28633: RV (reply) Re: Sprague

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From revolisyonè vre (revolisyone@hotmail.com):

Wow, yesterday I was Simidor, today I am Deibert, maybe tomorrow Jeb Sprague 
will accuse me of being Dany Laferrière?  I can only hope.

Maybe someone should explain to Sprague why some in Haiti feel that need to 
post under a nom de plume, as speaking in our own voice on controversial 
matters can often put ourselves and our families in risk. Jeb Sprague’s 
article, “Supporting a Leftist Opposition to Lavalas: The AFL-CIO’s Solidarity 
Center and Batay Ouvriye” (Haiti Progres, November 23-29,2005/Volume 23/No. 
37), revealed what he thought  the real names of Batay Ouvriye’s 
representatives in Haiti were, putting the lives of those people at risk in a 
country with a history of anti-worker and anti-peasant massacres stretching 
from Duvalier through the CNG to Aristide. Is Jeb Sprague's real use to those 
in whose interest his dubious "research" serves is to soften up targets in the 
public realm for easier targeting - by various methods - in private later on?

Now, though, as Jeb Sprague has been caught intentionally mischaractricizing 
Anoop Singh's summer 2004 statements of public services in Haiti, and engaging 
in outright deception as regards the government involvement in the incidents of 
violence against workers in Guacimal in 2002, hopefully he will work harder to 
gain an accurate picture of the problems in Haiti. When one makes up their mind 
ahead of time as opposed to shaping their opinions by genuine impartial 
research, and then tries to get the facts to fit his preconceptions, it is 
bound to be problematic. It seemed only a matter of time before some of Jeb 
Sprague's "research" methods caught up with him, and his recent article looks 
like the moment when they did.

It would be more productive if, instead of reacting with anger, Jeb Sprague 
would reflect on his errors and seek to avoid them in future writings about 
Haiti.

RV

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