Washington Post Protest - DSM

[Kevin Spidel]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Metro Area Downing Street Papers Working Group
JUNE 27, 2005 Betsy Harmon, 703-528-8066
12:00 PM

Protest to Target Washington Post Under-Reporting of Downing Street Papers

WHAT: PICKET LINE AND DEMONSTRATION
WHEN: 5:00 PM, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 29
WHERE: 1150 15TH ST., NW, WASHINGTON, DC

Members of a growing list of organizations concerned about the continued failure by the Washington Post in particular and much of the mainstream media in general to adequately cover the eight “Downing Street Papers,” will conduct a peaceful protest in front of the Washington, D. C. offices of the Washington Post from 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM on Wednesday, June 29.

The demonstration has already been endorsed by the Progressive Democrats of America, Code Pink, Northern Virginians United for Peace and Justice, with more groups signing on every day. Members of the DC Anti-War Network (DAWN), Gold Star Families for Peace, and other organizations will also participate in the demonstration.

The eight documents in question are the private briefing papers, letters, and minutes of meetings of the top level of the British Government, including Prime Minister Tony Blair and Britain’s foreign secretary, head of intelligence, and ambassador to the U.S., among others, in March 2002 and July 2002. Their authenticity is not in question; the British Foreign Office has confirmed they are all genuine. Their reliability is also not in question, as they are the private perceptions and statements of the named individuals at the highest level of America’s closest ally.

The story they reveal is shocking, contrary to the Post and other media’s characterization of them as “old news.” Collectively, they reveal that by no later than March 2002, the Bush Administration had decided to effect “regime change” in Iraq by military means, that Tony Blair had signed on to support that invasion, and that all the reasons later given—weapons of mass destruction, ties to Al Qaeda, and violation of UN resolutions—were known in March of 2002 not to constitute a valid or legal basis for war. The documents reveal a secret agreement between the Blair and Bush administrations to concoct a pretext that would make the admittedly illegal invasion appear legal and justifiable. The pretext decided on was to force inspections on Saddam Hussein that were so intrusive he would refuse to comply, goading him into providing an excuse to invade. These actions, if true, are a gross violation of the Constitution and, as such, are impeachable offenses.

The groups and individuals supporting this demonstration demand that the Washington Post, as the flagship newspaper of our nation’s capital, cease its belittling, under-reporting, and misreporting of these documents, publish all eight documents in full, and pursue this story fully. In addition, they demand it fully cover efforts in Congress to introduce and pass a Resolution of Inquiry to conduct a complete investigation of these documents.
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[Oversea Visitor]

1. Think

a boycott of all advertisers product in WaPo will wake them up to reality.
No advertising revenue equals bye bye WaPo

[Catrina]

2. Excellent!

Wish I could be there. But this was the truth, according to Michael Smith!! The story they reveal is shocking, contrary to the Post and other media’s characterization of them as “old news.” To them it WAS old knews. See excerpt from Michael Smith's article in today's Sun Times. I thought the memos first came out on May 1st. But he says they US press were told about them EIGHT MONTHS AGO and were NOT INTERESTED!

Could that be why they tried to downplay them? Guilt, because they had not published them, so they dismissed them as 'old news'? I wondered about that, since they were definitely NOT old news to me!

After reporting these secret memos, which revealed the dubious manoeuvrings of government, I expected the US press to react. Surely there would be a storm of anger over the way in which the American public had been deceived into going to war? But still there was no interest. Then slowly something astonishing happened. People power took over.

The Sunday Times website was inundated with ordinary US citizens wanting to read the minutes of the July meeting. Bloggers set to work passing the word. Six ordinary, patriotic citizens with no political axe to grind were so outraged to discover the truth about the path to war that they set up their own website, naming it after the minutes, which had become known as the Downing Street memo.

"http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-1669292_2,00.html"

So to Dana Milbank, and to the rest of the US media, May 1st was not the first time they heard about the DSM. They had known about them for eight months ~ and when we pushed them, their attitude was 'we already know about them' and were couldn't understand their blase attitude. Now, I do.