I've had several people find their way to this site today with searches on variants of "Berg Decapitation Beheading Video etc."

Not a single one came searching for information on Abu Ghraib.

Those stupid people. They won't let their betters tell them what's news.

[Update at 4:30 PM PDT]

Here's a weird one--"Arab locust beheading"

[Update on Friday afternoon]

Brian Linse disagrees.

In a sense he makes my point. There probably are many people looking for this item merely for the dubious pleasure of watching a snuff film, but the fact remains that demand for it is relatively high because the same news outlets that couldn't wait to show us pornography that reflected badly on the administration remain unwilling to show something that might arouse "the American street."

Charles Johnson has had this happening on LGF as well. He checked his watchamacallit (referrer log?)...the thing that tells him where the searches are originating. Roughly half were coming from the Middle East.

So are they coming for information or gratification?

An illustration that in the free market of the internet, snuff will beat p0rn every time...

How is the fact Al Queda are monsters "news"?

I think most people were aware of that before the invasion (although the Bush Adminstration may not have - I would really like to see that story debunked...)

No, think that the issue might be that one demand is satisfied, in fact oversaturated, while the other is unsated, due to a media that seems more interested in showing things that reflects badly on our troops and war effort (and ultimately, of course, on the real enemy--the White House).

The United States, its government, its media, and its citizens, are directly responsible for what happened at, and fixing what went wrong at Abu Ghraib. They - you - need to know what went wrong in order to make things right. Resolving the chain of command issues especially is key.

That is not the case with the killers of Nick Berg - whose parents have made it clear that they don't their son's head to become the latest Jingo's Ear.

Nick Berg is no different to the thousand or so other Americans consumed by this war. As was said for Pat Tilman, he's f*cking dead now. People should deal with it.

(And as noted earlier - the US appears to have had the opportunity to wipe out this particular bunch of scumbags before the invasion. Defenders of the White House might be careful what they wish the media focus on.)

The United States, its government, its media, and its citizens, are directly responsible for what happened at, and fixing what went wrong at Abu Ghraib.

That is going to happen (and in fact, was already happening) regardless of how many pictures we're shown of naked Iraqis.

On the other hand, much of the nation seems to have forgotten that we are at war. We seem to have slipped back into September 10th mode. And we have a press that seems determined to keep us there.

I think the nation is becoming aware that the war has decidedly gone off track.

When the Deputy Securty of Defence remains this delusional:

Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz emphatically rejected those concerns. He said that the U.S. effort in Iraq should not be compared with the post-World War II occupations. "We're not planning five- and 10-year occupations like we had in Japan and Germany," he said in an interview Saturday.

who can blame them.

(I thought that quote especially appropriate ;))

Note this quote from COL Hackworth's site...many politicians were made aware of the problem months ago. Also please note their party affiliation.
http://www.sftt.org/cgi-bin/csNews/csNews.cgi?database=Unlisted%2edb&command=viewone&id=12

We have had access to certain of the documentation the Fredericks and Mr. Lawson used to communicate their concerns for their son and nephew. No fewer than fifteen government officials were contacted earlier in the year seeking help in finding out the status of SSgt. Ivan F. Frederick, USA. The letters themselves are pleas for intervention in finding out what their son is potentially being charged with and directly alerts the reader to the point that SSgt. Frederick was concerned, early on in his assignment at the prison, that there were no written instructions or directives for his unit. Those contacted by the Frederick family are:
Jack Reed (D) RIRobert Byrd (D) WVEvan Bayh (D) INEdward Kennedy (D) MA Hillary Clinton (D) NYDaniel Akaka (D) HIPaul Sarbanes (D) MDGov. Mark Warner (D) VA Mark Dayton (D) MNWilliam Nelson (D) FLMark Pryor (D) ARBenjamin Nelson (D) NEJoseph Lieberman (D) CT Roscoe Bartlett (R) MD John “Jay” D. Rockefeller (D) WV

Ah, yes, Duncan. Since we already know that they're bad, why mention it.

So, why mention Soviet human rights abuses? Why mention North Korean famines? Why mention North Korean human rights abuses at all? Why mention the millions who died during China's "Great Leap Forward"? Why mention the killing fields?

'Course, one might ask that in reverse, too, nu? Why mention American and Australian mistreatment of their aboriginal populations? Why mention the wrongdoings of corporations? Why mention the poor conditions of India's "untouchables," or the bad state of the Maori? Why mention how bad working conditions are in Indonesian sweatshops?

Dean,
Zarqawi has murdered hundreds of Iraqis over the past year. It appears that (and I would be happy to be proven wrong) this adminstration deliberately chose not to take him out when they had the chance.

The only thing that Nick Berg demonstrates (if the above is true) is for this administration, stopping the people who attacked New York and DC is not the priority. In the context of what Zarqawi has already done to Iraq, he is small fry.

If the U. S. had the respect of the Iraqi people, getting Zarqawi could be a focus of US forces. But with the abuse of Abu Ghraib (even before the pictures came out), the Americans decisively lost that trust.

"the bad state of the Maori"
There actually is a political backlash in New Zealand right now over Maori compensation issues. Some of the backlash is undeserved in my opinion, but part of it is to be expected from years of wallowing in over-amped guilt. As with the other issues you cited, the key is to remember, not fetishize, and repair, not revenge.

Indeed, this focus on indignities, without seriously attempting resolutions, is the problem with the whole Middle East. Don't fall into the same trap.

Duncan,

You do, of course, realize that Pat Tillman died in Afghanistan and not Iraq, Right?!?

Very aware, Mike.
I liked his brother's simple turn of phrase - a strong indictment against turning anyone's wardead into political icons.

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