We Can't Handle the Lie!
I sat in the sun and ate fresh halibut with a friend of mine last night.
He's German. He told me about watching the horrifying filmstrips and movies about the Holocaust in school as a child. Decades later, Germany is committed to acknowledging the crimes of the past, and determined not to repeat them. He said he was sickened... ashamed by the actions of men, but strengthened by the fact that the Nuremberg Trials held accountable, and eventually executed the war criminals. Because of this ultimate public accountability, Germany was separated from the Nazis who had ruled them.
War crimes. If a picture tells a thousand words, the pictures now being held back by Obama, scream volumes. Their testimony demands the light of day much like the men in our containment. The argument of "inflaming the terrorists" is out of touch at best. They already know. To deny justice while exporting "democracy" has fueled the flames of hatred and painted our hypocrisy like graffiti across the Constitution. The opposite of truth is cover-up.
We must face ourselves with proof. This is not Tupperware in the back of the fridge you throw out without looking inside... this is who we are.
A military friend of mine disagreed with me. He pressed me, "What do you want?"
"The truth," I said.
My friend asked, "What would you do with the truth?" As he spoke, Jack Nicholson snarled in my head, "You can't handle the truth!"
I answered, "I can't handle the lie."
"What if you could waterboard out the cure for AIDS? What if you could waterboard out the solution to your precious Arctic Ice dilemma?"
I thought about it for a second, it almost seemed like a trade worth making, almost reasonable... and I realized how this happened. The shiny, baited hook of fear caught in the throat of so many Americans begging for safety at any price-the same Americans who now defend torture. It's too late to spit the hook.
"No. It's a crime." I said.
The Nuremberg trials proved not only the guilt of those tried; they cemented the civility and rule of law of the international community. Robert Jackson did not allow us to be defined by the evil nature of our enemies; thereby bringing forward "The Greatest Generation."
The International Military Tribunal for the Far East prosecuted Japanese war criminals. The Class A war crime was described as "A Crime against Peace." According to Japanese records, 5,700 Japanese individuals were indicted for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Of this number, 984 were condemned to death.
In both Tribunals, those convicted were hung; stripped of the military custom of firing squad. In their final walk to the gallows they knew they'd been graced with justice; something they had denied millions.
Under our flag Americans have died to protect our ideals. Our flag was ripped apart during the Civil War; the mending made us stronger. What our flag symbolizes, is best said by Bruce Springsteen, "You know that flag flyin' over the courthouse; Means certain things are set in stone. Who we are, what we'll do and what we won't." The Bush administration did the unthinkable; they took our flag in vain. The traded it for torture, war, and lies.
So, now to answer the question of "What would you do with the truth?"
We must acknowledge the Rule of Law over partisan hackery. Put down the Kool-Aid, regardless of whether it's Red or Blue. That this matter has become politicized is astounding to me. Those on the left that are willing to move along, or are trading the economy for justice, or fear those on the right calling war crimes trials "witch hunts", are enabling partisanship where none should exist. There is a simple solution; present evidence and try the perpetrators. "Just following orders" was no defense in Nuremberg or Tokyo. "Just following orders" and waterboarding a man 183 times in a month is certainly indefensible today. Everyone involved from those that executed the enhanced interrogation orders, to Bush lawyers David Addington, John Yoo, and Jay Bybee, must be held accountable.
If found guilty, let them be sentenced.. On that day, the "R" or the "D" after someone's name won't matter; the "CWC", convicted war criminal, will.
Then, like Germany and Japan, we will rebuild our identity beyond the crimes of regime holders.
For a solemn day, we drape our national monuments in black.
We wear black on our sleeves.
We resolve we will not let it happen again.
We show the world we have truly changed.
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I strongly encourage all to go to the ACLU web site and sign the petition to the Attorney General to appoint a special prosecutor.
I was somewhat encouraged by the President's speech this morning. He stated that he knew there were some who wanted him to "re-litigate the past 8 years". He indicated that he would "leave that up to others" such as the Congress. He, in fact, mentioned the inquiries going on in Congress now.
Hopefully, the Congress will continue to investigate and that will lead to the appointment of the special prosecutor. This issue will not go away until the light of day is shed on the darkness.
I guess people are now seeing what Rev. Wright was preaching about, how the US has done so much wrong throughout history and how the chickens come home to roost. Look at the guys caught in NYC preparing to blow up air force planes and bomb a synagogue over things done by the US government in Afghanistan and Iraq. We cannot continue to do terrible things to people in other countries and not expect them to want to do something to us in retaliation. It's the height of arrogance to believe that we are always right and everyone else just has to be wrong.
I would even venture to say that this country has done worse things to people over the years, even worst than water boarding. We are that kind of country because we elect those kinds of people. When we don't elect them, someone who we did elect appoints these kinds of people.
I agree that we need a special prosecutor to know what happened and let the chips fall where they may, but I don't think those photo's should be released if the POTUS, etc., who have seen them, think that they should not be released. We haven't seen them, but they have said that showing the photo's would endanger active soldiers, so on that, they should not be released, no matter how much we want to see them. I trust Obama AND Biden to make the right decision that's best for the country.
We have indeed done much worse than what has been reported. There are documents that have been released through the Freedom of Information Act that detail the torture deaths of detainees in our military-run prison in Bagram, Afghanistan. It is not a pretty picture and certainly not for the faint at heart.
There is also evidence coming forth now about children taken into Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. These children were raped and sodomized in front of their mothers to make the adults "confess", while the cameras rolled. According to the report, put forth by one of the premier journalists, Seymour Hersch, the Pentagon has a copy of the tape. I provide a link to the story here.
http://the
The mainstream media has completely ignored these stories while obsessing about waterboarding which may be the least in Cheney's arsenal of "enhanced interrogation techniques". And, as a result of the media's failure to fully inform the American people, there are some that think that waterboarding is "not so bad". I maintain that if the people knew the rest of the story, there would be little support for torture, even in the face of the "ticking bomb" scenario.
We need to continue to pressure the Justice Department to prosecute the war criminals!!
Shannyn, I think that this is one of the best pieces you have written. This a subject surrounded with much controversy, pro and con..
When I joined the Army in 1963 I swore an oath to "defend the Constitution from within and without". I was never asked to rescind or take back my oath.
I have had numerous discussion with my sister-in-law whose husband (my brother) was also in the Army. She thinks that the war crimes will never come to trial or even serious investigation. I feel that IT MUST. There is the question of torture, illegal or at least despised since the Spanish inquisition. The was of aggression US/IRAQ. To me these are the two most important at this time.
I was proud to swear the oath in 1963, I do not think I could do so at this time as the Bush admin was not, and now the Obama admin. does not seem to be following the rule of law. I feel that we have lost our moral compass and if a course correction is not made soon, we will never get back on course.
I do not want to continue to be ashamed of what my country is doing (in my name).
I agree fully with this post.I cannot stand the fact that this issue has been politicized and sliced up within parties! It is Illegal War Crimes!We must Investigate,it is the only way!We should ALL write to Congress and to the President.
The entire reason that the documentation was released and the photos weren't is the PHOTOS NEED NO TRANSLATION.
EVERY person on earth, no matter what language they speak, can evaluate a photo.
This is an excellent blog on whether the photos should be released or not, it is worth a read.
http://dea
Sorry to say, but I think it's too late. We're too deep into the abyss. There are no true Patriots left or else they would have acted by now. We're all just going to accept that this is who we are now, that we are the bad guys, and that’s it. The next generation will have to prove to the world somehow that Americans are not cowards. Because as of now, that's exactly what we are. The most cowardice of cowards. Just take a look.
If I may ,
I agree that there's a lot of guys who need to be held accountable. Quite a few need to go to prison. Bush might get off on diminshed capacity , but that's another story. That said ,
The first time I want to see those pictures is in the context of a trial. I , too am for Rule of Law. Black's , not Lewis Carroll's. Gather evidence , present a case , get a verdict. That's the rule of law.
The easy thing about Nuremburg was that it was someone else , victors in a war , doing the judging. In this case , we have to judge ourselves. That's hard for an individual to do , nearly impossible for a society. What is most needed is public sentiment.
Let's say that x percent of us want trials and y percent don't. There's a z percent of , I don't know , I don't care.
Releasing those photos would not change x , y , (z's don't count) the positions would only harden
Making it known that the photos exist challenges some ys
Reading the memos challenged a lot of ys
Cheney and Rice incriminating themselves challenged some ys.
Obama being reluctant challenges some ys
I'm convinced that the ball is rolling and that the Justice Department will get a real prosecutor in there.
When President Obama declared that "the United States will not torture" he'd merely repositioned it.
Obama's Executive Order bans some -- not all -- US officials from torturing but it does not ban any of them, from sponsoring torture overseas.
His policy change affects only a slight percentage of US-culpable tortures and could be completely consistent with an increase in US-backed torture worldwide.
Since Vietnam, when US forces often tortured directly, the US has seen its torture done for it by proxy -- paying, arming, training and guiding foreigners doing it, careful to keep America one step removed.
That is until Bush and Cheney had many Americans laying on hands, and sometimes taking digital photos.
The result was a public relations fiasco that enraged the US establishment since by exposing US techniques to the world it diminished US power.
But the Bush/Cheney tortures were a negligible percentage of all of the tortures being done by US clients.
For every torment inflicted directly by Americans in Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantanamo and the secret prisons, there were many times more being meted out by US-sponsored foreign forces.
Those forces are operating with US military, intelligence, financial or other backing in Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, Pakistan,,Jordan, Indonesia, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Colombia, Nigeria, and the Philippines, to name some places
What the Obama dictum knocks off is that small percentage of torture now done by Americans
Obama could stop backing foreign forces that torture, but he has chosen not to do so.
I'm with ya , tbone. It's a broad swath of countries you allege there , but it's more than likely true. I think it's on his honey-do list. He seems to be getting at Pakistan , Israel-Palestine right now , and maybe it's coming up. But , ya gota admit , at least we're quitting.
It's also a Senatorial matter - no aid , no aid to terror.
And I also hate the one-step-removed thing.
Thank you and thank you and thank you for saying what needs to be said. That this issue has become politicized baffles me too. The media has certainly framed it that way, which is really the main reason people view it as a left-right issue.
Now that Obama is embracing the Bush approach to the Orwellian "War on Terror," the media gets to define radical abuses of power as somehow "centrist.
Unlike most Americans, I don't cling to American exceptionalism. We should behave as we expect the rest of the world to behave. On this tiny blue-green bubble in space, there is one dominant species. That species may occupy different lands, but we are all related. What we do to others, we do to ourselves. We should treat everyone as we would want to be treated. It's as easy as that. That also goes for rich vs. poor. Rich people are getting away with a lot of things as they drive the poor further under. The rich aren't following the golden rule (except that they make the rules because they have the gold). If some common thug in the projects kidnapped a rival thug and tortured that person, the torturer would rightly be charged with the crime and spend a long time in prison thinking about what they did. Should rich, powerful leaders in government be allowed to do the same kind of thing without facing justice? Should they be allowed to enjoy the rest of their lives aboard their yachts eating caviar without any regard to those they had tortured? Should they be spared all that time of contemplation and attonement just because they are rich, or that they were once powerful? People are people. What's good for the person killing Buddist monks in Tibet is good for the person who ordered the torture of an innocent goatherder or alleged terrorist. Justice is blind.
second that
Yeah right, you liberals are so full of s*t. You would do it and you know it. Would you let your children die if you had a kidnapper in your grasps? hmmmmmm Stop with the crap already.
We should be wearing black armbands already. Mourning in America. The rule of law is dead. All hail King Obama. He that promises change but delivers more of the same. Even now there are 'detainees' standing in stress positions at Gitmo and Bagram. The evil that resides in that White House seems to infect everyone who lives there. Nixon's ghost? No. Power. Plain and simple.
I agree. I'm pretty disappointed with how Obama has changed mind on this issue. This may come back to haunt Obama in 2012. This could have been one issue that Obama could have defined his presidency on. I'm so disappointed in him.
Obama argued That Bush's missing emails be kept secret.. he supported FISA. He has Goldman Sachs running the Treasury, Military tribulnals are still on the table at Gitmo. And evidently torture is acceptable.
What part of NO CHANGE don't you get?
Shannyn, wonderful article! If we as a nation ever want to reclaim our morally upstanding position in the world, there must be resolution and consequences of this unspeakable criminal behavior. How can we ever condemn human rights violations in other countries if we refuse to accept responsibility for this. What I find most disturbing is the argument that it is the releasing these photographs that will enrage the world and endanger our service men and women abroad. The cause of outrage is the torture itself, not the pictures. The world already knows this happened. By refusing to release the pictures, the Obama administration becomes complicit in the coverup of the crimes of the Bush administration.
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