typical manipulation and blue baby syndrome

I've moved rightward. This morning reading the paper and certain bleeding heart web statements floating around, I understood why, beyond the principle of social contagion, this has happened.

Floating inaccuracies for the sake of manipulative dramatics are so irritating to me. And yet, they characterize the PR war in the middle east. Hamas uses this tool to greatest effect.

What most irritated me this morning and put a damper on my usual morning cheer, was reading that "Blue Baby Syndrome" has been thrust upon the diapered gazans like a cast iron induced plague or an IDF decree.

I'm the first to admit that health care in Gaza is severely hindered. Trying to work in health diplomacy drives me bonkers at times because the focus is less often on alleviating health care disparities and more on weighing down the case for dramatic effect in the eyes of the media. I've never faced as many challenges in working with a developing health care system than when working through my NGO on health concerns in the palestinian territories. And what we find in the west bank is five hundred times easier to address than in Gaza, mostly because our presence is at least permitted in the west bank and Fatah is less willing to put palestinians health on the sacrificial alter to maintain victim status and subsequent negotiation power.

Blue Baby syndrome describes the physical appearance that a cyanotic baby may take on. It's most often caused by congenital malformations like tetrology of fallot, but it's possible that it can be caused by several other reasons included high nitrate levels in groundwater.

Like anyone with any humanity, I balk at the injustice of anyone harming any baby or child, and sick babies are heartwrenching no matter the nationality or religion. If Operation Cast Lead or the misled policies of the IDF were causing thousands of babies to slowly suffocate I would be the first to garner all the human resource at my disposal and attack the issue to bring these babies back to pink.

However, I regularly see and work with the epidemiological data coming out of the territories. Data that's not always collected accurately but it's still somewhat of a measure. Blue baby syndrome is not an epidemic in Gaza. It's a possible connection for a condition that could possibly occur given the polluted groundwater status in gaza.

Two points to rile me up:
1. Blue baby syndrome is not an epidemic anywhere in the middle east
2. The polluted groundwater in gaza is primarily the result of overpumping of the Gaza aquifer and lack of financing towards alternative desalination techniques applied to other water sources.

what does this mean? To me it means that yet again millions of mainstream and blog news readers are being manipulated and are having their heartstrings pulled for the purpose of preserving the cause of victimization.

There are plenty of reasons to feel for the palestinians and the existence that they lead, we don't need to fall over ourselves to point the finger of blame at Israel for turning babies blue. Trust that there are many ways to reach out and help with real issues in the territories as well.

what is the most common cause of congenital heart defects in the palestinian population that leads to blue baby syndrome? consanguineous marriage a.k.a. marrying your sister. I wonder if journalists like Amira Hass can find a way to blame Israel for that too? but, I digress...