Facts emerge that the number of deaths relating to the US invasion of Iraq to depose Saddam are far lower than the wild claims made by Lancet.
Rather than the 650,000 estimated deaths, the actual number appears closer to a much smaller 4,058*.
The academic (in this case, a person of learning that hasn't learned much) has been criticised for not fully co-operating with an inquiry.
Not fully co-operating is the media's way of saying that the academic (Dr Burnham) refused to explain on what basis he made these kind of numbers up, probably because he has a natural antipathy to receiving a mark of "epic fail".
Lancet and a host of other media bodies and 'think tanks' scrambled to explain that it wasn't their fault that they ignored the many other sources that consistently estimated lower figures, and delighted in Dr Burnham's research, as the numbers were very similar to advertising profits.
After all, other media sources had claimed 500,000 Iraqi children perished a few years earlier due to trade sanctions. Another wild claim that was subsequently shown to be unethically derived fantasy.
Interestingly, when assessing the numbers of Iraqi killed in the conflict, no western media source seems to separate out the numbers targeted and killed by terrorists, content to blame those murders on America too.
The Iraqi government does not keep precise records of civilians killed and neither do US forces, but in 2006 the Iraqi health ministry estimated that between 100,000 to 150,000 civilians had died.
When last checked, it appears Dr Burnham keeps his honorific, and no doubt will be offered a sweet job estimating the number of Palestinian children killed by Israeli forces, currently estimated at 12,000,456 (not including accidents in swimming pools)
* The independent Iraq Body Count, which counts only confirmed deaths, currently has a range of between 90,556 and 98,850 (which makes my number much closer than Dr Burnham's number).
Related Link: Just the facts, ma'am
Rather than the 650,000 estimated deaths, the actual number appears closer to a much smaller 4,058*.
The academic (in this case, a person of learning that hasn't learned much) has been criticised for not fully co-operating with an inquiry.
Not fully co-operating is the media's way of saying that the academic (Dr Burnham) refused to explain on what basis he made these kind of numbers up, probably because he has a natural antipathy to receiving a mark of "epic fail".
Lancet and a host of other media bodies and 'think tanks' scrambled to explain that it wasn't their fault that they ignored the many other sources that consistently estimated lower figures, and delighted in Dr Burnham's research, as the numbers were very similar to advertising profits.
After all, other media sources had claimed 500,000 Iraqi children perished a few years earlier due to trade sanctions. Another wild claim that was subsequently shown to be unethically derived fantasy.
Interestingly, when assessing the numbers of Iraqi killed in the conflict, no western media source seems to separate out the numbers targeted and killed by terrorists, content to blame those murders on America too.
The Iraqi government does not keep precise records of civilians killed and neither do US forces, but in 2006 the Iraqi health ministry estimated that between 100,000 to 150,000 civilians had died.
When last checked, it appears Dr Burnham keeps his honorific, and no doubt will be offered a sweet job estimating the number of Palestinian children killed by Israeli forces, currently estimated at 12,000,456 (not including accidents in swimming pools)
* The independent Iraq Body Count, which counts only confirmed deaths, currently has a range of between 90,556 and 98,850 (which makes my number much closer than Dr Burnham's number).
Related Link: Just the facts, ma'am