The Army Regulates Blogging

According to Wired, soldiers must now have personal e-mails and blogs run by an officer before posting. While I understand the need for military secrecy when it comes to things like positions and plans, this rule is set up to fail. Eventually, if it hasn't already happened, officers will stop approving blogs that are critical of the war, with the explanation that it'll embolden the enemy (which the Bush administration already holds to be true). The main problem I have with this blogging regulation is that it'll silence the voices of our soldiers, making the war farther away from Americans than it currently is.

When you watch the mainstream media, you'll notice that the most frivolous news usually gets the most attention. For example, CNN going commercial free for the death of Anna Nicole Smith. Little if any attention is paid to Afghanistan or Iraq. This is mostly because our war-mongering leaders know that they can get away with much more if the general public is oblivious to what's really happening; if they're living behind pretty curtains. Silencing soldier bloggers is along the same lines; as long as people don't know what the soldiers are really feeling, there will be no larger outcry for a change.