Getting Away with Torture

Rights of enemy combatants argument on The Daily Show!

2010-03-10T14:59:00.000-08:00

The March 9th episode of The Daily Show with John Stewart goes into depth about this issue with humor and tact. The guest is author and W. Bush speech writer Marc Thiessen and things get pretty heated. Check it out

Liz Cheney creates ad attacking detainee lawyers

2010-03-10T00:06:00.000-08:00

The former vice president's daughter has made an effort to target Eric Holder and the lawyers who have defended terrorist suspects. Even though these detainees could be guilty of horrible crimes, does this mean we should deny then the constitutional right of habeas corpus? Lawyers have chosen a difficult profession and they choose it knowing that they will have to give everyone under the American government equal rights to a fair trial. Liz Cheney is asking why Eric Holder is "hiding" the names of these lawyers when their names are actually available in public documents. She just needs to look for them since they aren't in list form. She is also questioning the patriotism of these lawyers. Unreal.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

We've got Friends

2009-10-23T13:14:00.001-07:00

A group of former military officials have recently shown their support for Eric Holder. "The group includes well-known retired officers such as Gen. Charles Krulak, former commandant of the Marine Corps; Marine Gen. Joseph P. Hoar, a former commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East; and Army Maj. Gen. Antonio M. Taguba, who investigated the crimes at Abu Ghraib in Iraq. Some of its members met with Holder last week to offer their support for his efforts to close the detention facility at Guantanamo as well as for his position on the CIA inquiry, and they said he was grateful."

The support from this group will prove to be very valuable for Eric Holder. They address the criticism that people are giving Holder. "I'm amazed at my former colleagues in the intelligence community who think [Holder's decision] is a terrible thing," said retired Army Lt. Gen. Harry E. Soyster, former chief of the Defense Intelligence Agency. "If accountability is going to discourage CIA officers from doing their jobs, then we have the wrong culture." An America that tortures will only provoke terrorist groups to get new recruits.

The retired General David M. Maddox addresses our use of torture tactics and dismisses the hysteria about holding detainees on the mainland. He couldn't have said it better: "I thought we were supposed to be the home of the brave, not the home of the fearful."

Writing this blog has taught me the potential that we all have to make a difference. I have learned that my voice does matter and as long as people are discussing these issues then there is promise that action will follow.

Britney Spears Music is Torture

2009-10-23T11:29:00.003-07:00

Recently, many popular musicians have inquired the government about whether their music has been used for torture practices. Thanks to Freedom of Information Act requests, many have discovered that their music has been played loudly during torture interrogations in US prisons including Guantanamo Bay. The list has musicians ranging from Metallica to Britney Spears to the Barney theme song! Here’s the complete list.

A “grassroots Close Gitmo Now campaign is aimed at pressuring members of Congress to support President Obama's endeavor to close the Guantanamo Bay prison.” They are teaming up with musicians to combat torture and the existence of the infamous US prison. Whether or not any of the artists will choose to take legal proceedings is unknown but it is likely that someone will take action. Attorney General Eric Holder “has asked a federal prosecutor to examine whether the interrogations violated the law.” He is asking for documents that concern the use of loud music as a torture technique.

Power with no Limits

2009-10-22T23:00:00.001-07:00

You, like me, may be asking the question: how could America possibly resort to torturing in this day and age? Such an advanced nation like ours should be a leader in morality in foreign policy. During the last administration, measures were taken to outlaw torturing and to restore honest policies. However, those in the most powerful positions like president, vice-president, CIA leaders, and those in the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Council (OLC) have reached out beyond their powers to bypass anti-torture measures.

The Four Freedoms Under Siege by Marcus Raskin and Robert Spero discusses the measures taken by the Bush II administration to torture. They ignored both the Geneva Conventions and our Constitution on the grounds of urgency and necessity. Also, “after Bush signed the Defense Appropriations Bill¬- which included the McCain Amendment prohibiting ‘cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment of persons under custody or control of the United States government’- Bush quietly issued a ‘signing statement’ that in effect said he could interpret the new law, as he had, with restrictive signing statements on the Patriot Act, negating any limits to his power.” His administration lawyers assured him that he was not bound to any international treaty or federal law because he was the commander in chief.

In addition to this, the administration ignored rulings by the Supreme Court regarding torture. Important policies such as habeas corpus were suspended during this time for those in US custody. These actions have not gone unnoticed thankfully but little has been done to punish those responsible and bring attention to these issues. Eric Holder’s efforts are an excellent first step toward restoring justice and the American name.

Torture Topic Hits Home

2009-10-22T14:19:00.001-07:00

Last semester the topic of torture came to Chapman University with a debate featuring law professor John Yoo. The reason he was the spotlight of these debates is because he co-authored the “torture memos”. Chapman’s local paper, The Panther, covered the event with great detail.

“Three major issues dominated the debate: what defines torture, whether torture is an effective means of gathering information and whether the executive branch has the right, in times of war and crisis, to allow the use of harsh interrogation techniques.” Many of these answers are obvious but John Yoo, like Cheney, supported that the techniques were effective and therefore, justified. “Fifty percent of information we’ve had on al-Qaida came from interrogation of [its] leaders.”

After many argued with Yoo, he defended his role in the torture memos. “The memos are about legal interpretation, they’re not about policy,” he said. “They don’t urge policy makers to take any particular course of action.” Proving that these interrogation techniques are not illegal does not get you off the hook. The investigation by Eric Holder will most likely over look John Yoo, but this doesn’t mean he isn’t guilty just like all others involved. Hopefully the increased support for Holder will cause all those who were involved, like Yoo, to be put under the spotlight.

photo by Corey Clark

No Regrets

2009-10-21T22:58:00.001-07:00

One of the arguments for using torture tactics has been that the ends justify the means. Supporters dispute that the information that the CIA and Justice Department obtained from torturing prove that it is a legitimate practice. In this video a pioneer for enhanced interrogation, Dick Cheney, shows that he has no regrets and that he would do it again.

Put yourself in the position of the detainee, think about whether or not you would talk if being tortured. If I am getting water boarded then I will most likely tell you anything you want to hear to get you to stop. And if I don’t know anything to begin with, then being tortured will not help me remember! The logic that torture supporters use is that “it works” or “why not torture if it’s successful”. If we are using this kind of logic, then why not torture students to study harder or to score better on tests? Let’s torture common criminals to admit to crimes they may have committed. If it works, then why not?

C'mon Ed Royce!

2009-10-21T16:44:00.001-07:00

In this blog I am calling on our very own Orange County Congressman: Ed Royce. He is a great choice for my change agent not only because of his local jurisdiction but because he has shown his anti-torture stance in the past. In 2006 Royce pressed the Justice Department to prosecute Chuckie Taylor Jr, a man guilty of torture, killing, and recruiting child soldiers.

“The case, tried in Miami, Florida, was the first brought under a 1994 United States law permitting U.S. citizens accused of committing torturous acts overseas to be tried in a U.S. federal court. In 2006, after Taylor was arrested in Miami on passport fraud, Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), encouraged the Department of Justice to take such action.”

"The Justice Department took on a groundbreaking case and won. Today's guilty verdict sends a powerful message about the long arm of U.S. law. Those in West Africa can take solace that Chuckie will be behind bars," commented Royce.

Ed Royce demonstrated his passion for justice in this instance, so why stop here? Currently, party lines are keeping Republicans quiet about this issue. Ed needs to keep true to his values and support Attorney General Eric Holder’s investigation publicly. The more public support Holder gets the more successful his efforts will be.

Is Water Boarding Torture?

2009-10-20T23:11:00.003-07:00

Surprisingly many people are in denial about whether or not water boarding is torture. Well if experiencing the feeling of drowning isn’t enough to persuade you, then maybe you should try it yourself. That’s what conservative radio personality Mancow did and it made him a believer. Here’s the popular video of him proving that water boarding is torture. It is a disgusting thought that this was done to people in UNITED STATES custody. Eric Holder must not stray from his mission. He must show to the rest of the world that acts like this are not what we do here in America and that those who allow this to happen are subject to consequences.

10 “Enhanced Techniques”

2009-10-20T14:14:00.001-07:00

Various documents were released to the public for the first time this year detailing the torture techniques that were allowed. 10 specific ways of torturing were discussed in a memo sent by the former Assistant Attorney General, OLC, Jay Busbee to John A. Rizzo (General Counsel CIA). Here are those appalling methods:

10. Attention Grasp- they describe it best as “grasping the individual with both hands, one hand on each side of the collar opening, in a controlled and quick motion.”

9. Walling- slamming a person against a false wall (one that makes an alarming sound) with a towel or something around the neck to prevent whiplash.

8. Facial Hold- to keep the head from moving, palms on both sides of the face.

7. Facial Slap- meant to humiliate and “invade personal space”... not to hurt or anything.

6. Wall Standing- with your feet 5 feet away from a wall lean on the wall by supporting your weight with your finger tips. You can’t move your feet or hands for an undetermined amount of time.

5. Cramped Confinement- standing or sitting in a usually dark space for 2-18 hours.

4. Stress Positions- twist the body in some obviously painful position for who knows how long. One example: kneeling on the floor while leaning back at a 45 degree angle. Yeah.

3. Sleep Deprivation- self-explanitory

2. Cramped Confinement Box (with an insect)- used for those with fear of insects. Person is told about how horrible of a stinging bug it is.

1. Waterboarding- person thinks that they are drowning for 20-40 seconds. Can be repeated just like any of these techniques.

Letter to Obama

2009-10-16T21:04:00.000-07:00

Attorney General Eric Holder is doing the right thing by investigating recent war crimes but there is a group trying to stop him. Seven former CIA officials sent President Obama a letter, asking him to stop Holder’s investigation. These officials include: Michael Hayden, Porter Goss, George Tenet, John Deutch, R. James Woolsey, William Webster and James R. Schlesinger.
They have served under presidencies from Reagan to Bush II.

The motivations of these men are to protect guilty CIA members. The letter claims that not only is there a significant personal burden put on agents forced to defend themselves, "but this approach will seriously damage the willingness of many other intelligence officers to take risks to protect the country." Risks are taken to protect America all the time, but this does not mean that we should lower ourselves and use torture tactics to do so. Another outrageous claim is that other countries won’t be able to trust us on future counter-terrorist operations.

Luckily President Obama has decided to disregard the letter, leaving the decisions and investigations up to the Attorney General. People will oppose Holder but the person with the most influence in this inspection has decided to not interfere.

Getting Away with Torture

2009-10-08T10:43:00.000-07:00

Whether it has been legitimized or not, today we remain in the “War on Terror”. In an effort to protect our free world, disgusting measures have been taken by those at the highest levels of the executive branch in Washington and in the CIA. These unacceptable measures are known as “enhanced interrogation techniques” or as the less vague term: “torture”.

Yes this includes water boarding but doesn’t stop there. All CIA and Washington officials responsible for illegally legislating torture of prisoners in US custody need to be investigated and prosecuted. It is unrealistic to think that those highest in command at the time (i.e. Bush and Cheney) will get any punishment but those who are responsible for aiding them should be tried and made into examples. The laws had been voted on and written as to what constitutes torture and when to use it. However these guilty groups went beyond their power to keep torturing. Even though President Obama has now changed the policies on torture, he hasn’t taken any actions to hold anyone responsible.

Luckily, someone has decided to step up and do something and that person is Attorney General Eric Holder. He is starting to investigate illegal torture practices of prisoners that were in CIA custody but he is being interfered with by former CIA officials. Not only does this investigation need to occur without any obstructions but it should also encompass the guilty Cabinet members and lawyers in the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Council (OLC). A.G. Holder is doing the right thing and deserves more and more support from his peers.

Each initiative needs to begin at a local level and that is why I am calling on Orange County Congressman Ed Royce. In the past Royce encouraged the Department of Justice to make an arrest of an American man who committed torture in Africa. He needs to stay true to his values and ignore party lines by supporting Eric Holder’s investigation publicly. America needs to be a role model for the rest of the world and this means actually prosecuting criminals and displaying justice.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/18/nyr-the-torture-memos-the_n_291884.html