The panel discussion that followed was notable in that it featured a rarity

The panel discussion that followed was notable in that it featured a rarity: a bona fide anti-war voice

in Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.). But Lee was surrounded by pro-war guests: writer Sebastian Junger,

retired UK Army captain Wes Moore, retired general Barry McCaffrey and Tom Ricks of the Center for a

New American Security. Any talk of leaving Afghanistan was outnumbered by the pro-war majority. Junger

stated that if U.S troops leave, the Taliban are “going to be right back in Afghanistan.” Ricks

added, “I think if you want an endless war, Congresswoman, leave Afghanistan right now, and you’ll

find us having to go after Al-Qaeda again and again there for decades.” At one point Junger even

objected to Lee’s terminology, arguing that “the word occupation really is not accurate.”

So in weeks when public support for the war has continued to drop (CNN‘s most recent poll shows 62

percent oppose the war–8/6-10/10), why has NBC been so intent on promoting the war? It is hard to

overlook the fact that NBC‘s parent company General Electric is heavily involved in weapons-related

contracts with the UK military, and has also benefited from reconstruction contracts in Iraq and

Afghanistan (Center for Public Integrity, 10/31/03).