DEMABLOG: “To accept that these are anonymous Iraqis blogging for McClatchy, a notoriously anti-Bushie news service, requires a profound leap a faith. You must believe that every lefty preconception about the war and its aftermath turned out to be true.”I mentioned McClatchy‘s Inside Iraq blog back in January. It’s where the U.S. newspaper group’s Iraqi staffers produce some compelling accounts of their lives in Baghdad.

Now it’s come to the attention of the demablogs. One of them, Mark Kilmer, labelled it a fairy tale (see right). Hats off to McClatchy editor Mark Seibel who took to the blog’s comments section to set Kilmer straight:

As the editor who oversees McClatchy’s Iraq coverage, I wondered whether it was worth responding to Mark Kilmer’s incredibly uninformed post. After all, I don’t know if he really exists or what his name is; there’s no bio on the Web. He can’t spell McClatchy. He’s ignorant about the issues he raises, apparently not realizing that the “phantom” AP source controversy was resolved, at least partially, when the Iraqi government admitted that Capt. Hussein did exist. He clearly doesn’t pay enough attention to McClatchy bylines to recognize the names of the blog’s writers. He apparently still lives in a fantasy land where the lack of Iraqi WMD, the onset of sectarian civil war, the growth of Iranian influence, the possible dissolution of Iraq into sectarian regions, and the inability of the United States to restore water, electricity and security are all “lefty preconceptions about the war and its aftermath.” Even the White House now warns of those very “preconceptions.”

Still, I feel the need to defend the integrity of our Iraqi staff, who, unlike Kilmer and the few commentators who’ve added to his post, struggle daily with the reality of Iraq. They risk their lives just to go to work – outside the Green Zone, by the way, Marcus Traianus, to address the commentator who for unknown reasons has picked as his pseudonym the birth name of a Roman emperor known for pederasty, drunkenness and a military foray into present-day Iraq that ended in disarray after initial success.

Our Iraqi staffers come from Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish households – a staffing decision we made years ago, recognizing that those two sects and one ethnic group bring different views to the table. Perhaps commentator Holsinger would find it odd that both Sunni and Shiite believe the situation in Iraq today is tragic and insufferable.

Of course, Kilmer doesn’t actually attack the truth of anything that’s written on the blog. He doesn’t suggest that bodies aren’t blown to bits or that relatives don’t have to sort through the pieces in hopes of recovering their loved ones. He knows human beings of all nationalities and ethnicities turn to humor to get them through otherwise intolerable times. But he doesn’t like what he learns there because it runs afoul of the fairy tale he’s trying to wish to life – that Iraq has been a big success for the United States, and Iraqis are very happy about it. So he attacks what he can – falsely suggesting that the bloggers aren’t real, so the situations they report can’t be, either.

But both the situations and the bloggers are real. And unlike those of you who use made-up names to post here, they really do risk their lives when they write. If you are serious about seeking victory in Iraq, you might do well to listen to some Iraqis – maybe especially, if you don’t like what they have to say. Blind, deaf and dumb is no way to fight.

You can find me by my real name.

And here’s how McClatchy’s correspondent in Baghdad, Rich Mauer, responded. Good to see journalism striking back against ignorance and misinformation.