Crossing the line

[amari_z]

I’ve been keeping the politics limited to snide comments recently, but I want to point out this New Yorker article, discussing the CIA’s “interrogation" program. Its worth a read, especially if you’re an American--know what sort of barbarianisms your government has been engaging in to “defend” you.

A few excerpts:

The C.I.A.’s interrogation program is remarkable for its mechanistic aura. “It’s one of the most sophisticated, refined programs of torture ever,” an outside expert familiar with the protocol said. “At every stage, there was a rigid attention to detail. Procedure was adhered to almost to the letter. There was top-down quality control, and such a set routine that you get to the point where you know what each detainee is going to say, because you’ve heard it before. It was almost automated. People were utterly dehumanized. People fell apart. It was the intentional and systematic infliction of great suffering masquerading as a legal process. It is just chilling.”

The former officer said that the C.I.A. kept a doctor standing by during interrogations. He insisted that the method was safe and effective, but said that it could cause lasting psychic damage to the interrogators. During interrogations, the former agency official said, officers worked in teams, watching each other behind two-way mirrors. Even with this group support, the friend said, [Khalid Sheikh] Mohammed’s interrogator “has horrible nightmares.” He went on, “When you cross over that line of darkness, it’s hard to come back. You lose your soul. You can do your best to justify it, but it’s well outside the norm. You can’t go to that dark a place without it changing you.” He said of his friend, “He’s a good guy. It really haunts him. You are inflicting something really evil and horrible on somebody.”

Ordinarily, the U.S. legal system is known for resolving such mysteries with painstaking care. But the C.I.A.’s secret interrogation program, Senator [Carl] Levin said, has undermined the public’s trust in American justice, both here and abroad. “A guy as dangerous as K.S.M. is, and half the world wonders if they can believe him—is that what we want?” he asked. “Statements that can’t be believed, because people think they rely on torture?”

Comments

[sulien.livejournal.com]

The Bush regime and its policies fill me with utter disgust. This kind of thing should not be being perpetrated by anyone, let alone by a country whose constitution is based on basic human rights. Though, of course, Junior Shrub and his cronies have as much as wiped their asses with the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

Sometimes I get cynical and say that the worst of it is that it is all for nothing, because it has been proven that information gained through torture is unreliable at best. Even if the information gained was reliable, I would still say that torture should never be used. I know it is overly simplistic to say this and that this is one of those 'black and white' judgments, but I honestly believe that this is a line that should never have been crossed.

Thank you for posting this, I'm glad to see that there are others who feel as strongly about this as I do. I'll stop ranting to the choir now. *looks slightly sheepish*

[amari-z.livejournal.com]

I feel very strongly that any government that purports to be civilized must never sanction torture for any reason. This is supposed to be a country built on certain principles and freedoms, which always have costs. You don't have to look any further than the enforcement of the fourth amendment as evidence for the lengths we've historically been willing to go to ensure that our principles were not compromised. But the fear mongering in this country has made cowards of us all, willing to forgo our fundamental principles in the flawed pursuit of safely.

Er. So you can see, I feel very strongly about this issue and I've posted about it on occasion--so in other words, no need to feel sheepish.

[shelley-stone.livejournal.com]

I'm not American, but, I honestly feel I would have several reservations about believing testimony given under torture. I don't care if it's psychological torture, or physical torture. The person being "interrogate" will say and do anything to end the pain. What have you gained? A fairly tale woven to get what you want to hear, not the truth.

Has the world reverted to the Dark Ages where torture chambers were de rigeur and anyone was suspect and could be "questioned" just because a finger had been pointed?

Truly a sad statement on our world, isn't it?!

Shelley