This cartoon by Nick Anderson from the Houston Chronicle relates to the tenth anniversary of the start of the Iraq war in 2003.
BACKGROUND
The war lasted almost nine years, with 1,111,610 Americans serving in Iraq. According to the Department of Defense, 4,488 of them died, while 115,376 Iraqi civilians were killed between 2003 and 2011.
Now, a majority of Americans — 53 percent — view invading Iraq as a mistake, according to a recent Gallup poll. Members of the media have also admitted that they failed the public on Iraq. [Source: Huffington Post]
THE CARTOON
The cartoon shows a TV newsreader with a map of Iraq behind him. He tells the viewers, "... and this week marks the ten-year anniversary of when we completely, and utterly blew it."
COMMENTARY
According to Wikipedia:
"The 2003 invasion of Iraq involved unprecedented U.S. media coverage, particularly by FOX News. The coverage itself became a source of controversy, as media outlets were accused of bias, reporters were casualties of both Iraqi and American gunfire, and claims of censorship and propaganda became widespread."
The cartoonist is highlighting the fact that the US media got it wrong on Iraq.
VOCABULARY
1. Blew is the past tense of blow. If you blow a chance or attempt to do something, you make a mistake which wastes the chance or causes the attempt to fail. • He has almost certainly blown his chance of touring India this winter. • Oh you fool! You've blown it!
2. You use utterly to emphasize that something is very great in extent, degree, or amount. • Everything about the country seemed utterly different from what I'd experienced before.
GRAMMAR
If you are wondering why we say "ten-year anniversary" and not "ten-years anniversary", check out this earlier post.
