Iraqi war pictures

[Brit]

A number of television stations have been showing pictures of dead American soldiers (these have not been shown in the US). Al-Jezeera defends this footage by saying that it is news and people should know what's really going on and what war really looks like. Additionally, there are also pictures of dead and injured Iraqis. On the public opinion front, this has effects. In the case of Al-Jezeera, I can't help but think that they show these pictures, in part, because they disagree with the war and hope to pursuade the public to their opinion. Even if they have no motive, the effect is the same. So, should the pictures (particularly of Iraqi casualties) be shown? My opinion is that it's okay to show these pictures, but that they should also show pictures of Saddam's crimes. Afterall, people seeing pictures of Iraqi deaths may recoil from the death that war causes -- meanwhile their only alternative is Saddam Hussein's rule. Is that necessarily any better? If the media is going to show the casualties of this war, shouldn't the media show the result's of Saddam's rule so people aren't left with the mistaken idea that the choices are: (a) war (which causes death) or (b) peace (which doesn't cause death) But, the reality that the choices are: (a) war (which causes death) or (b) Saddam's brutal regime (which causes death) Perhaps they should be showing pictures of the Kurdish villagers killed by chemical weapons, too (which I have seen, but won't describe here). ------------------------------------------ "What happened in that Rhode Island club is shocking. To think that over a hundred people would attend a Great White concert." - The Onion