Torture Party's Bush Does It Again

[andysayshi]

Well, debating the legalities and terminologies is fine, but does not excuse the greater ethical debate in play.

The US has specifically prosecuted, charged and punished people for the act of waterboarding. President Bush's veto of this Bill has basically told the rest of the world, and all of the enemies it may contain, that the use of waterboarding on captured US soldiers and security personnel is now acceptable. It is not torture, and thus not illegal, right? So if Iraqi militants capture US soldiers and use waterboarding to garner intelligence, that is now an acceptable action.

That's what Bush's veto says to me.

 

[Críostóir]

And even if that's not a specific legal position, andysayshi, that will be the effect.

Reason #6,873 to hate Bush: He's going to get OUR GUYS tortured.

LWOP, gen pop, Level IV.

 

[frankfrank]

http://waterboarding.org/success_story

Waterboarding Success Stories: Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and Library Tower

It's sad that I don't even feel the threat was real. It's very easy for this administration to lie about a nonexistent terror plot. I have real trouble believing this even happened. Yes, a sad testament to the Bushinistas who should all, as in the above post, be serving Life Without Parole and be forced to mingle with the general population, not a country club prison.

Their ability to lie is legendary. Even in the heavy-duty days of rampant propaganda from The Kremlin, La Habana and other places, there was actually a chance they were telling the truth sometimes.

Kulindahr mentions the rarely-considered possibility that al-Qaeda operatives may be flooding in from the Mexican border. The entire world (including *ALL* terrorists) know that would be the absolute easiest way to smuggle terrorists into this country.

Waterboarding IS TORTURE, but so are dozens or perhaps hundreds of other methods which aren't being discussed at all. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if even medieval methods, such as the rack and the iron maiden, are being used in secret detention centers, perhaps even on soil located within the United States. Area 51, anyone?