ViceZilla’s Views

Last week, much to my dismay, government officials testified before Congress that the United States has used the interrogation technique known as waterboarding and would like to hold out the option of using it in the future. As someone who has experienced waterboarding, albeit in a controlled setting, I know that the act is indeed torture. I was waterboarded during my training to become a Navy flight crew member.

Waterboarding has, unfortunately, become a household word. Back then, we didn’t call it waterboarding — we called it “water torture.” We recognized it as something the United States would never do, whatever the provocation. As a nation, we must ask our leaders, elected and appointed, to be aware of such horrors; we must ask them to stop the narrow and superficial thinking that hinges upon “legal” definitions and to use common sense. Waterboarding is torture, and torture is clearly a crime against humanity.

It is what it is Mr. Bush. You are a criminal.

Read Mr.Mezo’s account of his experiences here

Technorati Tags: Waterboarding, Water Torture, Bush, Torture, Richard Mezo, Crime Against Humanity

Tags: Bush Administration, Torture by vicezilla
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Congressional investigators have been given permission to review interrogation tapes of a terrorism suspect as part of an inquiry into the destruction of other tapes by the Central Intelligence Agency, according to a letter sent Thursday to the House Intelligence Committee.

The magical part of this story is the CIA previously claimed that they had videotaped only two detainees from Al Qaeda, and that those tapes were destroyed in 2005. Now all of a sudden, one of the tapes has in fact not been destroyed and is being offered for viewing to the House Intelligence Committee.

Something is afoot my friends. Something big. In the span of a week, there has been a sort of “conscience” clearing wave coming form the Bush Administration. What was once vehemently denied by the Bushies that “we don’t torture,” has come out in the form of a confession that yes indeed we do (or did) torture. And it was authorized by the President himself! Now the destroyed tapes of key interrogations have resurfaced, and are being forwarded to the House Intelligence Committee for their viewing pleasure. These turn of events are unusual to say the least!

So is the conscience of some in the Bush Administration getting too heavy to bear that they are giving in, or are all the lies that have been spun by this Administration gotten too complicated that they can’t tell any more lies to cover up the lies they lied about?

Source

Technorati Tags: Interrogation Tapes, CIA, Torture, House Intelligence Committee

Tags: Bush Administration, Torture by vicezilla
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The U.N. High Comissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour told a news conference today that she “would have no problems with describing this practice as falling under the prohibition of torture.” She was of course talking about the interrogation technique known as waterboarding.

Arbour made her comment in response to a question about whether U.S. officials could be tried for the use of waterboarding that referred to CIA director Michael Hayden telling Congress on Tuesday his agency had used waterboarding on three detainees captured after the September 11 attacks.

Violators of the U.N. Convention against Torture should be prosecuted under the principle of ‘universal jurisdiction’ which allows countries to try accused war criminals from other nations, Arbour said.

After eight years of Bush and Cheney operating above the laws of this country, it would be nice to watch them squirm during an international war crimes tribunal, as they try to answer for their actions regarding their authorizations to use torture. I wonder if their smug ‘F*@K You’ smirks that they proudly wear will be as evident during the proceedings?

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Technorati Tags: Bush, Cheney, U.N., Human Rights, International Law, Louise Arbour

Tags: Bush Administration, Torture by vicezilla
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What could more chilling than a leader of your country who relishes war? How about two leaders then?

Vice President Dick “I’d do it again” Cheney claimed just that during his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference today.
“The President has made the right decisions for the right reasons and he always reflected the values of the American people,” Cheney declared, “Would I support those same decisions today? You’re damn right I would.”

More than half his speech was devoted to Conservative rhetoric about national security and terrorism, which seemed to whip the crowd into a frenzy. Sadly, the loudest cheers came when he discussed the interrogation of detainees in Guantanamo Bay.

“We have gathered a wealth of information that has foiled attacks against the United States. Information that has saved thousands of lives,” he said, before adding, “We do not torture. It is against our laws and our values.”

It’s obvious that these same people who cheered, screamed, and yelled “We love you,” are the same people who unconditionally, without question bought Bush and Cheney’s slick spin campaign that brought this country to war in the first place. Now they are cheering the spin about “we do not torture. It is against our laws and values!”

It’s time to wake up people! The United States has used, and possibly still is using torture against terror suspects. The CIA admitted to the use of waterboarding, which is torture as defined under international law.

Oh that’s right, I keep forgetting that Bush and Cheney think they are above ALL laws! Isn’t that the mind set that got this country into the present mess in the first place?

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Tags: Bush Administration, Torture, War on Terror by vicezilla
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What we all suspected is now a fact. The President of the United States gave the OK to torture suspected terrorists.

Up until yesterday, the Bush Administration has steadfastly insisted that the US does not use torture, but rather employ “enhanced interrogation techniques,” that were tough but lawful.

During a press conference, CIA Director Lt. Gen. Michael Hayden finally announced that yes indeed the US did use the technique known as ‘waterboarding’ to interrogate three suspected terrorists. White House spokesman Tony Fratto later stated, “this program and the techniques used in it were determined lawful, through a process.”

I wonder what “process” they used to determine that an internationally recognized form of torture known as waterboarding would be legal in the United States?

Mr. Fratto went on to say that the technique is no longer authorized for use because the intelligence community’s “knowledge of how to interrogate in effective ways has evolved.”

Is there anybody else besides me that sees an international war crimes tribunal in Bush’s future?

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Technorati Tags: Bush, CIA, Torture, Enhanced Interrogation, Waterboarding

Tags: Bush Administration, Torture by vicezilla
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