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Rather than having me report about my colleague Catherine Herridge and her infant son Peter today, I figured it better to let you get it directly from her. So, here is an e-mail that I received from Catherine last night:
E-mail No. 1
Hi Greta,
We miss you here in Pittsburgh!
Peter is doing well. As you know, he is a wiggler and wants all his tubes out as soon as possible! But now he is paying the price: His throat is a little swollen from all the rubbing against his airway tube. The doctors have sedated him to reduce the rubbing and the swelling. Once that is done, they hope to take it out so he can breathe on his own.
This is all that stands in the way of Peter leaving the ICU. So overall, this is good news!
Peter's liver (hard to believe that it used to be mine) is doing great. We are thrilled. His color is pink. One doctor saw him today who last saw him before the surgery and said, "Wow, he looks like an entirely different kid!"
Even though he is sedated, we still sit with him from about 6 a.m. through 10 p.m. every day. My mother, father and I take turns, holding Peter's little hand while my husband JD is out with Jamie. I know this helps Peter feel less alone.
Jamie, who is 20 months, is having a good time. He and his father have been to almost every park in Pittsburgh by now. And the parks here are very nice.
We continue to get cards and notes. THANK YOU to everyone who is thinking and praying for us. Peter's surgeon told me they've had a lot of calls from families who saw Greta's show. He said many of them had sick kids, like Peter, and now they have more hope something can be done.
Our family also wants to thank everyone who sent money to the transplant program. They told me they are using it to help families pay for the anti-rejection drugs after the operation. They are very expensive and can cost $1000.00 a month. This is a really big help for them.
Got to run. I'll give Peter a big kiss for everyone!
Catherine
I had a surprise after the show on Tuesday night: I walked off the set at 11:01 p.m. ET and who should I see walking into the FOX News D.C. bureau? Beth Holloway Twitty! Beth was in D.C. for 24 hours, working on a project. On Tuesday night, she landed at Reagan Airport at 10:15 p.m. and grabbed a cab to come over to the bureau and see me. The FOX News bureau is across the Potomac River from Reagan National Airport. Needless to say, I was flattered that she hopped a cab so late at night and surprised me. I assume your question is: What's new in the investigation for her daughter? I so wish I had an answer for you.
Yesterday we had a quick trip to Louisiana for a charity event. I left the house at 7 a.m., flew to Louisiana, gave a luncheon speech, then jumped back on the plane and flew back to Washington, D.C. I walked into my office about 7:32 p.m. and the show started at 10 p.m.! In short, it was a very busy day.
The show originates from New York City tonight.
Now for some of your e-mails: Yesterday I asked you for your thoughts on how graphic or precise or complete we should be when we report certain matters. I specifically raised the issue of the recent torture of our soldiers. How many details should be told? I received many e-mails in response and randomly post some of them below.
As an aside, I read each of the many e-mails on this topic carefully because I think this an important issue. Every day we have to decide how best to present the many stories we do. As you might imagine, there is no perfect answer for each story. In the end my goal is to exercise my best judgment on the individual issues as they arise. Of course we won't always agree, and of course from time to time I may not make the perfect decision, but I do promise to at least try to make the right decision.
E-mail No. 2
Greta,
No, we don't need every grisly detail when it comes to the deaths of those two brave soldiers. Thank you for remaining succinct and respectful without giving graphic details.
I thank our soldiers for doing what they do so that we can continue to do what we do.
Proud to be an American,
Linda Donaldson
Canton, OH
E-mail No. 3
Greta,
I don't believe that reporters should disclose all the graphic horrors of war and especially the two soldiers recently killed for purely the sake of shock, headlines, getting ahead in the industry, etc. But, as E.D. Hill said this morning on FOX after disclosing the gruesome torture of the two soldiers, why is it so quiet when Americans suffer? What about us? We have watched beheadings and horrible treatments at the hands of the terrorists and nothing, but let the wrong food be served, dogs snarl or some minor infraction be committed against our prisoners and you would think the world fell apart. The main question: Was Zarquai's corpse mistreated upon his death or did we honor his religous beliefs? Come on, we should have beheaded him and paraded the head through the streets. Would they have done anything less?
Yes, we are civilized and honorable, but we owe our men something and that is to stand behind them, not put them on trial because an "innocent bystander" was killed by mistake. This is war and our troops are the important thing, not Republicans or Democrats. So yes, if need be, the true reporting should be done and then maybe America would stand behind the cause. My heart and prayers go out to the families of those two men and the treatment should be accounted for.
Peg Pfaff
E-mail No. 4
Dear Greta,
Regarding your question: "How graphic should we get when we describe war?" Personally, I think it should be toned down. Getting too graphic can only cause us as a society to get too desensitized. Our young people don't need to hear any of that either. They hear and see too much as it is these days. Be brief and to the point, in the best of ways, when reporting about the tragedies of war.
B. Johnson,
Branson, MO
E-mail No. 5
Dear Greta,
How much detail? All of it. It is always up to the public whether they want to read, watch, listen, etc., to what is coming from the media. It really think that what we can congure up in our minds is always far worse than the truth. These men and women in Iraq are laying their lives on the line for us every minute of every day. I want to know what they are going through. We turned a blind eye to Vietnam and never understood why those vets cam home so different. Let's not make the same mistake with Iraq. So give it to us — all of it. We are Americans and we can take it.
JaneTrout
Kitty Hawk NC
E-mail No. 6
Greta,
I believe all the media should be just as explicit about the two brave soldiers massacred in Iraq as all the previous reporting on what has been reported to have happened in our prisons. Thanks.
Jo Jones
Cottonwood, AZ
E-mail No. 7
Greta,
I guess the answer to your question is another question: What point is the reporter trying to make? The world has had image after image of Abu Ghraib shoved down our throats in order to demonstrate just how evil the U.S. is and the nature of our moral fiber in this "illegal war." If you support this perspective; bury the pictures, bury the story, minimize the impact, or better yet, twist it to say, "See? This is why we should not be there."
But if you believe that the nature of the vile beast we are fighting needs to be exposed exactly for what it is, tell the story. Let America know exactly how the sick, twisted mind of a radical Islamist feels an infidel should be treated. Then juxtapose these descriptions next to the accusations of torture and abuse at Gitmo. Where are the U.N., European intelligentsia, and their American counterparts in condemning these atrocities? My guess is that you won't hear the ghost of a whisper from any of them on this subject — other than to further condemn the U.S. and to trumpet the deaths of these men as fodder in George Bush's unjust war.
My opinion is to describe what happened to these men in every nauseating detail. Describe what they felt, their fear, their families, the mentality of the beasts that did it, etc. America and the world must know exactly what it is facing.
Bob
E-mail No. 8
Greta,
The answer to your question does not matter. You cannot please everyone, and this is one of those issues where arguments will be heated on both sides. I personally think that the details should be told just to show how barbaric these people are. How they can commit such heinous acts and then hide behind their religion. I also know that there are family members of the murdered soldiers and think that, in their best interests, you have done the right thing. In the end, it should be up to them to decide what they want revealed about their loved ones and what not to reveal.
Scott
Houston, TX
E-mail No. 9
Greta,
I believe we need to hear and know the truth about the occupation of Iraq. Yes, those boys were killed in a terrible way and it is hard on their families, but the people need to know things like that so they can understand this occupation and call for it to end. We need to see what is being done in our name and these deaths was a response to our killing one of their own. I am for bringing our troops home and bringing them home now.
Shelia Weaver
Live Oak, FL
E-mail No. 10
Why are the producers of your show so fascinated with brush fires? I used to live in L.A. and, unless they're at your back door, nobody really cares! There's a lot more important stories out there than this! By the way: What ever happened to that poor Jennifer Kesse that disappeared a couple of months ago?
Thanks
E-mail No. 11
Hi Greta,
For many years I have had strictly indoor cats. They used to be in and out cats until a neighborhood bully cat beat up on them incurring vet bills. It is a strain to be careful they don't get out, but it is worth it. I screened in my ground level porch for the cats and it's like being outdoors to them. Keeping them indoors adds about five years to their lives.
Jean Weaver
Morgantown WV
The next two e-mails refer to the video we showed Tuesday night of the boy being beaten on the school bus:
E-mail No. 12
I really appreciated Ms. Estrich's take on the shoolbus incident. She was saying that how sad it is that the govenment needs to get involved in something that the school and the parents should be attending to.
We need more people with that perspective to get involved.
Blair
E-mail No. 13
I could not believe this story when I first heard it. How can the repercussions for such an obviously violent act be so minimal? I remember reading a story recently where a young girl kicked a teacher in the ankle and she was arrested for assault. These two do far worse and nothing happens? This is disgusting.
Marc
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