The press always reports the truth, right?

Omar posted more translations of comments from Arabs today. There were several that interested me, but one in particular, from a resident of Ramadi, that is very revealing.

"The media don't show the slightest care about hundreds, no, thousands of innocent lives. All the media care about is to spread lies as solid facts. For example some media sources reported that jet fighters flew over Ramadi (where I live) and broke the sound barrier, which didn't happen. Another example: they reported that the American army bombed a house, while the fact was that some mortar shells fired by the so-called resistance men hit the house and this was not the first time; tens of mortar shells fell on residential areas in my town. What can I say, I'm talking to the deaf"
Mohammed Al-Taa'i - Ramadi/Iraq.

For some time now I have disbelieved the reports that come out of Fallujah and Ramadi. It seems that every time an event occurs where lives are lost, a "doctor" in Fallujah is quoted as saying that "X" number of lives were lost, and it always includes women and children.

It's a bit hard to believe that there are so many women and children dying in a place where terrorists are openly welcomed and supported. You would expect that the local people would do one of two things; either they would be aware of and collaborating with the terrorists or they would be "staying low" to try and keep from being killed. You would certainly not expect them to be in the same area as the terrorists unless they were involved. Yet every story out of Fallujah and Ramadi reports the deaths of lots of innocent people. Are they to be believed?

Now we have someone from inside Ramadi, someone with a reason to know the truth and the position to witness what's going on, and he reports that even inconsequential things, such as the breaking of the sound barrier by US jets, are being falsely reported. How much more should we question reports of the fighting or of the deaths of innocent civilians? We saw the same thing in Najaf, where the press reported that US troops hit the Imam Ali shrine, but local residents reported it was al Sadr's people who did it.

We also have a confirmed report from an eye witness that al Jazeera reporters are collaborating with the terrorists. They arrange the tape recordings of the kidnapped hostages as well as their beheadings, and then pass it off as "news". Why would we believe anything reported by al Jazeera?

Some Arabs are asking themselves the same question.

"It's time for you Iraqis to rise and unite your efforts against terror and terror-supporting countries. We will continue to water the tree of freedom with our blood and woe to the enemies of the people whether Arab or not. Woe to the hypocritical media. We will all build the new Iraq, the Iraq of hope and freedom and let the enemies of freedom go to hell."
Sherif-Kerkuk/Iraq.

"The corrupt media that is bribed by the neighboring countries is morally responsible for these tragedies because they try to give legitimacy to these coward attacks by using the term "resistance". The government is strong and its steps are supported by all the honest. Time will be on our side"
Mohammed Abdul jabbar-Baghdad.

"Here I call the Iraqi government to sue the satellite channels that take part in these incidents through providing publicity to the terrorists and their supporters.
Martyrs of Iraq, heaven is yours."
Bashar Al-Baldawi-Iraqi in Oman.

Isn't it time that the world media began to tell the truth?