Kidnapping; a Real Picnic

Good news in that Jill Carroll made it out alive from her detention.

BAGHDAD, Iraq - American reporter Jill Carroll was set free Thursday, nearly three months after she was kidnapped in a bloody ambush that killed her translator. She said she had been treated well. Her family thanked "the generous people around the world who worked officially or unofficially" to gain her freedom. No details were given about the circumstances surrounding her release.

Okay, Jill, glad you're back. Once you get your bearings, in a few weeks perhaps, maybe you can restate what's going on. "Treated well?" Does that include the part where your translator was shot to death in front of you? How about the times you appeared on tape pleading for your life? How about that whole held-against-your-will-by-Islamic-militants for three months thing? Not so bad?

Her captors had demanded the release of all women detainees in Iraq by Feb. 26 and said Carroll would be killed if that did not happen. The date came and went with no word about her fate. She was last seen in a videotape broadcast Feb. 9 by the private Kuwaiti television station Al-Rai.

Hey, glad the didn't beat you within inches of your life, but I don't get this softpedalling of the situation now that it's over. Carroll's a journalist. Can the mere statement of truth be so elusive?
More of the same from John Hinderocker here.

UPDATE: Jill does have a head on her shoulders; literally and figuratively.

Things that I was forced to say while captive are now being taken by some as an accurate reflection of my personal views. They are not. The people who kidnapped
me and murdered Allan Enwiya are criminals, at best. They robbed Allan of his life and devastated his family. They put me, my family and my friends--and all those around the world, who have prayed so fervently for my release--through a horrific experience. I was, and remain, deeply angry with the people who did this.

I don't get why most journalists pretend to have no opinions, and think that beleif and professionalism cannot coexist. I, for one, think no less of Carroll's objectivity simply because she has opinions; like the one about her captors being savages.

Now, if she shows up all teary-eyed on Orcha, THEN I'll rip her a new one.