Comments on: The Torture Issue – February 20 http://obamaproject.windonwater.net/2009/01/the-torture-issue-february-20/ Reflections on race, gender, class and culture as seen through the prism of the Obama presidency. Tue, 13 Jul 2010 06:18:10 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: QueenTiye http://obamaproject.windonwater.net/2009/01/the-torture-issue-february-20/comment-page-1/#comment-43 QueenTiye Thu, 08 Jan 2009 04:34:19 +0000 http://obamaproject.windonwater.net/?p=406#comment-43 BJ: You are so right. But I'm willing to take baby steps. I just don't want us to codify this wrong of the Bush era into a permanent feature of our culture. I'm willing to let a terrorist go free in order to let our national soul be free of the taint (!!!) of torture. QT BJ: You are so right. But I’m willing to take baby steps. I just don’t want us to codify this wrong of the Bush era into a permanent feature of our culture. I’m willing to let a terrorist go free in order to let our national soul be free of the taint (!!!) of torture.

QT

]]> By: bjritz http://obamaproject.windonwater.net/2009/01/the-torture-issue-february-20/comment-page-1/#comment-42 bjritz Wed, 07 Jan 2009 18:21:14 +0000 http://obamaproject.windonwater.net/?p=406#comment-42 We, we Americans are better than that. We are better than to become torturers. Yes, we have become this, not by collective choice mind you, but by the choices of our elected leaders. This can be ended decisively by the new administration stepping in and declaring to the world that these recent events were anomalies. Then inventory the intelligence community and usher to the door any advocates or practitioners. Then summarily try the leaders that nodded the head and prosecute them fully. When I was a boy, we were the country of the abused prisoners. My picture of POWs was Hogan's Heros and Bridge over the River Kwai. Then my friends came back from Vietnam reporting the enemy's proclivity toward torture. There were plenty of bad decisions made during that conflict as well. However, the overall sense was that we were better than the others. There needs to be an open historical review of the past intelligence gatherings and right the wrongs. This will lead to credibility with our allies and enemies alike. If we as a nation are all about deception and subterfuge then carry on; or change openly, in a verifiable way. We seem to be so full of ourselves that we don't want any accountability to anyone. Yet our foreign policy is always asking for others to be accountable to us. bjritz We, we Americans are better than that. We are better than to become torturers.
Yes, we have become this, not by collective choice mind you, but by the choices of our elected leaders. This can be ended decisively by the new administration stepping in and declaring to the world that these recent events were anomalies. Then inventory the intelligence community and usher to the door any advocates or practitioners. Then summarily try the leaders that nodded the head and prosecute them fully.

When I was a boy, we were the country of the abused prisoners. My picture of POWs was Hogan’s Heros and Bridge over the River Kwai. Then my friends came back from Vietnam reporting the enemy’s proclivity toward torture. There were plenty of bad decisions made during that conflict as well. However, the overall sense was that we were better than the others.

There needs to be an open historical review of the past intelligence gatherings and right the wrongs. This will lead to credibility with our allies and enemies alike. If we as a nation are all about deception and subterfuge then carry on; or change openly, in a verifiable way. We seem to be so full of ourselves that we don’t want any accountability to anyone. Yet our foreign policy is always asking for others to be accountable to us.

bjritz

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