The Post's big black eye-and my own
When I am wrong about something here at the World, I do my best to correct it, and I (and a whole lot of other bloggers) got called. Last Saturday I wrote a piece about events happening in Iran that was based on a story in the normally reliable National Post. I've been reading the Post for years because, as someone with an interest in Canadian politics, I've always found the Post to be more reliable than its two counterparts that take an unabashedly leftist editorial line, the Ottawa Citizen and the Toronto Globe and Mail.Well, the National Post ran a story about the situation in Iran that it turns out is completely false. Based on that story, I wrote a piece here denouncing Iran. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper condemned the Iranian Parliament-justly so-such legislation is contemptible and worthy of world-wide rebuke. I would expect responsible leaders to take a stand against such a thing.
I blame the Post for not researching the story further. It appears to have been based on a column by a member of the Iranian resistance with an axe to grind. That doesn't mean Iran is suddenly a great place for Christians and Jews, and I wouldn't put something like this beneath the mullahs, but we can't make major international decisions based on falsehood-we've already seen the fruits of that in Iraq.
I wrote the piece I did because I've watched Iran for years and I long considered Iran to be a far greater threat than Iraq. When you see things like this from a normally reliable source you tend to think there is credibility to it. There appears to have been not a shred.
For my own part, I am sorry that I ran a piece that appears to have been based on totally false information-that goes against my standards for this site and my standard of personal ethics and morality. Had I known from the beginning that there was no truth to any of it, I would have never written the piece. As for the Post, I am not certain whether I can view them as reliable again for a very long time.
(Crossposted from Where I Stand.)
posted by Deacon David Oatney @ 8:29 AM
4 Comments:
Dave,
I want to commend you on this retraction,, many would have just let it slip by. You're a good man and I'm proud to know you. I was going to post something on Iran this weekend (I'm not yet "into" posting on weekdays - OK, I'm still too lazy) and that's the only thing that kept me from getting burned too.
It's just a good thing this clown (who started the story) didn't go striaght to the CIA; they might have code named him "spitball."
SteveMule
Dave,
I couldn't agree with Terry Frank more! Keep up the good work; especially when we disagree :-)
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Dave,
Caroline Glick has some good thoughts on this:
http://www.townhall.com/opinion/columns/
CarolineGlick/2006/05/27/199060.html
Sorry to have to split the URL.
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