Strengthening Constitutional Self-Government

No Left Turns

I’m not fonda Jill

The only excuse for this is either Stockholm syndrome or a more ruthless calculation about getting herself released. If we’re generous, we can regard her as a victim, but we can no longer regard her as a journalist. Hat tip: Jonah Goldberg.

Update: When I read the transcript yesterday, I flew off the handle. Here’s a plausible explanation of her motives. I await an unconstrained statement from Carroll herself, but the fact remains that she was exploited for propaganda purposes.

Update #2: Here’s Jill Caroll’s statement, courtesy of Jonah Goldberg. I retract my criticism of her and am glad that she doesn’t believe what her captors forced her to say.

Update and Apology: I genuinely regret writing the original post, in which I hastily overreacted to the transcript of the statement Jill Carroll was compelled to make. It’s not the first time I’ve been wrong, and doubtless won’t be the last. I regret also giving ammunition to some persistent critics of NLT.

Discussions - 13 Comments

https://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12100278

This story says the video was filmed while she was still hostage to the terrorists. Not sure what to believe, yet!

Makes me sick to my stomach.

Of course it’s easy to know what the truth is since we were all there when it happened, right? A "ruthless calculation"? I guess she should’ve just let them kill her? Of course, maybe she was being tortured in some way. People will say whatever you want under torture or the threat thereof. Unless of course, the good guys are doing the torturing, then the only thing they extract from the captive is the TRUTH.

So can we once again regard her as a journalist, even if she doesn’t start blogging for The Corner as an embedded reporter?

I don’t understand your harsh tone for her. We are sitting here in the U.S. behind our keyboards while she was a hostage in Iraq. I think I will abstain from passing judgement!

You were hasty and unfair. Andrew Sullivan, in contrast, got it right: wait and give her the benefit of the doubt. Is there a lesson here to those who need to judge without reflection?

An apology almost seems in order, really. Attacking a just-released hostage like that is pretty reprehensible.

I’m sorry I said what I said. As I noted above, I was hasty. I’ve retracted my criticism. The end.

Not quite finished. . . This was the particularly obnoxious part: "ruthless calculation about getting herself released." She is not a soldier, and neither are we.

Wow. "If we’re generous, we can regard her as a victim." I don’t see where generosity has anything to do with it. She was held HOSTAGE for nearly three months. I think that alone qualifies her. Talk about jumping the gun!

"If we’re generous, we can regard her as a victim" - By this same logic then, would any Americans who were killed on 9/11 that would not have been able to pass Mr. Knippenberg’s American loyalty test be disqualified as victims?

It appears for some apologies are not worth much.

A sincere and public apology is worth a great deal. Joe, I disagree with you almost all of the time, but I do not doubt your integrity.

Her Dad, pleading for her release, said that she was on their side. She was a PR agent for the people who are killing our troops. Who sups with the Devil must have a long spoon. I am sorry that our troops were at risk seeking her rescue.

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