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FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

Media Bias Against

Biden’s Decision

“Over the past few days, the images from Afghanistan have put on vivid display an inability to plan, an underestimation of a foreign adversary, an ineffective effort to scramble and make up for it and, as Biden demonstrated in a brief address Monday, an attempt to deflect full Nicholas F. Benton responsibility.” This quote by Matt Viser, in a front page article entitled “Chaos Undercuts President’s Vows of a Steady Hand,” in the Washington Post this Tuesday, Aug. FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS 17, constitutes an egregious violation of journalistic standards for its highly biased and opinionated characterization coming in the immediate aftermath of the Biden administration’s decision to end the 20 year debacle in Afghanistan. It is represensible and shameful for its effort to sway public opinion in the context of a so-called news article.

It is a blight on honest journalism. On the Post’s front page, this alleged news article about the situation in Afghanistan, including in one run-on sentence, contains no less than five highly-slanted negative assertions about Biden and his decision. Fortunately, this bald-faced attempt to sway public opinion has failed to work, at least so far, as polls show over 73 percent of Americans favor Biden’s decision.

Biden’s Afghanistan decision needs to be seen in the context of the historic infrastructure and national budget priority bills passed last week. Taken together, they shift in a massive way national priorities on economic development and investment in the nation’s future.

On the one hand, they trigger an enormous new level of investment in the well-being of the nation and its people. On the other hand, they draw down the obscene numbers that have gone to prop up the nation’s war profiteering machine with guns, not butter. For Biden and his agenda, the good news of last week’s legislative victories are complemented by his decisions this week about pulling out of Afghanistan. Together, they represent one seamless whole, something that is clearly lost not only on his critics, but so-called objective journalists alike.

As far as the Afghani situation is concerned, one of the best and most succinct observations was published on Facebook by a powerful journalist and former friend, a respected contributor to the American Prospect, Mother Jones, the Nation and other publications. Robert Dreyfus summed up his view thusly, not shrouded in slanted excesses, but straightforwardly:

“Let me just say that I agree 100 percent with President Biden’s decision to end the war in Afghanistan. 100 percent. It should have ended many years ago, and in fact it was the wrong move in 2001 to invade Afghanistan in the first place.

“President Bush II was wrong to go in, and neither he nor any of his aides knew anything about the country they went to war against. It was not, as Obama called it, the ‘good war.’

“The debate will turn political here, with Republicans blaming Biden’s decision to pull out, and Democrats pointing to President Trump’s decision to strike a deal with the Taliban last year. But this war was lost before it started, just like the far more catastrophic one in Vietnam.”

Well said. Of course, there is going to be pain associated with this courageous decision by Biden, and that also should not be sugar-coated. But we have a president now who is willing to stand for his decisive decisions and not pander to public opinion or political pressures brought to bear. His political supporters need to redouble their resolve to stand with him on this monumental decision that will bring an end to a terrible period in our history.

In real life, contrary to fictions and fantastical story telling, few things come without difficult and painful consequences. While these should never be minimized or glossed over, it is most valuable to remind the public that embracing these downsides is evidence of political courage and leadership, not the opposite.

The wholesale collapse of the Afghani resistance to the Taliban has only confirmed the necessity of President Biden’s decision. It demonstrated that there was, and is, no appetite among the Afghani people for defending a regime or military propped up by an outside force. History teaches us a painful lesson in this regard.

 Nicholas Benton may be emailed at nfbenton@fcnp.com.

COMMENT

AUGUST 19 – 25, 2021 | PAGE 15

The county fair last year was de-scheduled due to the coronavirus. This week it returns, but still not free from the pandemic’s tentacles.

“We are asking everyone to MASK up when indoors at the fair,” says county spokeswoman Bryna Helfer. “The fair will also host a Vaccination Clinic — so folks can get VAXED up too. As always, we encourage everyone to wash their hands, social-distance where possible, and stay home if they are sick.”

The county’s Complete Vaccination Committee will be at the fairground at Thomas Jefferson Community Center Aug. 20 – 22 to continue outreach for the jab. Many valiant community groups, for-profit, nonprofit and political, will be present for exposure — and fund-raising.

I’ll be there, not on the tilt-awhirl, but to help man the booth for the Arlington Historical Society. There you can test your local history knowledge, find your home’s site on an 1898 map, and perhaps be inspired to donate toward the society’s upgrading of its museum at the Hume School.

The Historical Society provides a daily broadcast “On This Day in Arlington History’’ for Arlington Independent Media’s WERA (96.7 FM).

AIM, as I was recently reminded by longtime folkie radio host Mary Cliff, has been concerned about a budget crunch since the county manager announced a coming cutoff in funding. Cliff’s Saturday Night

Our Man in Arlington “Traditions” show moved By Charlie Clark to AIM after decades at WAVA, WETA, and WAMU (I’ve been her fan since the 1980s). My own WERA experiences in the studio at Wilson Boulevard and Franklin Street include appearances on the real estate show “This Sold House” and Andrew Schneider’s local affairs discussions. But for the past 15 months, “AIM was forced to suspend most of our revenue producing activities,” I was told by longtime producer Jackie Steven. Those frozen activities included “in-person media production classes and camps, facility rentals and commercial production work, causing the loss of essential streams of operating income for the organization. “Even in the face of these challenges,” she said, “AIM remained committed to our core mission of providing people access to media education and production technology so they may produce content that informs, educates and entertains the community.” The good news is that AIM received two loans, totaling $176,390, under the Small Business Administration Payroll Protection Program, as AIM president Lynn Borton said in a recent report. But a balanced budget depends “on our ongoing fundraising efforts and members’ continuing support” ($60,000 in individual contributions this fiscal year). The search is on for a new executive director, and the building is under discussion for a sale, though that doesn’t necessarily mean a move. Scouts are identifying potential locations in Green Valley, along Columbia Pike and Lee Highway (now Langston Boulevard).

On the upside, Borton added, “several shows are back live on WERA, with more coming on each week. We’re retraining folks to return to the studios and enjoying having a few more people around the building now!” **

Arlington (plus Falls Church, Fairfax and Loudoun) got a mention on the HBO live comedycommentary show “Real Time with Bill Maher,” Aug. 13.

Examining the nothingbut-bad news coming out of Afghanistan, the host noted Census Bureau numbers showing that the wealthiest counties in the country are nearly all in D.C. suburbs.

Local defense contractors, during the 20 years of U.S. presence in that war-ravaged nation, continued to do well. **

At a funeral service at Columbia Gardens Aug. 15, attendees watched two bicyclists riding the cemetery paths.

The deceased was Arlingtonto-the-bone Rosemary Trone Lewis, 97, the mother of my good friend Todd. She grew up in Clarendon, attended Henry Clay Elementary, graduated in 1941 from Washington-Lee High School, was active for 64 years at Clarendon United Methodist and taught girls’ gym at several Arlington schools.

As the officiant mentioned during the ceremony, Rosemary also rode her bike through Columbia Gardens — nine decades before.