Shit eating, my favorite hobby.
When are we gonna stuff him and cuff him? Seriously?
Here’s just a few of the facts of what CIA interrogators did in our name, just the ones that come from this IG report, as masterfully summarized by Glenn Greenwald:
• Threats of execution, using semi-automatic handguns and power drills
• Threats to kill detainee and his children
• Threats to rape detainee’s wife and children in front of him
• Restricting the detainee’s carotid artery
• Hitting detainee with the butt end of a rifle
• Blowing smoke in detainee’s face for five minutes
• Multiple instances of waterboarding detainees, of the type we prosecuted Japanese war criminals for using:
• Hanging detainee by their arms until interrogators thought their shoulders might be dislocated
• stepping on detainee’s ankle shackles to cause severe bruising and pain
• choking detainee until they pass out
• dousing detainee with water on cold concrete floors in cold temperatures to induce hypothermia
• killing detainees through torture techniques, whether accidental or not
• putting detainee in a diaper for days at a time to live in their own filth
So?
Threats of execution, using semi-automatic handguns and power drills
• Threats to kill detainee and his children
• Threats to rape detainee’s wife and children in front of him
So you want to ban threats? Sorry but I don’t think threats are exactly the same thing as torture.
• Restricting the detainee’s carotid artery
You mean like a choke hold they do on WWE? I guess unless this is causing permanent damage or significant physical pain I fail to see the problem.
• Hitting detainee with the butt end of a rifle
Sort of depends upon how hard they are hitting them and for what purpose. We have guards to hit prisoners at our very own state penn all the time but it is for control reasons – not punishment.
• Blowing smoke in detainee’s face for five minutes
I get that every time I step into a bar in our state. Sure seems like a pretty low significance to me – surely not the same as chopping of their hands or fingers.
• Multiple instances of waterboarding detainees, of the type we prosecuted Japanese war criminals for using.
I can agree that waterboarding is a form of torture and shouldn’t be used.
• Hanging detainee by their arms until interrogators thought their shoulders might be dislocated
But were they dislocated? Are the interrogators medical doctors? I guess this is a fine line.
• stepping on detainee’s ankle shackles to cause severe bruising and pain
Not a big fan of causing severe pain – so I don’t condone this.
• choking detainee until they pass out
Back to the WWE scenario. If there are no lasting effects and it is used to scare them… then not so sure I have issue with it.
• dousing detainee with water on cold concrete floors in cold temperatures to induce hypothermia
Making them uncomfortable does not equal torture. And for the record taking away their slippers and snuggies isn’t either.
• killing detainees through torture techniques, whether accidental or not
Well obviously killing is unacceptable, but I might nitpick about the accidental part on this one. Using a taser on an unruly inmate could cause death, or using force to overtake an inmate who is throwing feces at guards might cause death if the inmate had a undisclosed medical condition. Neither of these scenarios are reflecting of the guards being out of line however. I guess it just depends upon specifics.
• putting detainee in a diaper for days at a time to live in their own filth
Uncomfortable yes. Disgusting yes. Humiliating yes. Torture…. not even close.
If we can’t even threaten suspects or put them in depends for a few days what exactly can we do? Hold a box of Klondike bars out in front of them and ask nicely if they know where their terrorist buddies are hiding?
The world is a mean place. Although I do feel the CIA has crossed the line on several occasions, the simple truth is they do what they do to protect the public, and clearly the goal of saving American lives is a noble one whether you agree with the tactics employed or not.
I can think of a lot worse things to do to prisoners and other than a few of these items the bulk of them aren’t even significant.
Who was it that said “I’m willing to do anything to protect America – even risk other people’s lives”.
From what I’ve heard from people I know who’ve interrogated prisoners, I can say that torture is fairly useless in getting relevant, timely information out of them.
It is, however, a great way to get a prisoner to tell you exactly what you want to hear.
I don’t disagree with that which is why I don’t condone torture. Well that is one of the reasons anyway.
However I don’t equate threats and humiliation or things like sleep deprivation to be torture. I can’t say if it works or not, but I would suspect after decades and decades of using various techniques, groups like the CIA would probably have a better idea of the success rate than I would.
It isn’t like we are talking about piercing eyeballs with hot pokers or removing fingernails with pliers here.
Like Costner & Dude said, most of these items are minor and all of them are night and day compared to what the terrorists do or did to captured military or civilians for that matter.
You also have to remember those who went to and are left at Gitmo are the worst of the worst. People who were picked up on the battlefield who were engaged in combat. Many if not all of them have killed for their cause and would likely do so again in an instant.
Here’s another dirty little secret for you, every world leader wishes they had a Dick Cheney as their right hand man. Hate him all you want, but the man was effective. It was known worldwide that you simply don’t fuck with the Bush Admin., and that wasn’t due to GWB, it was Cheney and his reputation.
Not sure we have that anymore and I pray that we aren’t tested as Joe Biden predicted we will be.
Here’s another dirty little secret for you, every world leader wishes they had a Dick Cheney as their right hand man.
So long as he isn’t a public figure, I’d agree. Such a person, to be truly effective, needs to operate totally behind the scenes.
BTW, some of the folks who interrogated one of the big shot AQ prisoners said the guy was singing like a bird after they gave him some tea and started a good rapport. Then the order came to waterboard him and they didn’t get another word out of him after that.
Apparently, he’d been told we’d torture his ass within an inch of his life if he was captured, and was actually quite relieved when all we did was talk to him. Then, some nameless, faceless bureaucrat told them the guy had to get waterboarded.
Whether you think these things are actually torture or not, they are completely counter-productive.
And really, once you’re captured by your enemies, what’s worse; being tortured AQ style knowing they’ll probably end it quickly, or knowing they’ll keep up the slow, but still terribly mentally debilitating methods going indefinitely?
Dude:
“And really, once you’re captured by your enemies, what’s worse; being tortured AQ style knowing they’ll probably end it quickly, or knowing they’ll keep up the slow, but still terribly mentally debilitating methods going indefinitely?”
Al Q is well aware these days that being captured by us will probably increase their lifespan and standard of living at the same time, with the increasing possibility of a huge payout once the lawyers arrive. Al Q used to be scared because they thought we would surely use the same types of techniques (car batteries, cutting off things) that are commonplace in many of the Mid-East dictatorships.
There’s also the possibility they will lop your head off on camera so all the World, as well as your friends & family, will have that image burned into their brain.
So, yes..I’ll take being captured by US for 100, Alex.
“Hate him all you want, but the man was effective. It was known worldwide that you simply don’t fuck with the Bush Admin., and that wasn’t due to GWB, it was Cheney and his reputation.”
Except they DID fuck with the Bush Admin.
They DID attack us during that administration.
Dick and his little buddy did NOT keep us safe with all their swaggering and cowboy posturing.
No matter how much Cheney struts around and shows everybody how big his DICK is – he FAILED!
His incompetence got 3,000 American citizens killed and years of threats and torture did NOT change that in anybody’s mind but his own.
Well… and yours Sy, apparently.
the last one on the list already happens at low end nursing homes anyway so what’s the big deal?
http://crooksandliars.com/susie-madrak/not-only-illegal-and-immoral-its-stup