Marine Leaving After Iraq Documentary

[Nambe]

United Press International

WASHINGTON - A U.S. Marine featured in the Iraq documentary "Control Room" may leave his Armed Forces career after superiors silenced him from talking about the film.

Lt. Josh Rushing, a 14-year Marine veteran, plans to leave the service in October because of conflicts arising from his appearance in "Control Room." The film is an inside look at the war through the lenses of al Jazeera's journalists based at U.S. Central Command headquarters in Doha, Qatar, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday.

Rushing is never shown doubting the U.S. war effort, but the film shows a budding friendship between the Marine and al Jazeera reporter Hassan Ibrahim, as well as moments on camera when Rushing wrestles with the reality of war.

Rushing has been prohibited from giving any more interviews about his part in the film and has been told to alsokeep his wife quiet --all of which have lead to his impending retirement, insiders said. ...

Ride Don’t Drive It’s Global Cool

[Plaid Adder]

1. That really sucks.

I saw *Control Room* last weekend. It was disappointing to me in some ways, but Rushing was one of the most interesting things in it. He comes across as a sincere guy who is trying to do his job without letting it turn him into a callous emotionless robot who can only spout back the party line.

The moment at which Rushing "wrestles with the reality of war" most obviously is when he talks about what it was like for him seeing the Al Jazeera footage of the captured American POWS and the dead American soldiers a day after seeing Al Jazeera footage of civilian casualties from an American bombing campaign. He says that he realized that the Al Jazeera guys must have been just as upset to see the footage of the dead Iraqi civilians as he was to see the footage of the dead American soldiers, and that when that occurred to him it started bothering him that he wasn't more upset by the images of the dead Iraqi civilians.

This is a reason to silence a guy?

Similarly, at the end of the film he talks about how nobody in America sees the Iraq war and Palestine as related, but everyone he talks to in Doha believes they're the exact same issue. Interesting insight, would be nice if someone brought that back to the Pentagon to give them some kind of clue about where the lack of flowers came from. But no, they're just going to silence him because it embarrasses them that one media relations guy in Qatar can figure out stuff that utterly baffles the brass hats.

This is really sad,

The Plaid Adder

[lostnfound]

7. Why were you disappointed? I thought it was a great film.

I highly recommend to others, especially if they are interested in media issues.

[Plaid Adder]

9. I just didn't think I learned that much from it.

I would have liked to know more about the history of the network, how it was put together, where all the reporters come from (I was intrigued by that comment about how "everyone who works for the BBC eventually works for Al Jazeera," but it was never followed up), and I would have liked to see more of what it was like for the reporters in Iraq (the title should have been a tipoff, I suppose, but I was disappointed that the film never got out of Doha).

I'm not saying don't go see it; I think it is an interesting film and for people who have never wondered what it was like to experience the war from the other side or who don't understand how totally canned and manipulated the American war coverage is, I'm sure it would be important. But I would have liked a little more history and analysis to go with the experiential stuff.

C ya,

The Plaid Adder

[TahitiNut]

2. "keep his wife quiet"???

How about "barefoot, pregnant, and in the kitchen where she belongs"??

Sheesh!! :puke:

[ScreamingMeemie]

4. You said if for me, Mike.

Thanks. :puke: is right.

[DarbyUSMC]

6. The unspoken rule is that if the Marine Corps wanted you to have a wife,

one would have been issued to you. In other words, if you choose to marry and not put "God, Country, Corps" first, you may find that the Corps isn't the place for you. That is taking it to the limit and 99 percent of the time it doesn't come into play. In reality, the family should be an asset to the Marine not a liability. It isn't as bad as it seems. Just as John Kerry's wife is a welcomed maverick after having the Stepford wife of * as first lady, I'm sure the wives of politicians are urged to smile pretty and not say anything controversial. Teresa is a breath of fresh air and I hope she keeps it up. It's about time. This Marine in the article is leaving the Corps so I'm sure he isn't worried about the consequences if his wife should "get out of line."

[supernova]

3. This is terrible.

So long career. I feel for him having to give up so much of something he as invested himself in for so long.

As for keeping his wife quiet, "Shove it!"

It would be better for him to retire so he can talk about it.

[gratuitous]

5. The guy's turning useless

A soldier, sailor or marine who starts wondering what it's all about, and who begins questioning whether he's just being used as a tool for other interests, interests that he might not share, ceases to be useful.

The military is absolutely right to jettison someone like that. And I wish his raised consciousness would spread to his comrades like a cold through a child care center.

[Voltaire99]

8. Great post! (n/t)

[sandboxface]

10. KICK

[Logansquare]

11. I hope there is a place for him in mainstream media

He's a thoughtful person who seemed capable of seeing both sides of the issues, and we could use more like him.