[gurneyHaleck]

There was a period of time, starting upon the day of, and then continuing for some years after the 9/11 attacks, where "The News" was something you couldn't help but be engrossed by.

Growing up during an era of Johnny Carson, in a house with no cable, and attending high school in the 90's, "The News" was something very different prior to 9/11.

24 hour cable news started providing information on fast moving events, and that was relevent, in the lead up to the Iraq war, when everyone was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

It was obvious something bad would come out of 9/11, but what? There were hushed whispers of an Iraq invasion exfiltrating into grapevines by word of mouth (but not in the news, and not on TV) as early as January 2002, but would it become a reality? And if so, my god, why?

By summer, word of mouth was firm. Iraq was going to be a thing, according to people with family members in the military. And so, you waited for that to show up in the news.

By 2005, George W. Bush had been re-elected, and there was no longer any relevant information to be had.

The ruse was over. It was clear that cable news was a sham. Popcorn, for the mob attending yet another gladiator tournament at the colosseum.

[woobar]

I am not sure one needed family members in military to learn about invasion. The invasion of Iraq surfaced immediately after the 9/11 attacks. [1]

Guardian reported about US plans (including use of ground troops) in December 2001. [2]

[1] In November 2001 72% respondents in Gallup poll favored invading Iraq with U.S. ground troops. http://www.gallup.com/poll/8038/seventytwo-percent-americans... [2] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/dec/02/afghanistan.ir...

[gurneyHaleck]

But by Christmas of 2001, a lot of people would just roll their eyes, and say things like "Oh come on. Iraq? Bullshit. No way." [0]

By mid-2002 there were weird goings on, things like lumber shortages, and it was like "Oh fuck. Iraq is happening for real, and this isn't going to be a quick in-and-out." [1]

This is just according to my personal memories, of course. They pretty much line up with wikiepedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_War

  [0] Donald Rumsfeld memo dated 27 November 
      2001 (still bullshit territory)

  [1] During 2002, the amount of ordnance 
      used by British and American aircraft 
      patrolling the no-fly zones of Iraq 
      increased compared to the previous 
      years and by August had "become a full
      air offensive". (was actually happening)

[TwoBit]

I think this started before 9/11. OJ's white Bronco was before 9/11.

[sitkack]

It was the first Gulf War where 24 hr news hype cycle really took off. Wolf Blitzer doing his sports announcer thing over footage of "smart bombs".

[gurneyHaleck]

My house didn't have cable at that time, and I was not yet in high school.

We watched the first gulf war in social studies class, putting it in league with the space shuttle challenger disaster. It was a classroom topic for a few months, and then gone.

Next year it was Rodney King and Amy Fisher or something. More irrelevant popcorn.

[gurneyHaleck]

Yes, but that was tabloid junk. A seedy hollywood yarn.

Not an air disaster that demolished two buildings filled with people. 9/11 had teeth that other stories couldn't come close to.

Like JFK, it was on another level, and hard to not watch.

[equalarrow]

I remember specifically one day, I think in Oct '11 walking up the stairs from the train station and seeing someone reading a newspaper with some heading like 'US is going to look at invading Iraq for 9/11'. I just remember thinking _WHY_, that didn't make any sense.

Of course we all now know, but it was just so weird to see that because I knew it had little to do with any of what was going on (I also knew Saddam was an ally before).

But, such is the bizarro world we live in now.

[gurneyHaleck]

Yeah, that's probably true. I'm thinking in terms of conversations at Christmas parties in 2001.