The trouble with Fisk

Robert Fisk has for a long time courted more than his share of detractors.

Israeli's from the settler end of the political spectrum hate him because he thinks Palestinians have rights too.

Turks hate him because he never tires of writing about the Armenian massacres.

The Afghans beat him to a pulp because... well, mainly because he was a Westerner and he was there.

And on it goes.

I've always liked Fisk because he has the balls to tell it like he sees it regardless of who hates him.

That's a commendable quality in a journalist.

But I must admit he gets a bit self-indulgent at times. His dad admired Mussolini? Who cares? My dad admired Julia Child.

But who cares? That's not journalism, that's indulgence.

He's got a whole pack of Fisk-haters on his case now. Apparently he's been too chummy with Assad's military. Actually, he's doing a classic Fisk; talking to the people nobody else will talk to. What other Western journalist has risked talking to the regime? Assad is a rogue who butchers his own people just for fun is the standard line in Western media.

Bully for Fisk for going and talking to Assad's butchers.

The rest of the media are busy ingratiating themselves with various CIA backed "rebel" groups. Hell, even Canada's milquetoast CBC has a crew with the rebels!

So his latest column reeks of indulgence. He's off to Sweden to track down the source of those safety flares he saw in Syria.

He already knows the source of those flares. They come standard issue with every Volvo truck sold in Syria, and Volvo has been a major player in the heavy truck market in Syria, as throughout the Middle East, for a couple of generations.

Volvos come from Sweden, so Fisk is off to the second greatest Great White North.

I have no doubt that safety flares can be put to nefarious use. So can fertilizer. So can gasoline transports. So can butter knives.

But Fisk convinced his paymasters at The Independent to underwrite a trip to Sweden to get to the bottom of this story.

Hmm... the man makes his home in Beirut but suddenly he has a keen interest in exploring the provenance of some Volvo safety flares he saw in Syria...

Hey, if I lived in Beirut in these days of exploding car bombs and rival factions, I'd be looking for any excuse for a trip to Sweden too.

But that ain't journalism.

It's self-preservation.