The new episode of FAIR TV is here, featuring misreporting on Iran’s nuclear energy program, NewsHour lecturing labor leaders on Labor Day, and some of the most embarrassing biographical puffery for a presidential candidate you’re likely to ever hear. Please share it with your friends, and let us know what you think in comments below.
Nice feature, and this comes from someone who’s generally unenthusiastic about online video reports as opposed to written articles.
Just to clarify, or add to, the story about Romney in France: his decision to go there in 1968 could have had nothing to do with having “a high draft number” as that term is normally understood. The first Selective Service lottery of the Vietnam era was not held until December 1, 1969.
Very well done but not really different from FAIR radio program. And it would be great if it were longer and covered more topics.
Thanks for launching this.
Laura
Every time I see a PBS interview like this and I can send it to PBS, I send it and mention the fact I can quit contributing to PBS and get more real news from FAIR. Real news that PBS used to do.
As elaborated more fully in comments posted by myself and others to Hart’s August 31 article on Iran, Hart continues to perpetuate a blatant falsehood, namely, that there is no evidence Iran is developing nuclear weapons.
As a threshold matter, Hart himself – in previous reports – has merely noted that it may be conceivable that Iran is not developing nuclear weapons. For example, in the August 31 piece, Hart writes of “the obvious possibility that Iran is [not] developing [nuclear weapons].” Or let’s look at a link contained in the August 31 piece. That link is to a previous article by Hart from January 2012, in which engineering professor Muhammed Sahimi is said to have written that a previous IAEA report’s “allegations about Iran’s high-explosives research…are not necessarily linked to nuclear work.”
Of course is it one thing to argue that it is “possible” Iran is not developing nuclear weapons and quite a different thing to claim that there is “zero evidence” for this.
Further, in that January 2012 piece, Hart goes on to assert that the IAEA report “acknowledges that ‘there exist non-nuclear applications, albeit few, for detonators like EBWs.'” In other words, in that previous article, Hart contends only that it is conceivable (albeit just barely conceivable) that Iran is not engaged in nuclear weapons development.
But let’s look more closely at the IAEA reports. In fact, they set forth abundant evidence of an active Iranian program to develop nuclear weapons technology. The bridgewire detonators are just one element cited in IAEA reports. Others include:
– Experimental production of polonium-210, which can be used as a neutron initiator for nuclear weapons
– Re-engineering the payload chamber of the Shahab 3 missile re-entry vehicle in a way that would accommodate a new warhead to be made using enriched uranium
– Testing a multiple initiation system whose dimensions were consistent with the dimensions for the re-engineered Shahab 3 payload chamber
– Developing a “prototype firing system that would enable the payload to explode both in the air above a target, or upon impact of the re-entry vehicle with the ground”; the IAEA concluded that “any payload option other than nuclear… could be ruled out”
– Manufacturing simulated nuclear explosive components
– Constructing a large explosives containment vessel in the Parchin military complex for hydrodynamic experiments, which the IAEA says are “strong indicators of possible weapon development”; in its latest report, the Agency complains it is still being denied access to the Parchin complex.
Hart, as a long-time subscriber to Extra, I’m calling you out. You certainly have the right to question the weight of the evidence against Iran. Or to ponder whether Israel can afford to count on the “possibility” that Iran is not developing nuclear weapons.
But you simply cannot claim that there is no evidence that Iran is developing nuclear weapons – that claim is false and dangerous. Moreover, you’ve been put on notice on this issue several times now and so can no longer appeal to sloppiness as your excuse. Of course all of this is particularly grotesque given that FAIR is purportedly an objective media watchdog.
Fess up, Hart. We subscribers are running out of patience.
William regards IAEA and leaks from US sources in Vienna as credible. When the US got the Egyptian replaced by a Japanese as IAEA head, its political orientation changed from neutral to anti-Iran.
William, you might as well leave with whatever readership your professing to represent.
I only see you “calling him out” and you lie anyway, which is ironic.
Hart has not claimed there is no evidence, but the report is always cautious when talking about potential uses of items related to Nuclear work that can be used for Nuclear weapons.
What Hart has claimed is exactly what the report claims.
It seems at best you cherry pick as much as you claim he does.
But lets examine your claim that he says no evidence. Listen to what there is no evidence of. He is specific, and NYT article confirms the report says it.
All of your points are maybes, possibilities, and unrelated to Harts claim.
Are you being disinginuous because of an agenda, or do you only have a hard time hearing when people speak?
That is, are you honest or deceitful?
I am sure you have an agenda either way. You really want to believe Iran has a nuclear weapons program even though the report even cautions against that path.
The question is, what really scares you so much?
Iran will start a WW3?
If anything, american pressure to constantly put countries into a corner is the starter, if anybody is at all.
Mike Munk, Hart isn’t claiming that the IAEA is not credible, and so your comment is irrelevant.
Walter, Hart did indeed claim that there is “zero evidence” or “no evidence” that Iran is developing nuclear weapons. The fact that you can’t believe he made this claim shows how absurd it is.
Why is Israel so insistent on claiming that Iran has a weapon, and yet Israel didn’t join the IAEA, and therefore won’t let anynone see there’s. : )
There are 25,000 Jewish people living in Iran, so don’t they count for anything?
Considering the non-wmd Iraq, and even the Gulf of Tonkin, hasn’t the world learned that rumor is not really a good reason for war? What happend to all that work after WW II to clarify that agression needs a reason?
And as to labor and Judy Woodruff, well isn’t she a member of a union ( now known as SagAftra) What a silly thing for her to say that the private workers think that union wages should be lower.
She should tell her own network that many Americans think she is making too much money, so that her employeer is free to pay her whatever it wants. : )
Anybody read Nasrallah(Hezbollah secretary general and Irans man )saying that Israel is attacking the world by spreading Homosexuality?How about Iran today saying any conflict with Israel will result in attacks on American interests worldwide irregardless of American involvement.
michael e: You still think irregardless is a word? Don’t you read the comments here?
I loved the creek of the” times past” door opening as we snicker and jab at Mitt Romney as he was 44 years ago.We slide forward to see Obama in a haze of Pot smoke.Clinton banging cocktail waitresses 2 at a time.Ah good times.
As far as unions go….. I think I feel the way most people do.I hope every plumber and electrician ,teamster, and carpenter- makes a million bucks this year.Same with every CEO.As long as it is not my tax dollars that pays them.Free ,open markets and I hope everyone does well.
Iran……….Peter the way you put it, no one has anything to fear whatsoever from those dear sweet little men sitting like storm crows over the Iranian people,and other parts of our world..Listen I have got an area of town in my city loaded with crime stats.Want you to take your nice guy face at about midnight and walk a couple miles through that part of town.Keep saying lions and tigers and bears oh my.Or say…..there is nothing to fear but fear itself.I would agree to meet you in my car on the far end of your walk.Except you will never make it in one piece.Feel what it feels like to walk in Israel’s shoes as it were.Wanna see if you can “talk” your way past people who have a serious agenda….An agenda of putting you in a wooden box.
Jack………Irregardless.Look it up in wick.It is one of those terms that pissed off my Notre Damn nuns in grade school right on up through Harvard.I friggin LOVE that word on so many levels I cant even begin to tell you.It pisses off so many idiot punctuation nazis.I Love it ……..Love love love it. :)
Judging from your English composition skills, the only was you could get into Harvard Medical School would be as a cadaver, and we all much prefer you just the way you are.
@michael e: There’s a area of your town loaded with crime stats? Neat. Get me a picture of a standard deviation, will ya? I’ve always wondered what one looked like in real life.
If irregardless is a word, what’s its definition?
micky e and billy, tweedle dum and tweedle dee. What a double act of off topic illiterate idiocy and anti Iranian racist lies about nukes!
If you really want something to whine about guys, try the actually real, illegal nuclear weapons Israel possesses.
Anybody read the papers today?Seems those idiots(illiterates?)at the UN atomic energy commission, and the other atomic regulatory agencies have received actionable intel that Iran is running computer simulations in preparation to building a nuclear bomb.This may be the last straw along with Iran’s high yield of fissionable materials.But Im sure you stone cold morons think they are just playing video games,and building medical labs..
Thank you Jack B for wishing me “life”.That is a lot coming from a lib.As far as Harvard Med taking me as a cadaver…..No I did it the old fashioned way.Strait A student, from 1rst grade through high school.Couple points shy of perfect SAT scores. Held a 4.0 GPA through undergrad.Had a great interview.Oh yeah…… and I was able to afford it.Now how did Obama get into the schools he attended?Certainly not his grades.They were mediocre at best.In fact they completely preclude his attending those fine schools.Hmmmmm?Wish I had that answer, don’t you?And his SATs?Report is he got an 1100.Ok, but not Harvard material.Do you know what I love about English comp.?Most of that, along with spelling is no longer needed in some of our top journalist schools.Seems computers have removed the need for that talent.Im glad you think it is paramount in medicine.Wish you and the nuns who taught me- could see my hand writing. And what is it you do Jack to earn your coin?
John what figure are you asking for from the distribution analysis in my city?The median is -9.0.The mean is -4.5 Standard deviation is 37.9.Minimum value is -78.0 and maximum is 169.7,Lowest comparison score fore metro areas is -780 and highest 169.7.Since you understand the complexities of the formulas used in this analysis that should help you in your computations.Little that means to anyone caught in the bad areas of my city after the sun sets, and the animals come out to play.
Irregardless….Definition is in Merriam webster
Excellent, Peter.
@michael e: I know what a standard deviation is. What I wonder is how you have a neighborhood in your town that is filled with abstract statistical concepts instead of people. You wrote that it’s loaded with crime stats; if you don’t like being called out for writing stupid, then don’t write stupid and simultaneously toot your own horn about how effin’ smart you are.
So you don’t really know the definition of irregardless well enough to write it here, then?
John
Of course you are right.There are no stats.There are people.People make up those stats.I agree with your correction.Just as there are no corporations without it being accepted that we are talking about people.Unions are people also.You need to speak to Obama.He still thinks corporations are not people.Though he probably thinks unions are.
Why cant you simply type in”irregardless”/Merriam Webster- into your search box?It is listed as a word there.Why must I type it out?
Though the word AX that Obama uses in place of” ask” is not.A word that is.He has also says breaffast in place of breakfast.I guess Harvard did not just fail in educating me.If your teaching a class maybe BAM and I can take it.