If you haven't been reading Michael J. Totten's blog lately, you should check it out. From his posts of his trip back to Iraqi Kurdistan to his recent posts from Israel, he's got some interesting stuff up there. Just scroll.
Totten's posts are fun, colorful reading and I'd love to join him on one of his trips. That said -- when he writes about someplace I've been, the Israel-Lebanon border, it makes me wonder how much credibility to give the rest of his writing. When he came from the Lebanon side, he described the border as being much closer to Israeli civilians than it is. (As you can see in his pictures from the Israeli side.) And this hysterical "IT'S GONNA BLOW!" report from the Israeli side is (as he notes) news to pretty much everyone in Israel.
BTW, as long as I'm showing up to complain in multiple posts -- I do entirely agree with Shelby Steele!
I agree there are probably some nits to pick with Michael's stuff (and there are people out there doing it), but overall the viewpoint and perspective are different enough to be interesting. It does seem that things have been a bit more tense than usual there, but it wouldn't surprise me if there was some exageration going on. I guess every writer needs a hook.
Personally, I give Michael credit for calling 'em like he sees 'em. He doesn't reach the same conclusions you or I might, but he's thought them through, and he explains himself well.
in re "everything's going to blow" exaggeration -- well, keep in mind that he's talking to soldiers on the border. Of course, their perspective is that it could blow up at any moment -- that's what they're trained to be ready for. Had he spoken to a twentysomething Tel Aviv resident, studying for a bachelors degree at Tel Aviv University in graphic design, his impressions would have been different... but that story wouldn't have been of much interest to anybody.
For better or for worse, living in Israel (while I was there, anyway) sometimes felt like a surreal nationwide game of Russian roulette, 24 hours a day. (When the Iraqi Scuds fell in 1991, it didn't feel like a new phenomenon; it was a drastic intensification of what we already knew.) You know in the back of your mind that the terrorists could strike at any time; but somehow life goes on. Michael's writing may seem sensationalist, but he seems to have captured some of that sense, and I'm glad he did.
respectfully,
Daniel in Brookline
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Totten's posts are fun, colorful reading and I'd love to join him on one of his trips. That said -- when he writes about someplace I've been, the Israel-Lebanon border, it makes me wonder how much credibility to give the rest of his writing. When he came from the Lebanon side, he described the border as being much closer to Israeli civilians than it is. (As you can see in his pictures from the Israeli side.) And this hysterical "IT'S GONNA BLOW!" report from the Israeli side is (as he notes) news to pretty much everyone in Israel.
BTW, as long as I'm showing up to complain in multiple posts -- I do entirely agree with Shelby Steele!
Hey, no problem.
I agree there are probably some nits to pick with Michael's stuff (and there are people out there doing it), but overall the viewpoint and perspective are different enough to be interesting. It does seem that things have been a bit more tense than usual there, but it wouldn't surprise me if there was some exageration going on. I guess every writer needs a hook.
Personally, I give Michael credit for calling 'em like he sees 'em. He doesn't reach the same conclusions you or I might, but he's thought them through, and he explains himself well.
in re "everything's going to blow" exaggeration -- well, keep in mind that he's talking to soldiers on the border. Of course, their perspective is that it could blow up at any moment -- that's what they're trained to be ready for. Had he spoken to a twentysomething Tel Aviv resident, studying for a bachelors degree at Tel Aviv University in graphic design, his impressions would have been different... but that story wouldn't have been of much interest to anybody.
For better or for worse, living in Israel (while I was there, anyway) sometimes felt like a surreal nationwide game of Russian roulette, 24 hours a day. (When the Iraqi Scuds fell in 1991, it didn't feel like a new phenomenon; it was a drastic intensification of what we already knew.) You know in the back of your mind that the terrorists could strike at any time; but somehow life goes on. Michael's writing may seem sensationalist, but he seems to have captured some of that sense, and I'm glad he did.
respectfully,
Daniel in Brookline