Eminent Domain Stuff
New London Update (2/24/06)
Bad NLDC!
Coverage of the Rally at New London's City Hall (w/ pics)
Tuesday, May 11, 2004
Red Cross on Iraqi Prisoners
Here is a story on the Red Cross’ report on Iraqi prisoners. Perhaps they've got it all right, but I find it hard to believe that 90% of all detainees were arrested by accident. It also seems just a bit, shall we say, unfair to make this the 3rd paragraph of the story.
While many detainees were quickly released, high-ranking officials in Saddam Hussein's government, including those listed on the U.S. military's deck of cards, were held for months in solitary confinement.
Maybe it's just me, but I don't give a crap what is done Saddam's former high-ranking officials. I know, I know, we need to abide by the Geneva Convention. But if it were up to me…
Anyway, let's say this is true:
"These methods of physical and psychological coercion were used by the military intelligence in a systematic way to gain confessions and extract information and other forms of cooperation from persons who had been arrested in connection with suspected security offenses or deemed to have an 'intelligence value.'"
Let’s get one thing straight…we have men and women in harms way because there are still bad guys running around Iraq who were involved with Saddam's government. So what should our people do? Should they offer these individuals with intelligence value iced tea and a hammock on the shade? Perhaps then they'd give us info to save our soldiers lives.
The thing that's getting lost in all of this is simply that we need information from many of these people. Should we be humiliating them and taking pictures? Probably not. Should we be torturing them? No. But there is a fine line between interrogation and torture...and the perception of that line is markedly different between civilian and military points of view. It is entirely possible that bonefide torture has taken place. If so, we must deal with those responsible. However, I have yet to see any evidence of true torture. Humiliation galore...but nothing rising to the level of torture.
I think that it would behoove us all to bear in mind what our priorities are. My first priority is to keep our soldiers safe. Next in line are innocent Iraqis. Then stray Iraqi dogs, cats, sheep and finally Iraqi bad guys. But I guess that's just me.
Update:
Hey, I guess it's not just me. Maybe Sen. Inhofe is reading MuD&PHuD =). Or maybe not. Regardless, I agree completely. Money Quote:
"These prisoners, you know they're not there for traffic violations," Inhofe said. "If they're in cellblock 1-A or 1-B, these prisoners, they're murderers, they're terrorists, they're insurgents. Many of them probably have American blood on their hands and here we're so concerned about the treatment of those individuals."
More...
"I am also outraged that we have so many humanitarian do-gooders right now crawling all over these prisons looking for human rights violations, while our troops, our heroes are fighting and dying," he said.
It's heartening to know that we've got a few sane people in Congress.
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Here is a story on the Red Cross’ report on Iraqi prisoners. Perhaps they've got it all right, but I find it hard to believe that 90% of all detainees were arrested by accident. It also seems just a bit, shall we say, unfair to make this the 3rd paragraph of the story.
While many detainees were quickly released, high-ranking officials in Saddam Hussein's government, including those listed on the U.S. military's deck of cards, were held for months in solitary confinement.
Maybe it's just me, but I don't give a crap what is done Saddam's former high-ranking officials. I know, I know, we need to abide by the Geneva Convention. But if it were up to me…
Anyway, let's say this is true:
"These methods of physical and psychological coercion were used by the military intelligence in a systematic way to gain confessions and extract information and other forms of cooperation from persons who had been arrested in connection with suspected security offenses or deemed to have an 'intelligence value.'"
Let’s get one thing straight…we have men and women in harms way because there are still bad guys running around Iraq who were involved with Saddam's government. So what should our people do? Should they offer these individuals with intelligence value iced tea and a hammock on the shade? Perhaps then they'd give us info to save our soldiers lives.
The thing that's getting lost in all of this is simply that we need information from many of these people. Should we be humiliating them and taking pictures? Probably not. Should we be torturing them? No. But there is a fine line between interrogation and torture...and the perception of that line is markedly different between civilian and military points of view. It is entirely possible that bonefide torture has taken place. If so, we must deal with those responsible. However, I have yet to see any evidence of true torture. Humiliation galore...but nothing rising to the level of torture.
I think that it would behoove us all to bear in mind what our priorities are. My first priority is to keep our soldiers safe. Next in line are innocent Iraqis. Then stray Iraqi dogs, cats, sheep and finally Iraqi bad guys. But I guess that's just me.
Update:
Hey, I guess it's not just me. Maybe Sen. Inhofe is reading MuD&PHuD =). Or maybe not. Regardless, I agree completely. Money Quote:
"These prisoners, you know they're not there for traffic violations," Inhofe said. "If they're in cellblock 1-A or 1-B, these prisoners, they're murderers, they're terrorists, they're insurgents. Many of them probably have American blood on their hands and here we're so concerned about the treatment of those individuals."
More...
"I am also outraged that we have so many humanitarian do-gooders right now crawling all over these prisons looking for human rights violations, while our troops, our heroes are fighting and dying," he said.
It's heartening to know that we've got a few sane people in Congress.
|
