Hello (AGE) Editor,
I have a serious complaint against one of your
'journalists', Julie Szego. She has written a hatchet
opinion piece against Iranian president Ahmadinejad,
which regurgitates all the lies about him that have
been fed to the media this past year. Here is the
article:
 http://www.theage.com.au/news/opinion/ahmadinejad-a-good-man-an-odd-world/2007/03/18/1174152875959.html

Is this really journalism? Is she trying to inform the
public aboue a man she regards as 'West-bashing,
taboo-busting, apocalypse-threatening '?

Thats pretty extreme, dont you think? Why
'west-bashing!? Is that to draw us all into become
accomplices with Ms Szego? What makes her label him
'apocalyse-threatening'? Could this be her excuse:
'After one of Ahmadinejad's calls for Israel to be
"wiped off the map",'

Why is this damnable lie being repeated on YOUR site,
when its long been exposed as a malicious fraud! Here
is what Ahmadinejad REALLY said, as analysed by
Iranian expat Arash Norouzi:

' "Imam ghoft een rezhim-e ishghalgar-e qods bayad az
safheh-ye ruzgar mahv shavad."

which translates to:
' "The Imam said this regime occupying Jerusalem must
vanish from the page of time".

Word by word translation:

Imam (Khomeini) ghoft (said) een (this) rezhim-e
(regime) ishghalgar-e (occupying) qods (Jerusalem)
bayad (must) az safheh-ye ruzgar (from page of time)
mahv shavad (vanish from).

 http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=NOR20070120&articleId=4527

I understand that your staff writer has a column at
Australian Jewish News:
 http://www.ajn.com.au/news/news.asp?pgID=316

Does this explain her brazen lies? Its well known that
Israel has been seeking to invade Iran.

Lets read a little more of her piece:
'When Ahmadinejad gleefully promotes mass murder, he
doesn't really mean it, according to this
pseudo-Orientalist spin'

Whats wrong with this sentence?
1. 'Gleefully' Thats not the tone of the talk he gave
in which the above statement is spoken. She may hate
the man, but at least she should try for a little
journalistic accuracy!
2. promotes mass murder? Where ever has Ahmadinejad
ever promoted mass murder! Beyond that bogus
misquotation, no where!

Then theres this minor bump:

'If you believe the latest results of a global poll of
28,000 people in 27 countries, conducted by the BBC
World Service in partnership with media groups,
including The Age, Israel and America belong in the
same rotten basket as Iran.
...
'Is this really where we're at: so clouded by the fog
of moral relativism we see the military endeavours of
liberal democracies (flawed as some of these
endeavours might sometimes be) in the same dangerous
light as those of reactionary fanatics opposed to
everything we stand for?'

That Iran, which has invaded no country in 300 years
is there at all, is due to the efforts of 'journalists
like your Julie Szego.
Well, what do 'we' stand for? The military endeavour
of US, has led to > 655000 deaths in Iraq, and > 3000
in Afghanistan. The military endeavour of Israel in
Lebanon killed > 1000 people, mostly civilians in the
way.

This last quote shows one of your staff members is an
apologist for mass murder.

I hope you realise that her article is pure libel, and
opens The Age up to libel charges. How did it ever get
past the editor?

Ive written on this at length, because both Israel and
US are seeking a casus belli, just as they did with
regards to Iraq...You may remember it was a journalist
Judith Miller of the liber NYT that promoted the WMDs
lies that alarmed the public the world public, before
we learned slowly the claims were fradulent, but NOT
before the led to the US invading Iraq and turning it
into a murderous quagmire. The media aided that
atrocity...are they going to run interference for the
next mass murder?

If Iran is attacked by the US or Israel, i will
certainly be holding the Age responsible for its role
in the massacre.


regards
Brian Souter
Australia

PS I will be posting this letter around the internet.
You should fire MS Szego forthwith.