I for one am proud of the commander in Mosul who refused to let that reporter to with them. If it were possible I would like to see any kind of media personnel kept completely away from the military.

I've always suspected that any reporter who did his or her job would be unwelcome as an embed. Heath Druzin's case seems to prove that. The question other news outlets should be asking is why their reporters are still welcome and, consequently, what newsworthy stories they're not reporting.

the issue is not that some pao does not like your reporter. it is that no reporters should be with units at all. in the order of the universe, journalists are number one liars with pao coming in as a close second.

would you really believe anything that a pao said to you or allowed you to see?

and would you truly believe a reporter who goes with a unit as if it is some spectator sport whose only concern is to impress his editor with a big story that will help circulation.

if you folks want to work on a story, forget about the war. do a story about the expense accounts of your reporters.

I'll be willing to bet we don't know the whole story here, and that Druzin isn't the "Pure as the Driven Snow" reporter that Stripes plays him out to be.

Col. Volesky and his crew have probably been kind and haven't put out there, for all to see, just how problematic this guy might be when reporting in a Real Combat unit.

For all we know, he may be a danger to the soldier's in some manner Volesky doesn't choose to report.

For that matter, don't you editors wonder why Druzin is the ONLY reporter in the theater that has been refused entry to a unit? Or is he just the one you guys choose to support?

The practice of embedding journalists with soldiers is an ingenious way of curtailing press freedom by the Pentagon or whatever aspect of the military that implemented it. Both the press and the soldiers don’t like it. The press, are not free and the soldiers feel watched. And the practice has generated much resentment within active units, the press, are now seen as the enemy. But modern warfare is as much about successful propaganda as a successful military campaign. And anyway, the Pentagon may soon decide to cover its wars itself, so it won’t need an independent or “outside” pesky press like the S&S.

To those who complain about the Stars and Stripes newspaper you are at least allowed your say here; do you really think that other American newspapers, the New York Times, the Washington Post and so on, (the big boys) are all that better at printing the truth? We live in a world where Plato’s “noble lie” has been subconsciously internalized and taken to an art form. Leo Strauss, a founding father of the neoconservatives, believed that it was necessary to lie to the masses for their own good. This is now standard practice everywhere. Politicians, the military industrial complex, the banks, big business, even the universities all took him up on his word. We live in a world where it is deemed necessary to keep the masses ignorant so that they don’t cause trouble – for their own good of course. Walter Lippmann (arguably America’s most famous journalist) also believed in Plato’s “noble lie”, (he was not only a journalist but a philosopher like Strauss) he believed that the people, the “bewildered herd”, as he called them, (and I’m sure he would have included soldiers in that category), should be controlled by the elite, Plato’s Philosopher Kings.

But Lippmann did say something of value and interest that pertains to our current topic, he said:

“A long life in journalism convinced me many presidents ago that there should be a large air space between a journalist and the head of state.”

Likewise there should be a “large air space” between Army units and journalists, ergo, get rid of embedding. Journalists and soldiers are doing two different jobs; they are like oil and water, they don’t mix. In fact the American Constitution makes it clear that they shouldn’t.

What’s the difference between European elites and American elites? American elites have not only disenfranchised the middle and working class politically, they have looted their money. European elites are smarter; they realize that by destroying their own middle class, they kill the goose that lays the golden egg.

Although I agree with Lippmann’s professionalism regarding journalism, I disagree with his politics and philosophy. Being a philosophy student myself, I came to realize (with the help of a very good Greek lecturer) that Plato initially misunderstood his teacher Socrates, but with the passage of time did come to a deeper understanding. Plato’s “Republic”; was I believe an early work; and from which Lippmann (regrettably) drew much of his inspiration and ideas, (as did Strauss and Western Civilization in general), it is quite different to Plato’s later work. But to say that Plato started on the political right and moved to the left is a gross simplification. Right and Left are 19th century political concepts and had no meaning in Plato’s Athens. It would be more true to say that Plato deepened his epistemological understand of what knowledge is and what it can and cannot do, which in turn, changed him politically. The blueprint lecturing that we find in the “Republic”, disappears in his later dialogs.

I mention the above simply to draw the reader’s attention to how Greek thought has shaped American politics and journalism. To be more precise, one aspect of Greek thought, Plato’s “Republic”, which I regard as being not the best, but one of the worst of Plato’s dialogs and worshipped rather than read critically.

It was the philosopher Karl Popper and his book “The Open Society and its Enemies” that first drew our attention to this problem, the consequences of which, we are still dealing with today.

So back to now: if a problem cannot be resolved within the Army Chain of Command, soldiers can only take their grievance to politicians or newspapers. But please note, it was not “soldiers” who had this problem originally with the reporter from S&S, it was a colonel – sorry I make a distinction. But in a way the colonel’s not to blame either, as he wants his mission to be a success and will use everything in his command to achieve that end and I can’t blame him for that. But those who came up with this moronic idea of embedding can sit back on the fence and smile cynically at this debate. They knew what they were doing; it was done with the goal of eliminating any unwanted news. But they could not stop: well this debate for example. And remember the Greek motto: “a slave is he, who cannot speak his mind.”

Embedded reporters are vital to the troops and Americans hungry for the skinny on the life of grunts in the field and the occupied natives lacking elsewhere in the media.

But Stripes needs to get off its horse. Here's why:

1. This is NOT news. This is inside baseball turned ***** match. Find some real news, report it, sell papers. You're Stripes -- unburdened by the pesky profit monster corroding your competitors. So spare us the mellodrama.

2. Embeds are a GUEST of the command. If I am a guest for Thanksgiving and can't stop from cussing in front of grandma, I am a fool to argue my eviction. Reciting policy is refuge for the impotent.

Stripes does BRILLIANT work found nowhere else. But this story was long ago DOA. This round of self-righteous CPR stinks of perfunctory ping-pong the colonel won long ago.

Provide links to his published articles in the last few years. Let us read them to determine if the news is presented unfiltered.

If he reports nothing but negatives (or positives) we should be able to realize it and form an opinion as to whether or not we agree with the ban.

I wholeheartedly support 1st Cav Col. Gary Volesky and his PAO, Maj. Ramona Bellard, for barring Stripes reporter Heath Druzin from embedding with their unit. I retired with more than 22 years service in public affairs, with significant dirt time in Saudi, Kuwait, Somalia and Rwanda. I worked the world's press, yet can honestly say there are only four reporters I never want to see again. This is not a freedom of the press issue; this issue is about a government newspaper that employs a Civil Service employee who must be a royal pain in the rear. In the field, you get rid of nonperformers and irritants. That's the bottom line.

I for one am tired of listening to the media cry about not getting access to what they feel they have a right to. The U.S. Constitution gives the right of freedom of speech and an open media only within America. The U.S. constitution has no bearing or validity outside of our borders. Obviuously there are other countries that have allowances for an open media within their countries, but does that give an american journalist the right to demand access, I think not. My main point here is that the media is demanding open access everywhere it wants even though it may be against a countries constitution or laws. Look at the the reporters in the North Korea debacle, those reporters were probably somewhere they were not suppose to be and now there is a price to pay. Being a reporter with credentials does not stop bad things from happening to you so quit asking for special privileges.

The situation with the Stars and Stripes reporter Heath Druzin not being allowed to embed with the 1st Cav Div, in my opinion, is not an issue. The Command Authority of that unit has determined that individual not be welcomed back. What no one has told us was there an issue the last time he was with the unit which would affect discipline and morale. If that is the case then COL Volesky has a greater responsibility to his soldiers than he does about letting some reporter hang out with his units while he is trying to lead soldiers in combat.

I would commend that the article that I am responding to, did in good measure, glowingly showed COL Volesky's background, however, I feel that there is information that was omitted that was not in the best interest of the Stars and Stripes story or did not fit what the writer was trying to convey.

In today's media world it is impossible to find a truly unbiased reporter and if there is one out there a Steak and Lobster dinner is on me. It is impossible to truly remove one's emotions and viewpoints from ones own work, so that must mean that every news report or article is skewed and not truly unbiased, and until the media is willing to admit this, I for one am one hundred percent in defense of COL Volseky and any other Commander to make such a request.

In the story you focused more on the propaganda issue than anything else, there were other points you mentioned but did not expand upon such as "reluctance about discussing story ideas", personality and professionalism. Instead you only focus on the aspect of highlighting aspects of stories, what you do not explain did they want more human interest stories included, did they want more spotlights on individual heroic performances, I will even include what you want us to believe maybe they did want you to actually tell the truth and instead of reportting dead an wounded or negative aspects of a mission they wanted you to promote the positives. We will never know because you are more interested in defending your right to exist rather than being fair honest and open.

There is another issue: and one related to this, which concerns something the Stars & Stripes discovered, that a private company, the Rendon Group; (which has had a long working history with the Pentagon), has for many years been “profiling” and “rating” journalists for the Pentagon. So the Pentagon could pick and choose who they embed and send downrange those journalists it wanted. But suddenly yesterday, we read that the Pentagon has terminated the Rendon Group's contract. Well, well; quite a few birds (or is it pigeons) are coming home to roost.

But this is still not the worst. In the Joint Force Quarterly, Adm. Mike Mullen, has criticized Washington and its “strategic communications” efforts; in particular efforts made in Afghanistan. There was also an article in the Guardian newspaper that makes Mullen’s point clearly. That we promise the Afghans the world and deliver little or nothing – a telling comment from Mullen is that “the Taliban are not out there shooting videos”, what they say and what they do are one and the same – sometimes horrific like cutting people’s ears and noses off, but one and the same. Adm. Mullen’s criticism goes to the very heart of the military strategy and policy in Afghanistan.

As if this was not enough, the top commander of US and NATO troops in Afghanistan Gen Stanley McChrystal in an article also in yesterdays Stripes; says that the situation in Afghanistan is “serious”; and new thinking and strategy is required to defeat the Taliban. But who is going to provide this new thinking and strategy, the Pentagon? But the Pentagon it would seem; is far too busy with its propaganda and stigmatizing journalists to actually conduct a successful military campaign, even though that happens to be its raison d’état.

So it would appear would it not, that Rumsfeld’s ghost has still not been exorcised, and still haunts the halls of the Pentagon, the man who brought the free-market economy and privatization to the US Military. His love of pseudo-intellectual phrases: always a hit with the media: that he nevertheless despised. But it was his most cherished dream to bring the teachings of his guru Milton Friedman, a man he so admired, to improve the military, and that, he certainly did. But it has proved a costly experiment for the armed services, the people who serve in them, and for the reputation of the United States.

I tend to disagree. The media IS the enemy!

Sir, in no place do you reference where it says the Editor has the right to pick the reporter. Yes, reporters are to be allowed to be embedded, but no where did you show the sole authority for picking a particualr reporter rests with the Newspaper.

Furhtermore, this "arrangement" should be a 50-50 deal. If the reporter would have "bent" a little bit and did stories on what "good" happened in Iraq, then maybe he could have returned. To only want to report stories that were "sensational" shows the reporter is not doing his job. The military understand "bad" stories need to be told, but what irks most people in Iraq (yes, I am here now), is the fact that reporters will not report the "good" that is happening (doesn't sell papers).

Just the fact the miltary was not told they HAD to accept him, shows that you are wrong in assuming the Editor has control. Freedom of the Press does not mean they can make all the decisions. Live with it

A more slanted and biased story in the Stars and Stripes I have not read. This reporter was another Geraldo Rivera type that was briefed on his constraints, as a commander is only right to do, and made himself undesirable by his actions. When a commander has men downrange, in harm’s way, and as the man in the arena has to babysit some self-righteous liberal reporter on top of doing his duty, that is too much. And to have someone second guess the commander and quote regs as to how the commander is wrong to do his job with the mission and his men as the priority, that is outrageous. You want to second guess a field commander’s actions and quote regs as to how he needs to accommodate you and your staff endangering troops on the line, so be it. Druzin should not be anywhere except back in the states where his disruptive and arrogant actions can be mitigated. And your delusional liberal opinion has set my mind firmly on this fact; we need more Volesky’s and far fewer Prendergast’s in the world. It would make the world a better place as this officer knows how to serve America and this “paper” only seems to know how to abuse the First Amendment. How many soldiers’ lives are you willing to endanger to write up more “stories” with the sole real intent to sell advertising? How dare you undermine a soldier’s resume with the demand that we embed some notetaker in combat. You are right about one thing, the military has much bigger and better concerns than catering to Stars and Stripes.