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    Thousands of Deadly Islamic Terror Attacks Since 9/11

« Quote of the Day: Jim Rohn on Personal Responsibility | Main | Annoying Immigration Protest Picture of the Day »

March 31, 2006

Give Jill Carroll a Little Time Before Condemning Her Latest Statements

Iraq_jill_carroll_freed_2 Give Jill Carrroll some time before being too concerned about her public pronouncements saying nice things about the terrorists who held her.

Too many seem to be assuming either that recently released hostage Jill Carroll is now a terrorist sympathizer or a victim of "Stockholm Syndrome" in which she has come to identify with her captors.

Many of these claims are based on statements recorded before Jill Carroll was released, obviously under the implied threat of death.  Those statements should be ignored as the product of duress. 

Even some of Carroll's post-release statements are surely colored by the real fear that she could be kidnapped again or assassinated if she says the "wrong" thing.  Her sense of personal safety has undoubtedly been shattered.

Jill Carroll has just spent three months saying whatever her terrorists captors wanted her to say, for obvious reasons.  Give her some time to shake the habit and find her own thoughts again.

Even when she does begin to work her way back to her own thoughts, she will have to deal with the embarrassment of realizing that she willingly told lies or wildly exaggerated her opinions in order to save her life.  It was not wrong for her to do so; all of her statements during her captivity were made under duress.  Yet it still will be uncomfortable for her to admit publicly that she lied about anything if she is normally the kind of person who does not lie at all.  In such a situation, it's almost easier on the psyche to just stand by whatever you said until the passage of time allows the whole horrible experience to fade. 

Added to that, Caroll may feel herself bound by promises made she may have made to her kidnappers under duress.  She is not morally or legally bound any any promise she made in order to secure her release or avoid her death, but it may take her a long time to realize that.

This is very unlike the recent experience in which leaders of the Christian Peacemaker Teams, three of whose members were rescued from kidnappers by U.S. and U.K. troops, went out of their way to condemn the United States and conspicuously failed to thank the soldiers who rescued them until they were forced by public outcry to do so.  In that case, the spokespersons who made the outrageous statements were not hostages themselves.  They had no excuse.

So maybe Jill Carroll will come through with moral clarity about the terrorists who held her, given a little time and distance or a lot of time and distance.  That will be seen. 

By the same token, anyone who believes in the truth of any statements made by Jill Carroll at the behest of the terrorists, or considers them relevant to any public policy debate, is (a) foolish, (b) pro-terrorist, (c) anti-American, or (d) all of the above.

For now though, let Carroll enjoy her freedom again and save your anger for the terrorists who committed the barbaric crime of kidnapping Jill Carroll, killing another person in the ambush, and threatening for three months to kill Jill Carroll.

Update 3/31/06Michelle Malkin has a good roundup of opinion, including some who share the view expressed here that we need to wait before condemning Carroll.  All Things Beautiful has an even more exhaustive roundup of opinion.  All anyone really knows is that time will tell. 

Jill Carroll's capacity to think and speak freely and objectively regarding the terrorists who held her was denied during her captivity under threat of death.  Now that she is free, that capacity is like an injured seedling that needs time and patience to recover.  Pulling the plant up by the roots every five minutes to check on its progress is not recommended and may stunt the plant's growth.  Unfortunately, that is exactly what may happen if Carroll succumbs to pleas from the media to make the immediate rounds of the television interview circuit.

Update 4/1/06:  The Christian Science Monitor confirms that Jill Carroll was forced to make the propaganda video praising her captors and attacking the United States as a condition of obtaining her freedom, and after having been told by her captors that they had already killed another American hostage.

Update later 4/1/06:  Safe in Germany, Jill Carroll has come through with crystal clear moral clarity even sooner than I had hoped.  Read her statement here making it clear that she has no sympathy whatsoever for the terrorists who held her hostage and is grateful to everyone who helped to bring her home.  If I may be permitted a moment of celebration, I was right in cautioning that Jill Carroll's early pro-terrorist statements should not be taken at face value and in urging patience. 

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Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Give Jill Carroll a Little Time Before Condemning Her Latest Statements:

» Suspicion from All Things Beautiful
What has become somewhat of a controversy since last night, is the video I have provided for you below (courtesy of Bareknucklepolitics, via LGF), and filmed by her Mujahideen captors shortly prior to her release, which shows her obviously keen to prai... [Read More]

» Hostage from ReidBlog
It seems [the right wing bloggers] want to see Ms. Carroll make yet another hostage video, only this one's for them... [Read More]

» Jill Carroll Heading Home from A Blog For All
She's already landed at Ramstein AFB in Germany, after a short stay in Baghdad's Green Zone. Her next stop will be Boston to be reunited with her family and friends in what I can only imagine will be an emotional and joyous homecoming. [Read More]

» Jill Carroll's Release Had A Propaganda Price from The Moderate Voice
Christian Science Monitor correspondent Jill Carroll's release did have a price a fee paid in the form of a propaganda statement she was ordered to videotape, her paper... [Read More]

» Jill Carroll's Release Had A Propaganda Price from The Moderate Voice
Christian Science Monitor correspondent Jill Carroll's release did have a price a fee paid in the form of a propaganda statement she was ordered to videotape, her paper... [Read More]

» Jill Carroll is Headed Home from Blue Star Chronicles
As everyone knows, Jill Carroll is on her way home. She has gotten some criticism for statements made immediately after her release. This was obviously an amateurish attempt at propaganda on the part of the kidnappers. [Read More]

» Jill Carroll Update from The Rolling Barrage
The Christian Science Monitor has the statement of Jill Carroll. Among the things she had to say: During my last night in captivity, my captors forced me to participate in a propaganda video. They told me they would let me... [Read More]

» Jill Carroll Update from The Rolling Barrage
The Christian Science Monitor has the statement of Jill Carroll. Among the things she had to say: During my last night in captivity, my captors forced me to participate in a propaganda video. They told me they would let me... [Read More]

» The brouhaha in the blogosphere on post-Carroll release commentary from Sister Toldjah
It was probably a good thing that I didnt have time to blog this past weekend as things got pretty nasty in certain circles over comments made by certain bloggers in the aftermath of Jill Carrolls release (see Joe Gandelmans post ... [Read More]

» Suspicion (FURTHER UPDATED) from All Things Beautiful
UPDATE IX: The London Telegraph attacks the right wing Blogosphere in a major way....Embittered', the ever hateful and bitter Mahablog, who cannot string two words together without spitting out venom, who calls me "ever-brainless" and a "dimwitt" [Read More]

Comments

Gina:

Nice piece - wish that more people had read it before jumping off the cliff.

Sometimes people want to believe the worst - or want their stereotypes to be validated. I always felt that the way in which a number of conservatives were reacting to Carroll was a sad example of this. Despite the fact that we simply did not have enough information at the time to properly judge.

Thankfully, not all reacted in this way (you being a nice example).

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