Well, torture is “illegal” in the US…but Bush and Co. think it’s ok to break that law at will and call it “national security”. They just think if they don’t get caught, it’s ok, just like most criminals. Of course, Bush loves to play the “executive privilege” game and thinks he doesn’t have to answer to anyone.

Ahhh! So you think that torture IS a good idea? I have the feeling that Mr. Arar’s wife would beg to differ. Not to mention the FACT that it is proven that torture does not yield good information because the victims will say whatever you want to hear just to make the torture stop. But, then again, facts don’t mean much to the fascist Bush junta’s. :-D

Is it really crazy to ask for more proof than the testimony of someone who admits hating America in the first place? I have no doubt that people are mistreated (Abu Ghraib, eg.). But I question that it is widespread or gov’t policy.

So, the US doesn’t use rendition? C’mon Greg! Get your head out of the sand, I love my country and wish that this stuff wasn’t true, but Bush and Cheney have been cheerleaders for torture since they’ve been in office.

Did you forget this?

Maher Arar, a Canadian software engineer who also holds Syrian citizenship, was detained when he was switching flights in New York to return to Ottawa from Damascus, The Mass. Community Newspaper MetroWest Daily West (MA) reported.

Mr. Arar said US officials nabbed him in JFK airport in Brooklyn as a presumed Al Qaeda terrorist in October 2002 and sent him to Syria where he was tortured for 10 months. Arar, who denies any terror links and was never charged with a crime, charges the US government with violating the Torture Victim Protection Act and his Fifth Amendment right to due process.

I don’t think this guy “hated America” and he wasn’t our enemy. Even if he was, he didn’t deserve to be tortured.

I want proof of torture, not some journalist’s conjecture; or the slurs of some biased UN committee that refuses to even visit the facility; or the testimony of some lunatic jihadi. Give me proof, that’s all.

The point is that the US gov’ (= bush et al.) constantly strives to pass bills that: 1. eat away at the rights and freedoms of ordinary citizens, and 2. aim to make the gov’ and it’s affiliates “not responsible” for the actions that they take. That is something you simply cannot deny, if you are correctly informed.

However, unfortunately most Americans do not get the information they deserve, but instead the information that the gov’ wants them to absorb.

I really would like to believe you when your say that it’s not all that bad, but I cannot without lying to myself. In fact, it might be even worse. It depends on what one knows, and knowing that what is most important is often least known, this is not a good thing.

People who want to solve things, talk about solutions. People who want to have it their way talk about actions. You figure it out from there, Greg.

Peace on you.

TJABBO

Abu Ghraib, in fact, is a great example of my point. Did anyone else read the story about the officer who preceded the Abu Ghraib abusers? I can’t even find it now. The guy is seething angry b/c a small group of sadists ruined what his unit had created, which was a model prison where the prisoners even appreciated their guards and thanked them when they were released. Abu Ghraib has been blown way out of proportion. As has GITMO. People need to take a deep breath, stick to facts, and stop assuming the worst about the American gov’t. I don’t think that is too much to ask.

In the meantime, can we take an unfiltered look at prisons in Europe? Would they look better or worse than GITMO?