I Come to Praise Helen Thomas, Not to Bury Her by Will Pitt

[sinkingfeeling]

http://truthout.org/i-come-praise-helen-thomas-not-bury-her60258

I refuse, I absolutely refuse, to let this one incident become the thing everyone remembers about Helen Thomas. That would be a sin equally as great as the one she committed with her words, and it would give cover to the mainstream press cretins who always wished she would go away, because she exposed them for what they really are.

Frauds. Mouthpieces. Dupes. Willing participants. Colluders. Conspirators. Traitors. That's what much of the press has become over the last ten years, but not Thomas. Never Thomas. Much of the outrage directed at Thomas today isn't based on her comments about Israel, but are, instead, a barbaric yawp from a pack of liars who are thrilled to see her gone, as it means they no longer have to look at themselves in that mirror she held up with her life, her career and her uncompromising way of speaking actual truth to power.

Had the press and the Bush administration paid heed to Helen Thomas, there would not be 5,000 new graves at Arlington National Cemetery. There would not be 40,000 plus wounded American soldiers. There would not be thousands and thousands more suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and other ailments, who are unable to get proper treatment from an over-stressed Veterans Affairs' system. There would not have been soldiers left to rot in Walter Reed. There would not be more than a million dead and maimed Iraqis. The Sunnis would not have been massacred, and Iran would not now be in full control of Iraq. There would not have been hundreds of billions of our tax dollars poured into the sand and into the coffers of Bush-friendly "defense" contractors; they call our current economic situation the "Great Recession," but by rights, it should be called the "Iraq Recession," and it would not be as bad as it is had we listened to Helen Thomas.

I am sorry she said what she did. It was very stupid, and perhaps even justifies the termination of her six-decade career. That, as I said, is for others to decide. I stand today to remind any and all that one bad act does not erase a lifetime of excellence. She is gone, and perhaps rightly so, but we were a better country while she labored for us, when she asked the tough questions, when she stood before the powerful and called them liars to their faces.
Thank you, Helen Thomas. For everything.

[Ian David]

1. As usual, Bill hits it on the head.

Don't let Helen Thomas' bigotry detract from the great work she did prior to her "Jews should go back to Germany" diatribe.

The fact that Helen Thomas hates Jews does not diminish any of the non-Jew-related work she has done over the years.

I, for one, am not sorry that I once sent her flowers.

[atreides1]

2. Using that Broad Brush Ian

So, one comment from Helen Thomas, and now she "hates Jews". Is that like if you are against Israel's policies you're an anti-semite? Or, you're a traitor if you are against the policies of the US government?

You made the claim, now where can the rest of us find her other "hates Jews" comments?

[Jefferson23]

3. I found Helen's response to the question she was asked

more than disappointing, actually, it was a pitiful response. When I think how informed she is, she had an opportunity to enlighten Americans on the subject but she did not. What followed truly angered me, the reaction by those calling for her to be fired. Many of the most vile voices writing opinion and POLICY in the recent past, bigotry aimed at Muslims, their religion, and on and on... who the fuck do they think they're kidding calling out Helen from their high horse!


Helen Thomas did not express the acceptable bigotry that is allowed in politics today, that is why she is gone now. Politicians get away
with all kinds of bigoted remarks stated right from the floor of Congress..nothing happens to them, no consequences.