Pat Boone
Wednesday, June 22, 2005

After tip-toeing past it at first, the mainstream media (even the New York Times, where it's getting scant mention even yet) could no more continue to ignore the story than they could the Swift Boat veterans story last fall.

Just over a year ago, I lamented that it had been possible for the Islamic militants who beheaded the American civilian Nick Berg to shout "This is in retaliation for what you Americans did to our people at Abu Ghraib" for only one reason — irresponsible publication of previously unseen photos by CBS.

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Now, again, big media irresponsibility has hurt our side in the war on terror. Newsweek magazine retracted its report that desecration of the Holy Quran was a deliberate practice at Gitmo. But it was too little too late. With Senator Durbin's utterly nutty forcefulness added to the mix, we're in retreat again on the hearts and minds front.

With protesters in Afghanistan taking to the streets in the largest anti-U.S. demonstration since the fall of the Taliban regime, and with similar eruptions in other Islamic countries, we've had to try to avoid too much lost ground by loudly declaring how respectful and accommodative we are of the Gitmo detainees' religious practices.

It wasn't for reasons of patriotism that mainstream media initially muffled the second-highest-ranking Senate Democrat's assessment that our treatment of Gitmo detainees was Nazi-like. It was because they'd easily made a correct guess: The remarks reflect badly on the anti-war, anti-Bush sentiment that's been inching toward orthodox status among them, now that 9/11 is so much longer ago than the last election. Their noble cause of beating back conservatives won't be served if citizens really get a load of this from their opponents.

So, bet on it — mainstream media chieftains are squirming now, as average Americans are indeed considering Senator Durbin's judgment and where its type might lead. His apology was too cagey and Nancy Pelosi's call for a grand investigation too earnest for citizens not to keep pondering who is attacking our defenders and who is defending our attackers in the War on Terror.

In obvious contrast to Durbin, Republican House Armed Services Committee Chairman Duncan Hunter's recent words are also getting replayed. He pointed out that Gitmo detainees enjoy restrictions imposed by Congress against being fed the military MREs our own soldiers in the field eat. Yes, I said restrictions imposed by Congress.

Hunter's detailed recital of a Gitmo dinner was mouth-watering, and he pointed out that the detainees receive honey and dates to break their Ramadan fast in accordance with the preferred tradition. He further noted that detainees' religious practices are scrupulously accommodated. "We give them prayer beads and prayer oil—all paid for [by the U.S. taxpayer,]" he said.

Defense Secretary Rumsfeld says that Gitmo operations have been more open to scrutiny than any military detention facility in history, costing U.S. taxpayers $90 million to $95 million a year to operate.

Part of that operating cost goes to freely providing copies of the Holy Quran. Congressman Hunter said, "In fact, if you did that for American GIs — if you had a call to prayer five times a day — the ACLU would sue on the basis that we violated the separation between church and state."

A compelling thought. Now-former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore was relieved of robe, authority and office because he insisted that displaying the Ten Commandments on public property was not unconstitutional. But now, we're to accept that we taxpayers must provide special meals, copies of the Holy Quran, and signs pointing toward Mecca in a military detention center like Gitmo—and that is constitutional.

"But wait a minute," the anti-war, anti-Bush legalists could say. "That objection is silly. You're looking for unconstitutional government activity where none exists. You're jumping to conclusions from text in the Constitution that begins merely Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." And (except for those restrictions against MREs to accommodate the religious preferences of the detainees) Congress did make no law.

Oh! Well, then.

Never mind.

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