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Target Iraq: What the News Media Didn't Tell You

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The authors point out the media dosen't cover the hundred thousand civillian deaths in the first gulf war; dosen't refer to the destruction of Iraq's water and sewage treatment systems and just about all the rest of Iraq's civillian infrastructure by the bombings...

Erlich has a section devoted to wheather this coming war is about oil. He notes that the U.S. would greatly prefer to get its hands directly on Iraqi oil: a post-Saddam Iraqi government would probably privitize the industry into the hands of U.S. companies and adopt the oil policies the U.S. likes at OPEC. He quotes an article from the British press apparently sourced from British Petroleum that Ahmad Chalabi, head of the INC met with officials from three American oil companies and promised to divide Iraq's oil resources between them as a reward for the U.S. toppling Saddam. Not that they wouldn't want to do business w/Saddam...Dick Cheney as head of Haliburton advocated lifting sanctions on Iraq before he became the VP canidate. Haliburton stands to get huge reconstruction contracts for Iraq's oil industry after the war.

Solomon points out how the U.S. got security council authorization in the last war. Yemen lost 70 million dollars in aid in late 1990 for vetoing a U.S. rough draft resolution and other rotating security council members were threatened w/a similar fate. Similarly in late 2002 Mauritius withdrew its UN ambassador after he opposed a U.S. rough draft, not willing to risk a cut-off of U.S. aid.

Seth Ackerman of FAIR has a section on media treatment of the U.S. using inspections to spy and scout targets for bombing.

Appendix 2 is an analyses by Institute for Public accuracy experts of George W. Bush's speech in Cincinanti on October 7th. They respond to the president's pieties about stopping evil dictators from terrorising the world by pointing to the U.S. funding of Suharto's bloody rule and occupation of East Timor, the U.S. support for perpetrators of aggression like Morroco, Turkey and Israel and its own invastion of Panamma in contravention of UN resoultions and its refusal to pay billions in reparations to Nicaragua as called for by the World Court for its support of the terrorist contras. Others point out that the U.S. authorized the sending to Iraq of the seed stock of Iraq and many other lethal biological agents in the 80's when Saddam really was dangerous.

The experts like Phyllis Bennis, Francis Boyle, Mahajan, Glen Ragwala and James Jennings point out how resolution 1441 calls for the Iraq to grant access to stuff it has never been required to give accounting of before like possible unmanned aerial veichles, their parts and paperwork related to them as well as all Ballistic missle parts and records instead of just missles with a range of over 150 KM. It required Iraq to turn over all materials and records related to its chemical manufactuers even those unrelated to WMD within thirty days, a very impossible task to create 100 percent accounting for, giving the U.S. the opportunity to declare Iraq in material breach. It called for the inspectors to bring any equipment into Iraq that they wished obviously including devices that could be used for spying and the power to declare unspecified areas "exclusion zones"...The inspectors have the right to demand any Iraqi citizen and their families be taken out of the country for questioning about SAddam's WMD. Many are going to likely take this route for they want to get out of Iraq and will exagerate Saddam's threat, telling the U.S. what it wants to hear so they can get prestige. 1441 implies the continuation of U.S. policy through the UN of refusing to lift the sanctions once Saddam fully accounts for his WMD as called for in resolution 687, thus giving the Iraqi regime a heavy incentive to continue not to completely cooperate

I initially read this informative, hard-hitting book shortly before America and its "coalition of the willing" invaded Iraq. I have since re-read it, a good exercise to test the validity of the warnings and conditional predictions raised by authors Norman Solomon and Reese Erlich.

As an integrity test this book rings even truer with the passage of time and onrush of events than when it was first published shortly prior to the invasion of Iraq. The authors adroitly cite the rush to war and the falsehoods asserted by Bush and minions, focusing on the "weapons of mass destruction" charge. The authors hit very hard the American contention that the inspections carried out by UN forces were not working, taking the same position as former UN inspector Scott Ritter.

The chapter dealing with Depleted Uranium alone is worth the price of the book. The authors cite the dangers of an eventual epidemic breaking out among invading forces and the general populace, classifying Depleted Uranium as "America's Dirty Secret." As the authors state, "Depleted uranium is the material left over from the processing of nuclear fuel. The U.S. military uses DU as a substitute for lead to fill the core of special ammunition. Depleted Uranium is 1.7 times denser than lead ... "

In addition to stressing the potential risk to Iraqi civilians resulting from Depleted Uranium, along with citing the deferential treatment from the media concerning invasion plans, as well as showcasing American unilateralism, the authors also cover the important oil issue.

All you had to do was read this book before the war and you would not be one scintilla surprised over the kind and beneficent manner with which Bush and cronies dealt with Dick Cheney's former company, Halliburton, which received such a glorious windfall in post-war Iraq, all without having to go through the bother of competitive bidding.

TARGET IRAQ: WHAT THE NEWS MEDIA DIDN'T TELL YOU illuminates one of the biggest problems with any discussion about a possible war against Iraq--namely, that people still trust and rely on the information they get from the mainstream media. That is not to say that the Dan Rathers and Wolf Blitzers are lying, but anyone who thinks the big city newspapers and network news shows are completely unbiased and thorough is missing half the picture.

In TARGET IRAQ, Norman Solomon and Reese Erlich address our flawed media in two ways. First, they expose the forces that create bias in your average journalist--from pushy editors to career ambition to staying on the good sides of those in power. Second, they pick up some of the stories that have gone under-reported since the first Gulf War. They cut through the rhetoric on issues like oil and preemption and replace it with clear, fact-based analysis. They unearth stories that the major media passed over, like the effects of depleted uranium left behind from the first war and the real effects of 12 years of sanctions--cancer patients without medicine, water treatment plants that can't treat water, children without adequate nutrition.

This is not some ultra-lefty, tree-hugging plea for peace under any circumstances. This is a straight presentation of facts collected by veteran reporters who've been on the ground in Iraq. No one should consider themselves fully informed about the issues surrounding the impending war until they've read this book.

What the authors have done is great. Solomon and Erlich actually paid attention to exactly how the US government and the news media talked the American public into accepting the 2003 war against Iraq. This book brings terrible truths into focus: the deceptive media practices from President Bush on down, and the inaccurate "information" provided by lots of supposedly fine American journalists, conservatives and liberals alike.

You have to wonder, reading this book, just how the situation got so bad that the reporters don't even seem embarrassed about repeating false statements endlessly! The misleading character of the media coverage about this war is brought home to the reader by Solomon and Erlich. Plus, there's a very moving introduction by the historian Howard Zinn. And Sean Penn in the afterword tells why he became so concerned about the war that was impending and now is history.

This is the kind of multi-layered book you can read easily and thoughtfully. And you can give it to people who might disagree with you and learn a whole lot from reading "Target Iraq." This book provides plenty of facts but it doesn't just pile them on; it puts them in an analytical context that demolishes the claims of the Bush Administration and its apologists.

"Target Iraq" is a must for anyone who is concerned about the truth in the upcoming war with Iraq. Both Norman Solomon and Reese Erlich went to great lengths to be fair and to state facts and the sources of information for these facts. The book is clear and concise in presenting a case against going to war with Iraq.

It is not just a book about a war with Iraq. It is a book that will educate you on what is going on in our government and the news media. Knowledge is power, and the knowledge gained from reading "Target Iraq" will allow the reader to cut through the deluge of bad information we receive daily concerning the war with Iraq. This is a book for those who wish to know the truth.

If you are tired of political talk shows that consist of appeals to emotion rather than fact, then this is the book for you. For example I was viewing a political talk show where one of the people in the discussion said that the Iraqi people would be "dancing in the streets" if American troops invaded Iraq. An interview of an Iraqi citizen that can be read in "Target Iraq" quickly dispels any such notion.

If you wish to understand the role played by our secretary of state Collin Powell than this is the book for you.

If you wish to understand why claims by the American news media that Iraq expelled U.N. inspectors in 1998 are not true than this is the book for you.

Sean Penn who recently traveled to Iraq with Norman Solomon writes a moving afterward that is an appeal to president Bush where Sean Penn shows his concern for our eroding civil rights, the young American men and women who will have to fight this war and the innocent civilians of Iraq.

Considering the ramifications and long term effects of a war with Iraq "Target Iraq" is one of the most important books written to date. I urge everyone who is concerned with the truth to read this book and to tell their friends about "Target Iraq." A democracy can only work if people are informed and this book does just that.

This book brings up a few points that are not publicized in the main-stream media in regards to the situation in Iraq. It could be beneficial for those who don't read alternative press, and would like to familiarize themselves with a non-corporate media view. However, if you are looking for an in-depth analysis of the situation in Iraq, you might be disappointed in the book.

Personally, I thought that the chapter on self-censorship in the media was the most thought provoking.

This book was very interesting in that it wasn't so much an "anti-war" book, but a glimpse of censorship and denile of it. It's an excellent book for introductions on a lot of the major issues that are unanswered. The DU problem and sanctions are what anger me to no end! You can really tell that the writers were being fair in their writings, which isn't seen very often. Good job. Sean Penn's letter was VERY moving, even though he's from evil-hollywood, he made a very good case. If Mr. Bush read the letter, I'm sure he had trouble sleeping, or he laughed at him in his sleep.

Norman Solomon has the three essential ingredients which, in my opinion, places him on the top rung of American journalists. He has brains, heart and guts. No, make that four ingredients, the fourth one being: integrity.

In this quickly produced collections of essays, Mr. Solomon aptly demonstrates all four ingredients as he reports on the journey he took to Iraq in September 2002 in company with a US congressman, a former senator , a representative from Conscience International and movie actor Sean Penn.

The articles were put together during the time when the threat of war against Iraq has been very much the concern of the world.

Mr. Solomon along with foreign correspondent Reese Erlich write strong arguments against starting a preemptive war against Iraq. They strip away some of the jargon used by the mass media -- jargon which seems to support the administration's warlike intentions. They even reveal what many readers and viewers have long suspected: Western journalists impose a self-censorship to get the plum assignments and to scramble higher on the dog-eat-dog journalism success ladder.

Very dramatic is Mr. Solomon's graphic, heart-breaking description of how a decade of sanctions and embargo have already affected the people of Iraq: malnutrition, a severe shortage of medical supplies, children dying of leukemia because the embargo imposed since the Gulf War has all but stopped the import of those medicines. This make a reader wonder -- since necessary medicines can't get through the embargo, how can the chemicals and hard weapons and parts get through in order to create weapons of mass destruction the US administration insists are there?

An emotional "open letter" to the President of the United States by Mr. Penn is included and worth the space taken up in this slim volume.

It is a book which ought to be read by the non-committed or those who believe that starting a war with Iraq will serve America's best interest. To others, the book may be treated like preaching to the choir.
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This Review refers to the paperback edition of Target Iraq: What the News Media Didn't Tell You, by Norman Solomon, and Reese Erlich and as introduced by Howard Zinn with an afterward by Sean Penn.

Target Iraq is a book of many aspects, covering varying topics relating to the recent Iraqi war from a pre-war perspective. The introductory chapters focus largely on the media and self-censorship, providing the reader with insight into how the larger media organizations conduct their operations. The book then goes on to describe the opinions of the Iraqi people, with both examples from public and private sources. After which it moves into the US propaganda campaigns and examples of why the majority of it is untrue, in the authors' opinions. Detailed in the later chapters is the use and visible consequences of depleted uranium, along with the UN resolution issues, and effects of the economic sanctions. Concluding the book is a chapter concerning US manipulation and discrediting of various aspects of the UN, followed by the motives for war. Also contained in the book is an introduction by Howard Zinn, afterward by Sean Penn, article by Seth Ackerman, Bush speech with analysis, and Resolution 1441 with analysis.

This book contains a nearly extreme bias at points; however, it does probe both sides of some aspects. It does manage to provide a decent overview of Iraqi public opinion, and properly warns that the opinions may change once the displacement of power takes place. There are also informative summaries concerning depleted uranium and the illegal no-fly zones.

The two authors, Solomon and Erlich, switch each chapter, giving the reader an interesting mixture of viewpoints. Solomon is the stronger literary presence throughout the book, yet is also quite lacking in his ability to back up his rather strong claims with proper evidence. The result is a shell of sorts, leaving the reader skeptical if they do not already have a proper background in the area. Erlich, on the other hand, wanders and is weaker in his content but stronger in his presentation of possible sources to collaborate his statements. Yet, Erlich has an intriguing literary form that allows the reader to come to his/her own conclusions. However, neither provides any form of a bibliography, forcing the unfamiliar reader through hours of research to verify their statements. There are also typographical errors in the appendices.

The private interview with the Iraqi civilian family is an invaluable insight into the opinions and thoughts of the Iraqi people. However, the literary styles and lack of sources subtracts heavily from the book. Overall, the book would have been a great and inspiring work, even after the war, had it been the recipient of proper source work and effort. Perhaps the authors could release an updated version with a proper list of sources.

Although the war on Iraq is a bloody fact by now, this book is perhaps more valid now than before the war. Apart from gaining some insight in the life in Iraq before the attack by the US, it also reveals some of the true causes of the war and predicts some of the post-war consequences to the Iraqi oil industry. More importantly, however, is that the book assist the reader in questioning the propaganda of the leaders of the US as well as the mass media who delivers this propaganda.