FEOS wrote:
From what I've heard in news reports on this, the photos got to der Speigel as a result of the investigation and prosecution of these douchebags.
That would be the difference and, to me, why there's no reason for outrage. Some people did some horrible things. They are being prosecuted for it. It's not like it was being covered up by anyone (a la Abu Ghraib). Someone blew the whistle on the team, the DoD investigated and started prosecutorial proceedings against them.
As far as trying to keep the pictures from public view? I don't see a problem with it. What purpose does it serve, except to inflame hatred for Americans in general when it wasn't Americans in general who performed these acts? It was an isolated incident that was investigated and prosecuted as soon as it was discovered--a singularly important aspect that is completely missed/overlooked in the reporting's pursuit of headlines.
Ty wrote:
Abu Ghraib prison was, loosely speaking, an institution established by the Bush administration which did not seem to regulate the conduct of the guards and the conditions of the facility leading to behavior that caused outrage. This is a disgusting and sick act by a rogue group of soldiers. The two things are different - but no less shocking. I point out the difference simply to show why the Bush administration copped some flack for Abu Ghraib while the Obama administration is unlikely to cop flak for this.
I don't know why there is little outrage over this. Maybe it's just because people are immune to this stuff which is pretty concerning. Maybe it's because it's the belief that this is an isolated incident. The former seems most likely, with the US media, (both liberally slanted and conservatively slanted,) the news is determined by what's sell-able. I'm guessing that they don't think their viewers care to see more atrocities by the military in the middle-east.
These two posts sum it up quite nicely.
Other than that, I can quite easily imagine this being brought up at some round table discussion at a news agency, and having some exec say "Leave it, Afghanistan is old and moldy, we need something new to keep ratings!"
Beyond that, where is the outrage? I don't know, not like it's something physical that I can say, "Oh yeah! I remember, it's in my sock drawer!"
