British Paper Names General Petraeus Person of the Year

Photo of Noel Sheppard.
By Noel Sheppard (Bio | Archive)
December 31, 2007 - 12:45 ET

Here's some truly delicious irony: it took a British newspaper to name General David Petraeus "Person of the Year."

As NewsBusters reported earlier in December, Time magazine shunned the General for Russian President Vladimir Putin. In fact, Petraeus didn't even come in second.

I guess the Sunday Telegraph isn't constrained by Bush Derangement Syndrome like most American media as reported Monday (emphasis added, h/t NB reader birdimus):

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Today, we put him in the spotlight again by naming Gen Petraeus as The Sunday Telegraph's Person of the Year, a new annual accolade to recognise outstanding individual achievement.

He has been the man behind the US troop surge over the past 10 months, the last-ditch effort to end Iraq's escalating civil war by putting an extra 28,000 American troops on the ground.

So far, it has achieved what many feared was impossible. Sectarian killings are down. Al-Qaeda is on the run. And the two million Iraqis who fled the country are slowly returning. Progress in Iraq is relative - 538 civilians died last month. But compared with the 3,000 peak of December last year, it offers at least a glimmer of hope.

[...]

There has also been great British military leadership and bravery on display this year, not least in Helmand, where British troops are now fighting a Taliban foe as fierce as anything their American counterparts encountered in Baghdad or Fallujah.

But the reason for picking Petraeus is simple. Iraq, whatever the current crises in Afghanistan and Pakistan, remains the West's biggest foreign policy challenge of this decade, and if he can halt its slide into all-out anarchy, Gen Petraeus may save more than Iraqi lives.

Wouldn't it have been nice for an American newspaper or magazine to recognize this? Or is that asking too much?

Regardless, readers are strongly encouraged to review the entire article.

—Noel Sheppard is the Associate Editor of NewsBusters.

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Heh

December 31, 2007 - 12:52 ET by drillanwr

 

Iraqis Tell Bin Laden To Go F*** Himself After Yesterday’s Tape

http://patdollard.com/2007/12/30/iraqis-tell-bin-laden-to-go-fuck-himself-after-yesterdays-tape/

.....Petraeus didn't even

December 31, 2007 - 12:55 ET by DaBird

.....Petraeus didn't even come in second.

I can guarantee you that Time never even considered Gen. Patraeus for person of the year. He was only mentioned by Time for the apperance of balance. They know the fire-storm a non mention of Patraeus would have gotten them.

Gen Petreaus' Year End Letter

December 31, 2007 - 13:01 ET by Blonde

I posted this on an Open Thread the other day, perhaps more will see the link here on an actual Gen. Petreaus topic.

Putin? or Petreaus?  That's a really hard one, isn't it.  Sheesh...no bias there. 

Happy New Year, everyone.

David Gregory, do you know which damn network you lie for? ~ Uncle Jimbo, @Blackfive

 

General Petraeus

December 31, 2007 - 13:12 ET by RJ

"They are the new greatest generation."  -Gen. David Petraeus

Happy New Year to you, too, Blonde!

Time Mag Sucks

December 31, 2007 - 13:10 ET by American Taxpayer

Time Magazine is nothing more than a boil on the buttocks of America. Russia just sold our enemies in Iran sofisticated missles, not to mention the Nuclear power plant built for an Islamic Country that has stated many times they wish to start WW3 by wiping Isrial off the map. Time magazine should relocate all operations to the Soviet Union where they can be monitored by Pravda, and in so doing be closer to their buddies in the Kremlin...

When was the last time

December 31, 2007 - 13:18 ET by NiftySwell

When was the last time an old stream media outlet did anything to make us proud to be Americans? Is it any wonder with every story telling us how horrible things are due to America that we distrust them and shun everything they report? It is like they filter out anything that can possibly be percieved as positive news for the conservatives. Person of the year is more likely to go to an evil dictator than a conservative here in the states because in the eyes of the media any dictator or foreign policy maker is superior to any conservative regardless of how many they kill or oppress. They may throw the smallest crumb at us now and then, but it is just to have something to point to when they are confronted by their subjectivity from someone from this site. Maybe the answer is to start outsourcing our news from foreign media outlets that acknowledge the truth or since they all favor immigration how about allowing some of these foreign members of the press to come work in the states 'tax free' paid under the table for a while reporting the news we want to hear until they are all out of work?

NS -

December 31, 2007 - 14:59 ET by drillanwr

old stream media outlet

Oh! THAT's good! I'm stealing that one ...  ; ^)

Kind of like Cheney's "Old Europe" tag ... Lovin' it!

 

EDIT:

I wrongly attributed the "Old Europe" quote to VP Cheney, when it was S.D. Rumsfeld's.

Nifty swell Idea...Outsourcing the Media

December 31, 2007 - 14:21 ET by JayTee

Great idea  --start outsourcing our news from foreign media outlets that acknowledge the truth -

After 2008 results are in from Iraq, maybe Petraeus will make MAN of The Year in America

? 

Hillary is going to get a BIG HIT when Petraues comes to town, and all the Alphabet Networks start thinking about showing her "Suspension of Dis-belief" Testimony with Petraues.......she may be notably absent and on the Campaign Trail during Petraeus's next appearance.  

 March 15 2008 GatheringofEagles.org with MAF, FW, VFF, etc. will congregate in DC to Support Our Troops and Gen David Petraeus

wanna support the troops and Petarus ?

December 31, 2007 - 13:23 ET by JayTee

On March 15, 2008, Gathering of Eagles, in coordination with Move America Forward, Freedom’s Watch, The Band of Mothers, Vets for Freedom, DC Protest Warrior, Eagles Up, Free Republic, New England Warrior and rank and file patriotic Americans, will come together in our Nation's Capitol (DC) to Support Our Troops and their in-theater commander, General David Petraeus.

 

Details at gatheringofeagles.org and probably all the supporting sites from above.

 

Of all the crazy things we

December 31, 2007 - 13:29 ET by Chris Norman

Of all the crazy things we see in Britain, we also see some of the sanest things.

Well deserved

December 31, 2007 - 13:47 ET by KC Mulville

General Petraeus deserves the recognition.

If you haven't read Petraeus' counter-insurgency manual, it's well worth the effort. The bottom line is obvious: everything depends on local citizens accepting or rejecting the legitimacy of government. All governments offer to protect the citizens, and promote the general welfare, and distribute the wealth fairly. Obviously, then, the objective of the insurgent is to convince people that the government can't carry out their promises. Insurgents try to convince citizens that the government can't protect them, or won't distribute wealth fairly.

Like war, insurgency is ultimately a competition for the hearts and minds of the citizens. In insurgent wars, insurgents use violence to convince the citizens that the existing government can't protect them. The irony, of course, is that to prove to your fellow citizens that the government can't protect them, you have to kill them.

  • It's a classic case of moral absurdity. To persuade your fellow citizens, you have to kill some of them to make your point. That's the secret of insurgent warfare. The insurgent has to kill the people he's trying to persuade.
  • Naturally, the insurgent tries to shift the blame elsewhere. In response, the task of the counter-insurgent (i.e., us) is to dispel the lies. Tell the truth. Prove the killer.

The media, as Petraeus points out, is the most powerful weapon. Any attempt to convince mass amounts of citizens begins with the mass media. Before citizens can decide how they feel about their government, they have to form impressions about what their government is actually doing. It all starts with the media.

Petraeus' strategy is well-considered, and in practice, it's working. He deserves every accolade.

Double shocker

December 31, 2007 - 13:55 ET by dbo

Not only did the Telegraph choose a worthy person who has done good in the world, it appears that the photograph they used has not been doctored or altered in any way, shape or form! My grandfather use to tell me stories of journalistic integrity but I just always assumed he was kidding.

Good for you, Sunday Telegraph

December 31, 2007 - 14:12 ET by Hermano

"...a new annual accolade to recognise outstanding individual achievement."

 

It would be nice if the US "news?" outlets would recognize "outstanding" people instead of just some ass trying to increase his or her sphere of influence.

Time vs The Brits

December 31, 2007 - 14:13 ET by PAPA L

A PROUD AMERICAN Says

Time in comparison with the Brits is not the paper on the bottom of the birdcage, BUT the doo doo itself. I call on all AMERICANS to show them what you think of them.  Never buy another issue of this anti America rag again. 

BRAVO, BRAVO, BRAVO & BRAVO!

December 31, 2007 - 19:29 ET by Crash

BRAVO, BRAVO, BRAVO & BRAVO!