Well I'm up and running. Here is a sneak preview of my next essay. Would you add anything?
The Democrats have attempted to use the torture issue for political purposes. They abandoned the idea of putting the previous administration on trial when it became clear that the democratic leadership had approved these same methods. Since any attempt to go after Bush for these policies would drag Pelosi, Reid, and other Democrats down as well, you will never see this issue reopened again.
Certainly Obama has ended the policy…or has he? His Executive Order only forbade the military from torture unless it was needed. In short, Obama’s policy remains the same as Bush’s policy. Obama will keep Gitmo open, just like Bush. And he will keep the military tribunals just like Bush. So nothing really changed under Obama.
Certainly using torture on prisoners is nothing new. Bill Clinton used to send muslim terrorists to Egyptian prisons for real torture sessions. I guess the left has no problem with real torture when they are in power. President Bush never used real torture. He used discomfort, humiliation, but not real torture.
The entire argument in Washington was never about torture. It was all about demonizing Bush policies to win the next election. The old Bush policies of torture, imprisonment, and tribunals are now Obama policies. Indeed, Obama has stated that some prisoners may never, ever be let go. Hope and change. There is NO hope and NO change for the muslim prisoners of Gitmo.
Here is the Truth:
We don't torture at Gitmo. Water boarding works or it would not be done. In fact, only three prisoners have endured water boarding. And Obama reserves the right to water board them again.
Water Boarding is NOT torture. A conservative talk show host, Man Cow subjected himself to 7 seconds worth, and he declared it torture. It was not. Man Cow was immediately able to continue talking. What he experienced was extreme discomfort, but he did not suffer lasting pain, nor did he require medical aid afterwards.
Discomfort like this is called aggressive interrogation. Its not pleasant, but neither is it torture. Man Cow endured 7 seconds. The 3 terrorists endured 14 seconds. And they talked afterwards which is why we used this. 14 seconds of discomfort is NOT torture.
Torture has been redefined by the left.
The American military does not beat detainees. Our muslim enemies torture our soldiers to death.
If we drape an Israeli flag around a terrorists shoulders, and threaten to send pictures home to his friends...the left calls that torture.
If we show puppet shows to Gitmo detainees about how its wrong to kill...
the left calls that torture.
Turning up and down a standard air conditioner is not torture, but it gets these guys to talk. And that’s the point. If they didn't talk under such pressure, we wouldn't be doing it.
America doesn't torture. Whiny anti-war liberals say we do, but we don't.
We will aggressively interrogate. And I'm not ashamed that we do. Nor am I a lesser Christian for believing that.
The prisoners in Gitmo are illegal enemy combatants (read terrorists) taken from the field of combat. These are some of the most evil people on earth. Even with Obama, we may never be able to release some of them. If you are at all concerned about their plight, realize one thing: They chose to be a terrorist. If they don’t like their treatment, too bad, so sad. Sucks to be them.
There is no pie in the sky. Sin and evil exist in the world. Pacifist policies do nothing to protect the people. We need to deal with evil, not ignore it. Protecting Americans from terrorism is more important than playing politically correct games with our security.
