush refuses to meet with Ms. Sheehan again, he will be portrayed as evasive and heartless. If President Bush meets with Sheehan, there’s nothing he can tell her that will make her happy and again he’ll be portrayed as insensitive. According the Drudge Report, much of the Sheehan family disagrees with Cindy Sheehan’s actions. “The family of American soldier Casey Sheehan, who was killed in Iraq on April 4, 2004, has broken its silence and spoken out against his mother Cindy Sheehan’s anti-war vigil against George Bush held outside the president’s Crawford, Texas ranch. “The following email was received by the DRUDGE REPORT from Casey’s aunt and godmother: “‘Our family has been so distressed by the recent activities of Cindy we are breaking our silence and we have collectively written a statement for release. Feel free to distribute it as you wish. “‘Thanks, Cherie “‘In response to questions regarding the Cindy Sheehan/Crawford Texas issue: Sheehan Family Statement: “‘The Sheehan Family lost our beloved Casey in the Iraq War and we have been silently, respectfully grieving. We do not agree with the political motivations and publicity tactics of Cindy Sheehan. She now appears to be promoting her own personal agenda and notoriety at the expense of her son’s good name and reputation. The rest of the Sheehan Family supports the troops, our country, and our President, silently, with prayer and respect. “‘Sincerely, “‘Casey Sheehan’s grandparents, aunts, uncles and numerous cousins.’” 1. Bush, Sheehans share moments; David Henson; TheReporter.com; June 24, 2004. 2. CNN Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer; CNN.com; August 7, 2005. 3. War Debate, and Emotions, Spill Over in Texas; Peter Wallsten; Los Angeles Times; August 28, 2005. © 2004-2005 Robert W. Cox, all rights reserved. |
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