Rovian Revisionism
He who joyfully marches to music in rank and filehas already earned my contempt.
He has been given a large brain by mistake,
since for him the spinal cord would suffice
--Albert Einstein
That's food for thought!
--The Brain (1988)
_________________
Senior Bush advisor Karl Rove recently said he was proud of waterboarding suspected terrorists:
In a BBC interview, Karl Rove, who was known as "Bush's brain", said he "was proud we used techniques that broke the will of these terrorists". He said waterboarding, which simulates drowning, should not be considered torture.* * *
"Yes, I'm proud that we kept the world safer than it was, by the use of these techniques. They're appropriate, they're in conformity with our international requirements and with US law (Rove "Proud" of Waterboarding US Terror Suspects)."
Ranger wishes to clarify terms. Waterboarding is not simulated drowning -- it IS drowning, which is regulated by the interrogators who stop the drowning before asphyxiation, allowing the victim to recover. The fact that the interrogated person is drowning is what makes the technique effective. Drowning someone is torture.
Aside from being torture, it is an ineffective method of extracting data. there is no evidence that waterboarding broke the will of any terrorist. The fact that they spoke does not equate to breaking their will. Even if it did break their will this is irrelevant, as waterboarding cannot be proven to be an effective deterrent for future terrorist activity.
The utmost case of the U.S. use of waterboarding would be Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who was waterboarded beyond any intelligent purpose (183 times), clearly as sport for the interrogators at the behest of a misled president. Surely a dangerous man, KSM never broke, and his case ironically brought sympathy for the criminal due to the outlandish nature of his treatment.
How does that result make the U.S. safer?
If waterboarding is in accordance with U.S. law, then why do we Miranda criminals and have the 5th Amendment? Why don't we routinely waterboard suspects after we read them their rights?
We do not do this because -- it is ILLEGAL, which means that is against the law, gainsaying Mr. Rove's assertions. We do not have two sets of laws in the U.S., one for criminals and one for terrorists. (We do, however, have a bifurcation along wealth lines, but that is a different issue.)
The ignorance of Mr. Rove is palpable. How appropriate he was chosen as Mr. Bush's "brain".
Labels: karl rove, waterboarding
posted by rangeragainstwar at 7:46 AM
4 Comments:
waterboarding is not a simulation. it is the real deal. the desired effect from the waterboard is the release of brain chemicals which slam dunk a person into pure and total panic.
no amount of will or resolve will stop it. it's a function of the survival instincts.
karl rove, and all who conceived and implemented this are un-american, cowardly and criminal.
every minute they are not at the bar of justice in a free, fair, and open trial that they denied to so many others adds to our national shame.
The use of torture is in itself a cowardly terrorist act that has made the US and the world a much LESS safe place.
Every day that goes by that those responsible for it's use have not been arrested and and charged with their crimes is a day of shame for America.
I guess what bothers me even more than he's proud of it, why isn't the current JD going after him and the others that over saw it. Yoo walks with a slap and still has a job at UCB that I pay taxes for.
jo6pac
MB,
Thanks for the back up, as i was reluctant to state my thesis about waterboarding not being simulation.
This word useage makes it seem acceptable when in fact it's evil/wicked/mean and nasty.
It's controlled drowning.
jim
Post a Comment
<< Home