Alex Berenson needs sensitivity courses
The New York Times may have crossed the line of sensitivity in an article written by Alex Berenson. The article, carried in Sunday's Plain Dealer, is about the rising homicide rates in Baghdad since the fall of Saddam Hussein. The PD uses the headline "Baghdad Homicide Rate Soars Since the Fall of Saddam Hussein". Fair enough.
But the lede to Berenson's article is somewhat disturbing:
Business is booming at the Baghdad morgue.
I am surprised that this ran as it was, in that the author never looked at it and said, "Maybe this is too extreme."
The story, which talks about how rare "murders" were before the fall of one of the most horrific men on the face of the earth, states that an average of about 20-25 bodies are brought in every day to the Baghdad morgue.
A tragedy to be sure, but the lede seems to treat this as something less than serious. Forget the fact that Hussein was brutal, forget any political tie in. I just think the "business is booming line" is a bit callous considering that these people who are killed have families and loved ones. I wonder how Berenson and those at the Times would feel if it was one of their loved ones that had been killed.