Fisking is a great art -- taking a piece and ripping it apart, line by line, exposing its frauds, its fallacies, its errors. I've done it myself a few times, but it's quite frankly more work than I often feel up to putting forth. But I have a tremendous respect for those who can do it well.
There are two great examples out right now, and both made me severely envious for not having written them.
Last week, two professors released a report on what they considered the source of all our problems in the Middle East. Not surprisingly, it's all the fault of Israel. Richard Baehr and Ed Lasky took a hard look this so-called "scholarly work," and to say they found it "lacking" would be a miracle of understatement.
OK, it's not a true Fisking, but it is wonderful.
This one, however, is. Retired Major General Paul Eaton wrote an Op-Ed for the New York Times excoriating Defense Secretary Rumsfeld and his management of the Department. General Eaton's remarks so piqued Jason of Iraq Now! that he wrote a truly blistering response, laden with facts, anecdotes, and unmentioned truths that shred poor General Eaton's piece into confetti. I am hard-pressed to single out any single element for special praise, but this appeals to the Franco-basher in me too much to let pass unnoted:
Third, even if we had recruited Germany and France ground forces into the fight, US forces would be hard pressed to prevent mass surrenders of French troops to any German in sight. (And the New York Times would doubtless report the instance thus: "Entire allied brigade surrenders in Iraq.")
Go. Read. And be enlightened while entertained.
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Comments (7)
Wasn't this cat in charge o... (Below threshold)1. Posted by yo | March 21, 2006 4:06 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Wasn't this cat in charge of training iraqi troops? Wasn't it the level of training of the iraqi troops which has been criticized by the left as being part of the president's poor planning?
Just curious.
1. Posted by yo | March 21, 2006 4:06 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 21, 2006 16:06
2. Posted by Peter F. | March 21, 2006 4:28 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Wow! Talk about tearing apart an argument, limb by limb. There's not much left General Eaton's position after this.
I particularly loved this retort to the number of troops:
Once again - and I'm tired of the NETTIES ("Not Enough Troops) ducking and dodging this rather obvious question: Several hundred thousand men from where, General?
That's worthy of an Emril "Pow!" and "Bam!"
2. Posted by Peter F. | March 21, 2006 4:28 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 21, 2006 16:28
3. Posted by MyPetGloat | March 21, 2006 5:25 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Hmmmm... Retired General vs.... hmmm..blogger....Hmmmm...who to put the money on..
3. Posted by MyPetGloat | March 21, 2006 5:25 PM |
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Posted on March 21, 2006 17:25
4. Posted by Peter F. | March 21, 2006 6:01 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Hmmmm....columnist opinion paid for by the NY Times...or an unpaid blogger....whom to put my money on. I know! The blogger!
4. Posted by Peter F. | March 21, 2006 6:01 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 21, 2006 18:01
5. Posted by bryanD | March 21, 2006 7:44 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Baehr and Lasky unable to resist using "Ku Klux Klan" in their rebuttal to the superb London Review of Books article delineating the Israeli Lobby in D.C.! Hoo Ha! (and two "Nazi"s, albiet "Neo-", too!) And take the "Iraq Now" blog---please! Amber type on a black background seems most appropriate. It says to the reader: "Reading closely may cause blindness, so don't. This is really my application of inclusion on the White House Christmas Card and Sufferable Entities List."
5. Posted by bryanD | March 21, 2006 7:44 PM |
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Posted on March 21, 2006 19:44
6. Posted by McCain | March 22, 2006 3:21 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
On the other hand, fisking is an overrated art. It is the lazy writer's way to respond rather than present original thought. Put in terms of modern political warfare, compare fiskers to liberals, who both complain about everything while proposing nothing notable.
6. Posted by McCain | March 22, 2006 3:21 AM |
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Posted on March 22, 2006 03:21
7. Posted by SCSIwuzzy | March 22, 2006 1:19 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Once again, with bryanD, it's all about the joooooos and Isreal.
7. Posted by SCSIwuzzy | March 22, 2006 1:19 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on March 22, 2006 13:19