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POPS35 clues that you listen to Sean Hannity 18) you believe that Sean Hannity is a "great American"... despite the fact that he really hasn't done anything "great" other than build his own personal fortune by parroting talking points. It’s worth reading through the others for some real gems. That is, unless you actually listen to Sean Hannity. Another favorite: 26) you actually believe that "bush kept us safe"... in spite of 3,017 dead on 911, 5 dead via anthrax WMD attack (on us soil), 1317 us troops dead in afghanistan, 4645 dead us troops in iraq And the hits just keep coming: 27) you believe in exporting democracy... yet insist that conservative officials "remain principled" and refuse to negotiate with (America hating) liberals.
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POPSLaw, Not Torture, Protects National Security
Politicians and pundits ought to understand by now, the American system of justice was always meant to apprehend and prosecute criminals, and to ensure that those who apprehend them do not violate the law in doing so. That system routinely investigates law enforcement officials who use excessive force because we recognize that the credibility and authority of the law depends on universal accountability. The author, Joe Conason, got it exactly right. According to Cheney, preserving the rule of law will expose the nation to devastating terror attacks. This is total BS. “He has repeatedly claimed that waterboarding as well as other abusive methods are all that stand between us and a repetition of 9/11 or much worse”. Absolute scare tactics that reasonable adults know is not true. Through the release of the 2004 CIA inspector general’s report on the agency’s use of “enhanced interrogation,” provides little support for the former vice president’s bluster. Bring them to justic
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POPSTop 50 Atheism Quotes Quotes from everyone from George Carlin to Ben Franklin to Isaac Asimov A man is accepted into a church for what he believes and he is turned out for what he knows. - - Mark Twain
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POPSWhat Side Are They On? A declaration of war against common sense? What this question says, in the context of this commentary, is that anyone who stands for an ethical America is on the wrong side. When I ask the question “what side are they on?” I mean it as asking why is America becoming a terrorist nation? Why do we have to keep rehashing the ethics of torture? The common sense is that we all want an America that is free from terrorism. We are all on the same side. The common sense is that the use of torture turns the torturer into a terrorist. It can have no other effect. The common sense is that torture is not the only way to get info out of someone. There are more humane methods. We have intelligence gathering protocols in place that have been working for decades without the use of torture. Why is anyone defending the use of torture now? What has changed that now makes it okay for America to compromise its ethics?
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POPSWrist-slap and Tackle: Obama Goes Mild on CIA Torture http://chris-floyd.com/component/content/artic Holder has announced a tepid probe into some of the possible "excesses" committed by a few CIA interrogators, while letting the true architects and perpetrators of an elaborate, deliberate, inherent system of torture get off scot-free. Glenn Greenwald has many of the details here and here, among them the telling – and damning – fact that Obama and Holder have apparently decided that the "torture memos" prepared at the White House's order should be considered "settled law;" that is, only those agents whose tortures might have gone a bit beyond the already heinous tortures "allowed" by the White House memos are to be investigated for possible prosecution. As long as you stayed within the gruesome "guidelines" of the White House torture memos, then your atrocities are now to be considered "legal." This is yet another open reinforcement of the long-established covert practice of what we might call Nixon's Law: "If the president orders it, it cannot be illegal."
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POPSLet’s Go To Prison The author says “Generations from now, our treatment of criminals will be looked at with the same disgust and horror that slavery is viewed with today, and our society will rightly be condemned as cruel and barbaric for it.” I don’t fully agree with this statement, because there can be no comparison between prison and slavery. I do however, believe that rape is cruel and barbaric and we take on some of the responsibility for allowing it to continue. What ever happened to the idea of no “Cruel or Unusual Punishment”? You might be inclined to be unsympathetic of prisoners plight because after all they broke the law and deserve to be where they are, but do they really deserve to have this form of torture brought down on them?
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POPSFreepers, Birthers, Morons of all stripe, You didn't get mad... From the author: “You finally got mad when the government decided that people in America deserved the right to see a doctor if they are sick.” “Yes, illegal wars, lies, corruption, torture, stealing your tax dollars to make the rich richer, are all ok, but helping other Americans? Well, that’s what you finally get mad about.” You’ve got to admit, he’s got a point. Oh, sure we heard rumblings for a very short time about most of the things he pointed out in the clip but the biggest outrage by far is over health care for everyone.
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POPSIdaho police sodomize man with Taser There is a case in Florida where a group of 14-year-old boys are going to be tried as adults because they sodomized one of their classmates with broomsticks and hockey sticks. These are cops in this case. Should be treated any differently? After an internal investigation, police determined that the first officer violated the department’s use-of-force policy. And the second officer violated department policy when he erased the taped interview. They have been “disciplined” and are to receive more training. This was a deviant and sadistic act. No amount of ‘training’ is going to suppress the trigger that allowed this individual to resort to this type of inhumane treatment. What is additionally disgusting is that none of the other cops present tried to stop this. It is unconscionable that police will allow this individual back on the street with only a slap on the wrist. I used to have respect for cops. Now I am scared to death and on guard whenever near a cop. Fear is no
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POPSBachmann Boasts About Breaking the Law: I’m Refusing to Fill Out the Census What a rebel! She states her fears over the Census come from the fact that her #1 Enemy, ACORN, could possibly be involved in recruiting the 1.4 million people needed to go door-to-door to count every American. The comments on this clip are really quite entertaining. Here is a sampling: “Be sure to wear your tin foil hat when you answer the door.” “Oh, Shelly... whatever will we do for entertainment when you finally go all the way 'round the bend?” “At least the former head of her party had the balls to really break our laws. Torture, erasing of the 4th Amendment, illegal war, etc.... Come on Congresswoman; you can do better!! Step it up a notch. Perhaps you could just open fire on all those congress people you work with that you say are "anti-American. Then I'd be impressed” “Her oath of office requires her to swear to uphold the Constitution and the laws of the US. What does this say about Bachmann other than the fact she is dangerously imbalanced?”
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POPSDick Cheney Only Had to Delay Things a Couple of Minutes Dick Cheney is a very deeply disturbed individual with deep-seated notions of world domination. His vision of the American Dream is more like an American Empire. He has some very twisted notions of how to obtain leadership and working to make America a better, safer place for all of us doesn’t play into his plans. After reading this blog post and following its many links we can get a clearer picture of what Dick Cheney is most fearful of from being ordered to stand trial for his crimes against the American people. It has been speculated that he fears the truth coming out about his part in authorizing the torture of ‘enemy combatants’, but there is so much more he needs to fear, not the least of which is allowing (and possibly masterminding) the most horrendous attack on American soil since Pearl Harbor. See how he was largely responsible for generating fake intelligence about Iraq in order to justify war.
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POPSSenate votes to block release of torture photographs Who are they trying to protect? They claim to protect the people of the U.S. but they are actually protecting members and actions of the Bush administration. Obama’s talk of ‘greater openness’ has now been watered down with ‘as long as it does not open us to lawsuits’. The best and most effective way to protect American lives is to stop demeaning ourselves by dehumanizing anyone who does not follow our belief system. The day the U.S. openly acknowledges it is in the business of colonialization for the purpose of controlling the world and then vows to stop the practice and allow others to live in peace, in whatever manner they see fit, is the day we will all start on the road to a more peaceful existence.
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POPSCheney's Revenge: Coming to a Police Station Near You A case in which torture was used by police to obtain a DNA sample from a suspect. What is deemed (ruled) acceptable today will become routine tomorrow. With police regularly using tasers to administer summary punishment to non-compliant civilians, it's not surprising that their use has now been authorized as a means of extracting self-incriminating evidence from criminal suspects. It is becoming more likely that tasers and any other “reasonable manner” (as determined by the prosecution) of enforcing compliance will be used to enforce court-ordered compliance. It is also becoming increasingly apparent that the use of torture during the Bush/Cheney regime needs to be addressed, quickly. As the author states: “Don't be surprised if, ere long, the interrogation rooms in American police departments mutate into CIA-style "black sites" of the sort now familiar to more than a few traumatized innocent foreigners.” How many times have the police have arrested the wrong person?
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POPSAllowing Guilty Pleas Without Trial Would be the Ultimate Obstruction of Justice Obama administration wants to allow Guantanamo prisoners to plead guilty without a trial. Which will prevent details of their torture from becoming public during the course of the trial, a direct violation of standard criminal protocol. It also would solve the thorny problem of introducing ‘signed’ confessions that were obtained by the use of torture. The 9/11 Commission knows it cannot with any clear conscience use these as evidence. The author states a very compelling case against the government for obstructing justice. As always, the government is changing the rules in the name of political expediency. And in this case to prevent exposing the governments lack of real evidence for its version of 9/11.
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POPSThe Public's Growing Acceptance of Torture is Equivalent to the Suicide of America's Soul If this poll is accurate, I am sorely disappointed. 52% believe that torture can be used at least sometimes to interrogate would-be terrorist suspects? Are we that scared of possible attack that we would jeopardize holding our heads as a proud nation who does not resort to torture? The author thinks its in part due to it becoming a political issue. I think its in part a reflection of how violent America is becoming. The author, just as many others before him have, presents a very good argument against accepting torture. From the article: “I would rather take the risk that my life may one day be lost due to a terrorist attack than stoop to taking actions that tears at the fabric of the American spirit. I may die but that is a risk I am willing to take.”
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POPSIf Obama Cedes Ground to Cheney, We’ll All Pay a Heavy Price Excellent commentary by Gary Younge on why we need moral leadership. Americans are sorely lacking in moral leadership. For fear of being labeled unpatriotic, congress allowed an illegal war in Iraq. For fear of being labeled unpatriotic congress is allowing torture, an affront to America’s core values, to go unpunished. For fear of being labeled unpatriotic Americans are being forced to accept that patriotism is taking on a new face. It has now become patriotic to follow our leadership into an immoral abyss. It is now official: we rule out of fear rather than principle. If our founding fathers were alive today, this would kill them. Do we have the choice to turn this situation around? Yes. Do we have what it takes to pull it off? I fear the answer is no, but I hold hope that someone will find the ability to make it happen.
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POPS9/11 Happened On Your Watch, Dick Cheney Intelligence gathered before the neocons stole the presidency in 2000 was ignored. Their arrogance refused to acknowledge anything that was produced outside of their party. The result was that the US suffered one of the most terrifying and possibly preventable attacks on US soil in history. Now, Cheney is boasting over empty and unsubstantiated achievements in a desperate attempt to atone for that mistake. Mr. Cheney, you have presented your case to the American public and it has been found to be lacking. The best course of action for you now is to go quietly to your home and be thankful that Obama does not have the intestinal fortitude to prosecute you and your cohorts. Personally, I want you to stand trial but things being what they are it likely won’t happen. I have no doubt that you love your country, but slink away now while you still can.
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POPSRed State: Jesus Would Have Approved Waterboarding The author: “It's pretty sad that the Christian Right in this country has been politicized to the point that, in defense of their preferred political ideology, they have been reduced to claiming that Jesus' supposedly loving message of peace and caring for your fellow man has been perverted to justify torture.”
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POPSLiz Cheney Accidentally(?) Lets the Truth Fly Cheney is putting on the “airs of the righteous” and the main stream media is eating it up. In truth, he is scared of being prosecuted and has conducted a campaign to reduce public support for a criminal inquiry. Cheney’s daughter Liz revealed that fear of prosecution is indeed a motivating factor in the former vice president’s current media campaign. Why isn’t G W Bush out there defending his policies? Because Cheney was in charge all along and perhaps because Liz Cheney is being groomed to be a 2012 candidate.
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POPSWhy the Caged Bird Sings What is he up to? 1) he truly believes that torture actually works and that using it doesn’t dehumanize the user 2) he is defending the legacy of an administration he ran single-handedly for eight years 3) since he is no longer in the WH he can now speak as freely as he wants So he is either 1) selling himself to the GOP because, you know, once you have tasted power you don’t want to give it up. Or, 2) as the author states, he is scared of the public damnation that will come out against him if the public learns the extent of the barbarism that took place at Abu Ghraib. So, from his point of view, waterboarding is very minor in comparison to what he ordered take place there. Which means Obama has now allowed himself to become a party to the disgrace that has been brought upon the U.S. by simply refusing to prosecute.
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POPSGingrish: 'Abolute obligation' to investigate Pelosi Let's put this another way: 'Absolute obligation' to investigate Bush & Cheney Millions of people say Bush "lied to the House" when he claimed that Iraq had WMD (plus a long list of other lies) which is considered unethical by any self-respecting society. "I think that the House has an absolute obligation to open an inquiry, and I hope there will be a resolution to investigate them. And I think this is a big deal. I don't think the President of the US can lie to the country on national security matters," the people of the US have been saying for years.
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POPSSilent as the Grave: A Timely Demise on a Deely Rooted Evil A most inconvenient man. But as that great gulagist of yore, Josef Stalin, liked to say: "Remove the man, remove the problem." And now al-Fakheri has been removed. No one has anatomized this slouching beast with more depth, insight and painful clarity than Arthur Silber. Read the piece in full, (http://powerofnarrative.blogspot.com/2009/05/against-prosecution-iii-obama-and.html) and let it inform your thinking as each new glimpse of our brutal reality filters through the searing white phosphorus smoke laid down by our elites.
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POPSObama opposes release of torture photos I agree with Obama that the release of these photos would not add any additional benefit to the ublic’s understanding of the story. However, this is as far as I go in agreeing with him. It is not up to him or any other politician to decide what is newsworthy. The purpose of a free press is to allow the citizenry to see for themselves what our government, and its agents, i.e. military personnel, is involved in. We decide what is newsworthy and any attempt to withhold information not only gives the impression of a cover up but constitutes an attack on ‘freedom of press’. It is disingenuous of Obama to claim transparency and then attempt to keep information away from us.
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POPSCheney wants to Testify about Torture? Let Him! This man refuses to accept the general public's distaste for torture and is convinced that his oratory prowess will win us over. Dick, go quietly into your retirement and be thankful that the federal government does not have the good sense or the stomach to place you on trial for your crimes.
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POPSCondi Rice Pulls a Nixon 'When the President does it, that means it is not illegal'. This is exactly the problem with allowing past crimes to go unaddressed. If past transgressions (torture) are allowed to go unchecked they will, in the future, be viewed as acceptable behavior and will be repeated. The added danger is that humans tend to push the envelope, meaning that the next time a situation in which certain torture methods have become “acceptable” then even more heinous abuses will take place. As Mr. Uygur states: Allowing that idea to stand unchallenged does far more damage to the republic than any one crime committed by any one person (or the prosecution thereof), even if that person is the president. Bush and company must answer for their crimes of authorizing torture. Period.
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POPSChurchgoers are more likely to support torture I am appalled by people who follow religious teachings i.e., ‘love thy neighbor’, ‘thou shall not kill’, etc would think that torture is acceptable under any circumstance. This kind of thinking is one of the main reasons why I turned against the Catholic religion in particular and any organized religion in general. Catholics can sit in a pew on Sunday shake hands with their neighbor with a smile on their face and then go out and torture that very same person. Then they can go to confession say a few Hail Marys and be told they are absolved of their actions. The last couple times I walked into a church I felt like I was walking into a snake pit. Very scary. One comment to the poll sums it up very well: One of Christianity's core teachings is that non-believers will be tortured in Hell for eternity. It is not a surprise that this would translate to a view that people who did terrible things (terrorists) should be tortured.
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POPSBig Media Bails on Torture The U.S. media has steered clear in leading a discussion about the moral ramifications of torture, instead asking whether the practices were effective in gaining information from detainees. The U.S. media routinely reports on conflicts without telling us anything of substance about the real issues at the root of the controversy, as evidenced by the media’s response to the release of the Abu Ghraib torture photos. Much of the reporting focused on the photos themselves and the situation of their release, instead of on the acts that the photos documented. Big media has gone soft. It went soft on Bush and it is soft on Obama. Where do their loyalties lie? To advertisers who prove the almighty dollar that keeps them in business. They don't give a crap about the general public losing their constitutional rights, they don't give a damn about how our people are being bled dry by Corporafascist, they only care about having the 'exclusive' on it.
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POPSFort Hunt's Quiet Men Break Silence on WWII Ah, the good old days, when you softened someone up by gaining their confidence and then stabbed them in the back. :) Of course, people are much different today. I seriously doubt a steak dinner today would get a suspected terrorist to spill his guts. Still, it goes to show that information can be obtained by more humane methods than torture.
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POPSDelhi Girl "Left in sun to die' The heading is a bit dramatic. Actually she was being punished (a tad bit too harshly, I'd say) but she was not put out there to die. It is incredible to me how someone can think this kind of punishment is acceptable. It is nothing short of torture.
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POPSSheppard Smith Uncensored on Torture Ranted like a true republican in denial. Sheppard where have been the previous eight years? Bush is no Reagan. He is a special kind of low-life CEO that took this country to special new lows.
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POPSObama's no prosecution vow meets resistance When crimes have been committed, the American legal system demands accountability," said Anthony Romero, the ACLU's executive director. "Enforcing the nation's laws should not be a political decision," he added.
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POPSTragedy of Falun Gong The Chinese government “used the Olympics’ security as a pretext to apprehend, torture, and murder people who had already suffered prolonged human rights violations in China. The U.S. continues to ignore China's humans rights violations in deference to its own economic interests. Every time we buy something marked with 'made in China' we are contributing to the worsening human rights violations that directly violate pre-Olympics promises. “Falun Gong practitioners, Tibetans, Uyghurs, Christians, and human rights lawyers and defenders have been victimized and lost their freedom because of their refusal to conform to the abusive regime,” the report ends “But those who choose to be in the same boat and rise and fall with such an abusive regime have lost their conscience.”
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POPSBush Memos On Presidential Power Shock Legal Experts Memos show the extent of GW’s thirst for dictatorial power. This type of tyrannical egomaniac should never again be allowed any where near the presidential office. His supporters claim he was trying to protect the country. This blind devotion to a power hungry president bent on rewriting constitutional law is what helped put Hitler in power. Now we have a clearer picture of how close we came to repeating those same mistakes.
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