Releasing All the Torture Photos Immediately Will Probably Save American Lives

Major General Taguba, who retired in January 2007 who supports the President's decision not to release the photographs, today said, "These pictures show torture, rape and every indecency."

He described the pictures more specifically. Journalists who saw the classified photographs are also starting to tell us more.

Obama should not be withholding the photos. They will certainly all leak out. This may be a saving grace for him but it is unprincipled. Some journalists have already seen all of them. Each day we learn more.

War does terrible things to all soldiers and all civilians. The American people should know the price our soldiers and the people we fight with pay.

Rapes of both sexes are shown in the photographs - male on female, male on male.
There are an estimated 2,000 pictures. One shows a female prisoner being forced stripped to expose her breasts. Others have cattle prods, trenchers, wire and phosphorescent tubes put in body parts.

We are told by Obama that U.S. soldiers may stay in Iraq for a decade. I assume we will be in Afghanistan and at the Pakistan borders longer.

Get them all out now. Exposing what we have done may help stop or minimize the practice and thus may save American lives.

Trickling them out is the most dangerous and irresponsible thing we can do. We can remind people for years what we have done. And as these people are either not prosecuted or rarely prosecuted, it sets up a wall of protection for further torture and reminds our enemies what we did.

As important is that America must become and remain transparent. One of the problems of democracy is that it does not see all means as acceptable. Once you start to create a culture of censorship, it goes into other areas.

Our rule must be to respect our values. Not just the First Amendment but values of dignity and freedom. Otherwise we cannot hope to attain the democracy we still talk about - the "City on the Hill" is becoming a vanishing illusion that, in truth, may really only have been a dream unrealized.

Comments

[Norge]

Only a very sick and sadistc atmosphere in the military could have existed for all of such to have occured. There was a total brakedown of military disipline and the military code of justice which extended from the highest quarters to the personel on the ground.

The violations of all that is considered honor and dignity in the military code of justice indicates very deep internal moral and ethical problems which must be totally investigated through a truth commision with full public exposure if the military is ever again to regain its' own honor and dignity and to finally be able to cast off
the barbarians' cloak.

Full disclosure of all material and let the chips fall where they may.

[Rog49Thomas]

The reason given for not releasing the photos is partially correct.

Rather than a concern for our troops, it's really a concern to protect:

(1) Our cherished national myth
Exposure of the photos will lead to a demand for an investigation. An honest investigation will reveal that this tactic is not an aberrant one. But one we have embraced since the late 1940's.

(2) Our elite
It really wouldn't do to have these folks prosecuted.

As usual, when there is a major problem, say for example a bungled war in Iraq or a failed foreign policy, apologists trot out the mantra "Support the Troops" which of course means support the president's foreign policy even if it is stupid. And now we hear "Protect the Troops" which of course means protect others.

If everyone in our government who really supported the troops (excluding of course the grunts) gave a nickel, the amount collected might be enough for a latte (but not a grande) at Starbucks.

[rosiebond007]

It's not a COVER UP.
It's a discretionary move in order to protect the armed forces against incendiary publicity in the war zones.

Think about it -

The pictures might provide 2 things
- an increased effort to recruit discontented adversaries to HARM our troops
- an increased effort to RECRUIT terrorists worldwide.

NEITHER OF WHICH IS A GOOD IDEA.

We have to use every effort to keep the troops safe - it would be foolish to satisfy the general public over the safety of he armed forces.

[LillianB]

People in the war zones know about this already. People in the war zones have been mad because of this for several years as it is. They may not have seen the photos. But they have heard the stories and the rumors and they have seen the victims of this violence after the violence happened. Stopping the truth from getting out only outrages these people more.

People in Europe know, too.

Who doesn't know and who aren't mad are Americans. And Martin Garbus is right American lives can be saved if these photos are shown to Americans, NOW. If the people already knowing of the photos can see Americans objecting to these actions, they will realize there's no reason to target innocent Americans for what a small number of Americans are guilty of. If America condemns what has been happening, America can promise to keep this from happen again. If America pretends nothing happened? Well, then the people in war zones will have reason to keep fighting.

[Norge]

Exactly.

[RadicalRationalist]

We have to learn from our mistakes and the only way we can do that is by owning up to them. We should not hide from our past. It may be unfortunate or the source of outrage, but there is nothing we can do about that. The only thing left is to learn how to do differently in the future.

RadicalRat­ionalist.c­om

[Rog49Thomas]

That of course means opening all the pages - back to 1946 when this all began.

[Yermammy]

Haven't we learned anything about cover ups from Nixon? This looks bad and we're NOT fooling anyone in the whole wide world. Eskimos are even going WTF?

[Marnie1]

Obama need to get it over with as soon as possible so that we can deal with the damage and get on with better things.
Hiding the truth rarely works to anyone's good, and just allows anger and distrust to linger and lies and slanders to go unanswered.

[larry278]

It's probable, if not certain, that the photos will be leaked, regardless of what Obama says or does. What will Obama say when the photos are published in a few weeks? It's a sure bet that all of the leaked photos will be published by those who hate the USA. The really lurid torture photos will be leaked & published 1st.
Hugo Chavez will comment on them.
Obama's spin on the photos won't fly. Obama & the USA will be better off if all of the photos are released by the USA, now. How about it, Pres Obama? Release all of the photos now. Nobody believes the flimsy, false, pretexts you are using to justify keeping the photos secret.

[JimR]

If there's one thing military experts agree on, it is that getting troops out safely will take at least a year. It is a dangerous and delusional fantasy to think that 150,000 troops (to use Iraq as an example) can just leave en masse with all the equipment that has been brought over in the past 6 years. This is not "Star Trek," we don't have a transporter. It will take time.

[CarmanK]

I don't agree. I think Obama saw the explosive nature of the photos and decided not to release the photos. Until this nation is ready to "prosecute" the decider, Cheney and the lawyers who denied "torture" activities with their legalese, then it is better not to release the information.
We have waited since 2003 for accountability on this issue, I can wait a while longer. The president needs to focus on the homeland right now.
The American public is feeling battered right now. With the party of NO, the Rush Limbaugh's, the lies about Sotomayor and the fight for universal health care in the forefront. Obama has stopped torture as a policy. Let the Senate House do their work. THE CONGRESS WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR OVERSIGHT. THEY NEED TO TAKE UP THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES.

[Rog49Thomas]

You have the patience of Job it would appear.

Unlike Job though, your patience is highly unlikely to be rewarded.

There will be no prosecution (much less conviction) of Former President Pan and senior members of his Administration.

The sacrificial (though guilty) small fry have been offered up. That's what we get.

[jqcitizen]

Is "One picture worth a thousand words?"

Secretary of Defense, Rumsfeld, pretended HE was shocked to see the initial photos published in the media. Actually, the entire world was shocked and Rumsfelds countless thousands of words (lies?) became exposed and he finally retired (?).

After 8 long years of Bush-Cheney administration deception, I don't need another picture. We are now seeing our GIs committing suicide in record numbers and the 'War lovers' are still enjoying their profits and wanting to continue the lie that this venture, into Iraq, promotes Democracy into the Mid-East.

Bring our troops home and back to their home towns where their votes will be counted, for a change.

[Rog49Thomas]

In this case one picture may be worth a thousand screams for mercy.

[Truby]

Not releasing these photos and allowing inquires into the abuses conducted on our behalf is to place us in the same category as any lawless dictatorial nation. We can handle the truth and if not we deserve to devolve into the rudderless rabble the rest of the world believes to be.

[JohnHKennedy]

"Trickling them out is the most dangerous and irresponsible thing we can do"

Exactly... Obama needs to get all the information into public vies and prosecute all thoses that took part in torture... Otherwise it will happen again.

SIGN THE PETITION To Prosecute Them For Torture

http://ANGRYVOTERS.ORG

Over 250,000 have signed
Join them and call yourself a Patriot
.

[WinterParkMom]

I am a vet. I served in Frankfurt during the 1st gulf war. We had muslim/turkish protesters all over germany at each of our buildings. They went so far as to throw molotov cocktails at our guards.
This was just as protest over the war. Can anyone imagine if anything like these pictures came out at that time how much more danger we would have been in? No one who has not served in uniform should demand that these pics come out. You do not know the danger it puts our boys and girls in.

These pics must not come out, for the safety of our troops. They need to be gathered up, an independent commission that includes the aclu appointed. They view the pics, identify every soldier. Identify every commander of those soldiers. Bring charges against them from top to bottom and court martial them.

This is the only way to deal with this problem. We cannot release those disgusting pictures so we can have more and more reports of suicide bombs and ied's, etc. This will do nothing but harm.

[rosiebond007]

TOTALLY AGREE

[MrRight77]

Give us some example of how it would save American lives?

[We-Are-The-Ones]

It won't save Americans lives. And anyone who isnt risking his life or is responsible for the lives of soldiers wants those photos released.

This is voyuerism pure and simple. If the General described the photos truthfully and the press saw them, why aren't they already out? Why aren't the descriptions enough.

None of this seems credible to me.

[Annoula]

None of this is credible to you???
You can't possibly believe any of your fellow Americans could do this kind of atrocities, right????
Did you happen to see the Abu Ghraib pictures that were released in 2004???
I bet you didn't believe your lying eyes then either!
Furthermore, you probably still believe that there were lots of WMD in Iraq and that Saddam had ties to Al-Qaeda and 9/11 because Bush said so...

FYI: the pictures aren't already out because Obama (yes, that black guy in the White House), under intense pressure form the Pentagon, decided NOT TO RELEASE THEM (after having promised the opposite) for fear of endangering US soldier's lives.

[Yermammy]

How dare you disgrace the flag with that statement. We have the right to know what our Government does in our good name, NOT you. The ACLU WON that case, btw...

[LillianB]

Holocaust wasn't credible either. Atrocities aren't. No one wants to know they happen, no one wants to believe. But they do happen, and denial helps no one. Denial only endangers innocents. Because denial enrages the victims and those symphatizing with the victims - a whole lot more than getting the truth out does. When the truth is out, American voters can condemn what happened. American outrage will lessen outrage against the average, innocent American - the (Muslim) world will see that John Doe does not accept US troops to act like criminals.

Truth helps the world move on. Denial doesn't.

[33Greeper]

I say release all the photos.

[rosiebond007]

WHAT MORE DO YOU NEED TO SEE OR KNOW??