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Thursday, May 21, 2009 | 2:01 a.m.
In regard to the Bush administration’s torture policy, I do not care what House Speaker Nancy Pelosi knew or when she knew it. Pelosi did not conspire to commit torture.
The he said/she said about a CIA briefing is a diversion by guilt-sharing from the real issue: Does the United States condone the torture of its prisoners, even though our laws and international law prohibit it? If so, we should change our laws to permit torture, and if not we should appoint an independent commission to investigate for the purpose of bringing charges.
Former Vice President Dick Cheney has come out of hiding lately to tout his pride in the usefulness of the torture he approved. The positive spin might serve him well because there are no limitations on his possible indictment, due to a change in the federal law that Cheney had pushed for himself in the 2001 Patriot Act. The positive spin is another diversion.
Without showing more pictures of Abu Ghraib, the torture of detainees has been well documented. The Human Rights First report of 2006 showed that from 2002 through 2006, nearly 100 detainees died in United States custody. More than a third were victims of suspected or confirmed homicides and at least eight were known to have been tortured to death.
No CIA agents or civilian contractors were punished for this and the worst sentence given was five months. The seven soldiers at Abu Ghraib got three to 10 years because they got caught abusing prisoners on video.
President Obama seems to be ducking the torture issue because it is not politically expedient for his agenda. Yet, no decision is a decision. It means that some people are above the law. I thought America was better than that. Perhaps I was wrong.
You have a threshold case about the level of tactics used during interrogation.That is whether these tactics met the level of torture.
Pelosi was unquestionably involved in the network of officials who had knowledge of these tactics.She did nothing.Even asked if there was not more that could be done. This matter does not have the political weight in contrast to other problems that are facing the Obama administration, and will fade away with time.
You will be left with your pangs of angst over the "torture" debate.In today's polititical environment the human rights activists will be left out in the cold on this one.
Regardless of the rationalizations, justifications,explanations, or other mechanisms that are used to alter the perceptions of those observing these events, the simple concrete irrefutable fact is that the entire world views the behaviors in question as war crimes.
Regardless of how wonderful the arguments put forth by those not wishing to see this culminate in justice, the simple fact is, that if it does not culminate in justice, it will be because the American people haven't the ethical motivation to force an effective and just solution through the system.
The world sees the United States government as a dangerous aggressor. If the American people fail to exact justice for the war crimes that have occurred, then the world will see the United States government as a dangerous aggressor aided and abetted by a lawless, unethical citizenry, and rightfully so.
After all, we are the nation with a government Of The People, By The People, and For The People, aren't we?. If so, then we should have the power to ensure that justice is done. If we don't have that power, then we're living in a state of massive self-delusion. Which is it? Do we control our government or does our government control us? If the latter is true, then I would feel very uneasy indeed, given our governments gross lack of respect for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
It's time for tribunals, not the Republican-Democrat kind that spend our money and accomplish nothing. It's time for the Nuremberg kind that send war criminals to prison or death. Let's get this thing done so that all of the world's victims can heal, both at home and abroad.
Closure for the multitude of victims created by this fake war, real torture, and heinous fraud, cannot begin until justice is pursued and achieved. Sadly, our Justice Department is the last agency that should be materially involved in the process, for obvious reasons.
Regardless of the rationalizations, justifications,explanations, or other mechanisms that are used to alter the perceptions of those observing these events, the simple concrete irrefutable fact is that the entire world views the behaviors in question as war crimes.
Regardless of how wonderful the arguments put forth by those not wishing to see this culminate in justice, the simple fact is, that if it does not culminate in justice, it will be because the American people haven't the ethical motivation to force an effective and just solution through the system.
The world sees the United States government as a dangerous aggressor. If the American people fail to exact justice for the war crimes that have occurred, then the world will see the United States government as a dangerous aggressor aided and abetted by a lawless, unethical citizenry, and rightfully so.
After all, we are the nation with a government Of The People, By The People, and For The People, aren't we?. If so, then we should have the power to ensure that justice is done. If we don't have that power, then we're living in a state of massive self-delusion. Which is it? Do we control our government or does our government control us? If the latter is true, then I would feel very uneasy indeed, given our governments gross lack of respect for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
It's time for tribunals, not the Republican-Democrat kind that spend our money and accomplish nothing. It's time for the Nuremberg kind that send war criminals to prison or death. Let's get this thing done so that all of the world's victims can heal, both at home and abroad.
Closure for the multitude of victims created by this fake war, real torture, and heinous fraud, cannot begin until justice is pursued and achieved. Sadly, our Excecutive Branch, the Congress, and the Justice Department are the last agencies that should be materially involved in the process, for obvious reasons.
So the question becomes, HOW DO WE, THE PEOPLE, INVESTIGATE OUR GOVERNMENT? If We, The People, don't have an answer to this question, then we, the people, will be our government's NEXT VICTIMS.
I will tell you what i think is real torture and that's all those botox jobs on Nancy Pelosi face. LOL
"Perhaps I was wrong."
Yes, you are wrong.
uddeboda, as you can plainly see, it's all Nancy Pelosi's fault. As House Speaker she weilds amazing power!
Ask our resident expert, NANCE. They all deserve medals! Can you see the ceremony? "For distinguished service to the United States Of America; Your Advanced Interrogation Techniques
truly went above and beyond the call of duty."
They surely did.
Gee and here I thought that Nancy Pelosi was a minority member of the house back in 2002-03 but, somehow she, apparently, retroactively wields power to have stopped what the same conservatives who are criticizing her say was not torture. Things that make you go hmmmm...