SICKOFITRADLZ: Fight calls for censorship, we need free speech

Free speech. Ava and C.I. made that the focus of their latest piece at THIRD "Media: Free Speech" and they noted their surprise about the blue hairs opposed to free speech today:

We would prefer no one watched that film but only if they were making that choice. We don't believe in censorship and we certainly don't believe in banning in the arts.
We'd love to tell you that was a winning argument in the talks we participated in; however, that wasn't the case. Turns out that the blue hairs of today actually do have blue hair . . . and purple hair and hair of every color. Somehow a very basic position, free speech, has become controversial and little discussed.
That's fine. At its heart, America doesn't like censorship. All this will take is a few years of addressing this issue.

I hoped they were wrong about that -- the taking years part. I hoped that we'd see more cries for free speech. But now I see Nick Barrickman (WSWS) reports:

An opinion piece published in the Washington Post last week by ESPN sportswriter and journalism professor at the University of Maryland Kevin Blackistone calls on the news media to censor images of police brutality and killings of African Americans.

The column, titled “Why I can’t watch the police videos anymore,” is accompanied by a short video (“This is why the media should not replay viral videos of black men being killed”), in which Blackistone, who is African American, demands that media outlets “give greater consideration to how they display these deaths.” What is implied is that such videos should be removed or their viewings limited by those in control.
According to Blackistone, “[w]e don’t see people having visceral reactions” to filmed episodes of sadistic police violence. Instead, “they watch this as if it’s theater.”
By people, Blackistone clearly means “white people.” This inference is made clear when he likens police brutality caught on film to postcard images of lynchings in the Deep South in the early 20th century. Asserting that such videos have “never been in opposition to the inhumanity of these acts,” Blackistone asks, “How many times have you seen a slain white body in the media?”
One might ask what gives Blackistone such penetrating insight into the thought processes of the millions of people who view the videos of police beatings and murder that so frequently “go viral” in the United States. It is likely that his assertions about the reactions of white viewers are more a reflection of his conceptions than theirs.
In fact, in the years since the 2014 police slaying of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, dozens of bystander videos of police violence against unarmed people, white as well as black, have sparked angry protests against police brutality. In Ferguson in 2014 and Baltimore in 2015, following the police killing of Freddie Gray, declarations of emergency were issued and National Guard troops deployed to put down widespread protests, which spread beyond those cities to cities and towns across the country.

I don't need "death porn" and I do understand how it can seem that way to some who are watching the media. But let's be clear that George Floyd's murder had the impact it did because (a) it was the latest in a long line of police murders and (b) it was caught on phone cameras.

I think Blackistone is horrible person for what he's advocating for. We need to see crimes. If someone wants to turn away or needs to, okay, fine. But don't you dare give the media an excuse to not cover the murders. Shame on anyone advocating for that. And if the murder is caught on tape? That needs to be broadcast. We need to see what is happening -- not the lie of they were 'resisting.' Shame on Blackistone. If he's truly that stupid, he should just stick to sports -- both in commenting and in watching. I'm sorry that the very real violence in the very real world is too much for his soft, sensitive hands. But the rest of us can't afford to turn away.

Here's C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"

Wednesday, June 17, 2020. Turkey has invaded Iraq yet again with ground troops. Yet again, western media searches for alternative words for "invasion."

Isn't it cute the way the play and pretend -- video or text report? That's FRANCE 24. Below is ARAB NEWS.

ALJAZEERA runs with "Turkey sends special forces into northern Iraq," "AP with "Turkey moves troops against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq" and DEUTSCHE WELLE with "Turkey launches offensive against Kurdish rebels in Iraq."

Is reporting that hard? Or is lying just that easy?

Invades.

That's the accurate term. As in: Turkey invades Iraq.

If Mexico sent troops into California or Texas today, the US press would be saying, "Mexico Invades US."

Its ten paragraphs into the DW report before you come across this:

The government of Iraq summoned the Turkish ambassador on Tuesday to protest the initial aerial offensive. Baghdad called the airstrikes a violation of its sovereignty and said it broke international law.

AP waits until its tenth paragraph to note Iraqi objection:
Iraq's government however, summoned the Turkish ambassador on Tuesday to protest against the aerial offensive.

AP can't be bothered with noting issues like sovereignty or international law.

From yesterday's snapshot:

The Turkish government calls it Operation Claw-Eagle, the world should be calling it what it is: terrorism. And it continues daily including today. This morning, THE JERUSALEM POST notes:

Turkish aircraft and Iranian artillery targeted the town of Haji Omeran in the Erbil Governorate of Iraq on Tuesday, according to Sky News Arabia.

Haji Omeran is located along the Iran-Iraq border in northeastern Iraq.

The district mayor of Haji Omeran, Farzang Ahmed, told Rudaw that Iranian artillery has targeted Iranian Kurdish opposition groups in the area before, but that Turkish strikes on the area were unheard of.

"We suspect that the two sides are in coordination, because this is the first time that Turkey has bombed this region," said Ahmed to Rudaw. "This region is frequently and every year under Iran's shelling, on the grounds that they are targeting Kurdish opposition parties."

This is terrorism. The US government remains silent. The world remains silent. Day after day, year after year, Turkey violates Iraq's sovereignty and terrorizes people who live in northern Iraq. Hiwa Shilani (KURDISTAN 24) reports:

The Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday announced that it had summoned the ambassador of Turkey in Iraq and handed him a complaint memo condemning the violation of Iraqi sovereignty and its airspace after recent Turkish airstrikes in the Kurdistan Region.
A statement from the foreign ministry announced that Iraq had “summoned” Turkish Ambassador Fatih Yildiz “against the backdrop of the Turkish bombing that affected a number of regions in northern Iraq, causing terror to the population, and spreading panic among them.”
“Ambassador Abdul Karim Hashim met the Turkish ambassador and delivered him a protest note, which included the Iraqi government’s condemnation of violations of the sanctity, sovereignty, and Iraqi airspace.”

TASNIM notes:

The Arab Parliament -- the legislative arm of the Arab League -- on Tuesday denounced Turkey’s recent raids in Iraq, calling on Ankara to respect the sovereignty of its neighbor and put an end to its unilateral military operations there.

Arab Parliament Speaker Meshaal bin Fahim al-Salami said in a statement that “these actions are an infringement on the sovereignty of Iraq, a flagrant violation of the Charter of the United Nations, international law and international norms, and in violation of Security Council resolutions.”
The statement also voiced support for Iraq’s stance against Turkey’s moves.
Iraqi lawmakers also reacted to the latest developments, condemning Ankara’s operations in a statement and calling on the Baghdad government to take action to protect civilians and stop Turkish violations of the country’s sovereignty.

I'm confused here, is the Arab League a non-entity to AP, DW and other outlets?

Here's how AP could have written their story:

Today, Turkey invaded Iraq with foot soldiers on the ground. This is part of the 'new' attack labeled Operation Claw-Eagle which is also reported by some as Operation Claw-Tiger. The operation is said to target the PKK but the reality is that it targets Iraqi civilians and has left thousands of Iraqis wounded and many dead. The PKK has headquarters in the mountains of northern Iraq. Aaron Hess (International Socialist Review) described the PKK in 2008, "The PKK emerged in 1984 as a major force in response to Turkey's oppression of its Kurdish population. Since the late 1970s, Turkey has waged a relentless war of attrition that has killed tens of thousands of Kurds and driven millions from their homes. The Kurds are the world's largest stateless population -- whose main population concentration straddles Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria -- and have been the victims of imperialist wars and manipulation since the colonial period. While Turkey has granted limited rights to the Kurds in recent years in order to accommodate the European Union, which it seeks to join, even these are now at risk."

Dropping bombs from the sky earlier this week resulted in an attack on a refugee camp which left dozens of children injured. Time and again, civilians are the targets though the Turkish government always insists otherwise. Everyone the Turkish government harms, they label a "terrorist" or a "PKK fighter." Even when it's children and the press takes a moment to note this reality, the Turkish government never apologizes and never acknowledges that they've killed civilians.

These attacks, these acts of terrorism, have been carried out for over and over since the start of the Iraq War. On Tuesday, the Iraqi government lodged an objection with Turkey over the violation of international law and of Iraq's sovereignty. In addition, the Arab League, an international organization created in 1945, weighed in on Tuesday with a rebuke to Turkey over its actions.

XINHUA notes today:

The residents of ten Iraqi villages near the border with Turkey were displaced due to a military offensive by the Turkish forces on Wednesday on suspected positions of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq, the Iraqi official television reported.
The Turkish artillery and aircraft bombardment on border areas of Zakho, Haftanin and nearby villages forced the residents of ten villages to leave their homes to safer areas, the state-run Iraqiya channel said.

This is terrorism. Families in ten different villages have had to flee their homes because Turkey is attacking. Terrorism. Call it what it is.

Halgurd Sherwani (KURDISTAN 24) reports:

On May 21, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), in the last five months, 77 percent of armed clashes and military operations involving Turkey and the PKK have taken place inside the Kurdistan Region, in northern Iraq, while only 23 percent of such incidents have occurred inside Turkey.
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has repeatedly told Ankara to cease airstrikes within the Kurdistan Region and has been critical of the PKK for using its territory as a base from which to conduct operations within Turkey.

Terrorism. And terrorist is what Recep Tayyip Erdogan is. He's the thug who's dictator of Turkey -- apparently for life. He was titled prime minister from 2003 to 2014. In 2014, he began using the title president. Terrorist is the only title he's ever won the right to.

Some might argue he's also won the title "garbage" due to his proposal that rapists marry their victims and then they would be set free (that would set free 3000 rapists at the time he proposed it in 2016) but that's actually just another example of how he's a terrorist.
Let's remember that in May 2017, Andrea Mitchell and Erik Ortiz (NBC NEWS) reported:

Bodyguards belonging to the Turkish president's security detail were involved in Tuesday's mass brawl outside the Turkish ambassador's residence here, senior U.S. officials confirmed to NBC News.

The well-dressed guards in suits and ties were captured on social media purportedly showing protesters being kicked and bloodied as uniformed authorities tried to contain the flaring violence. Nine people were hurt and two others were arrested, police said Wednesday, although none of those detained were guards — raising questions about their impunity under the law.

That's just how he rolls. And he gets away with it. The US lets him get away with it over and over again. He attacks the people in Turkey as well and the US looks the other way. You hear Medea Benjamin and others scream and yell about Saudi Arabia but they never say a word about Turkey. Not even when Recep is proposing pardoning rapists. Not when he's using his goon squad to attack peaceful protesters in Turkey.

I know what the US gets out of their silence -- that mountain operation base near the Kurdish border that Turkey gave to the CIA. I'm not sure what Medea and others get out of their silence.

At THE INDEPENDENT, Ahmed Aboudouh offers:
Shrapnel of the troubled relationship between the civilian-turned-general Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his military have shattered many countries in the Middle East. The failed military coup of July 2016 re-energised the most dangerous of Erdogan’s obsessions – the fear that he will be pushed out of power by the military.
The massive purge in the army’s ranks following the failed putsch was aimed at repositioning the army’s role in Turkish political life, and in doing so, neutering it as a threat to the presidency. Having cleaned up the forces from all followers of Fethullah Gulen and his other opponents, Erdogan is now on a mission to reshape the military in his own image.

In recent years, the Turkish president has allowed Islamist allies of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) to tighten their grip on critical military posts. The purge was not only a process of sidelining officers with different political leanings but an attempt to Islamise the army too.
The intensity of this military-civil mutual fear has helped to form Turkey’s expansionism abroad based on its military might. This is very obvious in the ongoing Libyan civil war, where Turkey’s military support of the Tripoli government, against general Khalifa Haftar, has altered the war balance.

Early on Wednesday, Ankara launched land operation Claw-Tiger against the strongholds of the insurgent Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) in Northern Iraq – seen by many as an invasion of Turkey’s neighbouring country.

The following sites updated: