01.12.10
Posted in Culture, Philosophy, Politics, war at 12:43 am by madcap
Conor Friedersdorf responds to Jonah Goldberg’s continuing attempts to frame the debate over water-boarding as a debate over semantics: Talking Over Torture | The American Scene
Goldberg is absolutely wrong to argue that there are no good responses to the ticking time bomb scenario. Perhaps he means that he chooses to pretend like nobody is making them. This makes sense, since the neocon crowd is quite adept at plugging their ears and yelling their mantras (not to mention running their own cable news networks) in order to drown out any opposing viewpoints. In fact, Friedersdorf’s analysis, as well as the comments of Mike Farmer’s above, provide two excellent responses to the ticking time bomb scenario.
I humbly offer a third Read the rest of this entry »
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04.20.09
Posted in Culture, war at 11:35 pm by madcap
Posted in Culture, Current Events, war at 11:11 pm by madcap
To read the four newly released memos on prisoner interrogation written by George W. Bush’s Justice Department is to take a journey into depravity.
Their language is the precise bureaucratese favored by dungeon masters throughout history. They detail how to fashion a collar for slamming a prisoner against a wall, exactly how many days he can be kept without sleep (11), and what, specifically, he should be told before being locked in a box with an insect — all to stop just short of having a jury decide that these acts violate the laws against torture and abusive treatment of prisoners.
Editorial - The Torturers’ Manifesto - NYTimes.com
Someone remind me what we’re fighting for.
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04.15.08
Posted in Current Events, Politics at 12:46 am by madcap
Alberto R. Gonzales, like many others recently unemployed, has discovered how difficult it can be to find a new job. Mr. Gonzales, the former attorney general, who was forced to resign last year, has been unable to interest law firms in adding his name to their roster, Washington lawyers and his associates said in recent interviews.
In Searching for New Job, Gonzales Sees No Takers - New York Times
Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.
Now, if only someone would force John Yoo to watch his son’s testicles being crushed. Sorry Jr.; but probably best we don’t let those genes proliferate any further anyway. We should probably crush John’s own testicles while we’re at it.
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04.01.08
Posted in Current Events, Politics at 8:49 pm by madcap
The Pentagon Tuesday made public a now-defunct legal memo that approved the use of harsh interrogation techniques against terror suspects, saying President Bush’s wartime authority trumps any international ban on torture.
Memo: Bush’s power trumps laws on torture - CNN.com
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