On torture, U.S. forfeits moral ground (Atl J Con)

[struggle4progress]

Published on: 03/31/05

Critics of the United Nations used to revel in its hypocrisy for allowing countries such as Libya to chair the U.N. Human Rights Commission, as it did in 2003. As the U.S. State Department pointed out at the time, Libyan officials "torture prisoners during interrogations and as punishment. . . . arbitrarily arrest and detain persons, and many prisoners are held incommunicado. Many political detainees are held for years without charge."

Today, though, the United States has forfeited the moral standing to make such charges. The evidence is overwhelming that American officials, like Libyan officials, have tortured prisoners during interrogations. They have done so not in isolated cases by rogue units or individuals, but as part of a conscious policy applied broadly and endorsed at the highest levels of government. <snip>

In fact, mankind has never had a problem finding ways to justify torture and other violations of human rights. That's why the bans against torture written into both American law and international treaty allow no exceptions.

Those laws were not designed to apply only in normal times, because in normal times no such laws are needed. They were enacted in the hope that clear and explicit legal bans, along with public commitments of national honor, would steel us against the temptation to compromise our standards when times of crisis came. <snip>

http://www.ajc.com/opinion/content/opinion/bookman/2005/033105.html

[bemildred]

1. The AJC notices that we have done shot ourselves in the foot.

Bravo.

[struggle4progress]

2. If current trends hold, we shall have multiple gunshots in both knees ...

... before the mainstream begins to notice that matters have become urgent.

[bemildred]

3. Makes you think of the Black Knight in Monty Python.

ARTHUR: You are indeed brave, Sir knight, but the fight is mine.
BLACK KNIGHT: Oh, had enough, eh?
ARTHUR: Look, you stupid bastard, you've got no arms left.
BLACK KNIGHT: Yes I have.
ARTHUR: Look!
BLACK KNIGHT: Just a flesh wound.
(Headbutts Arthur in the chest)
ARTHUR: Look, stop that.
BLACK KNIGHT: Chicken! Chicken!
ARTHUR: Look, I'll have your leg. Right!
(whop)
BLACK KNIGHT: Right, I'll do you for that!
ARTHUR: You'll what?
BLACK KNIGHT: Come 'ere!
ARTHUR: What are you going to do, bleed on me?
BLACK KNIGHT: I'm invincible!
ARTHUR: You're a loony.
BLACK KNIGHT: The Black Knight always triumphs! Have at you!
Come on then.
(whop)
(ARTHUR chops the BLACK KNIGHT's other leg off)
BLACK KNIGHT: All right; we'll call it a draw.

[camitche]

4. I think we lost the right to criticize long ago...

with the naked pictures and guantanamo bay situations. people have known for a long time that we're hypocrites.