Spare us, David Brooks

Once again the infamous David Brooks, a columnist for the NEW YORK TIMES, has written a pig-headed, preposterous column which insults the intelligence of TIMES readers.

He always confuses issues. He approaches his columnist like the any misguided theorist: adopt a conclusion and then find proof, ignoring any facts that don't mesh with your enlightened concept. This time he blames the anti-war sentiment on the fac that the media does not present stories of the heroism of American soldiers in Iraq.

There are two facts that should have compelled him to give up. First, remember Private Jessica Lynch? Or Pat Tillman? Both had their fates mythologized by the media--via the Pentagon's PR machine--until the stories were discovered to be lies? Second, few doubt the bravery of those ACTUALLY fighting the war, and people are not so stupid as to equate that admiration for admiration for the war itself. Rather, the side-by-side view of the two things--soldiers fighting vs. fighting the war--shows just how tragic it is. People losing their lives, or suffering permanent injury and disfigurement, all for a war that was never based on any true and imminent threat.

So David Brooks: please find a new way. Give up on your ideas unless you can compel readers with the perfection of your logic. Or find another career.