War Criminals, Inc.

As you read the "techniques" deemed just fine and "legal" by Cheney, Rumsfeld and Bush for use by OUR CIA and/or contracted interrogators, please try to imagine for just one moment the ramifications had any or all of these "techniques" been used on even ONE of OUR troops or OUR personnel. Our shocked and justifiable outrage would have lead to arrests, trials, lengthy prison terms, and possibly death by hanging as was the fate of the Nazis and the Japanese for torturing other human beings. Whether or not these men at Gitmo and Abu Ghraib were/are innocent or actual terrorists hasn't been determined as they STILL haven't been given due process...no justice whatsoever has been administered, they have yet to be PROVEN terrorists. In this country we are INNOCENT unless PROVEN guilty. Not so for the detainees we hold worldwide. They have been labeled guilty by the fact that we arrested them. The burden of proof is on THEM to prove whether or not they're guilty of anything. Even if they ARE the most vile killers on the planet, torturing them is NOT okay. Why even HAVE the Geneva Convention if we have no intention of adhering to them.
And lookee here at who changed his mind since Bush isn't his Commander Guy anymore:

Gen. Petraeus: US violated Geneva Convention, the court of law could try terrorists: we made mistakes after 9/11: Close Gitmo

(Via Crooks and Liars)


Too bad he didn't say all of this to Bush instead of kissing his ass. What a self-serving tool. Bush used him and he used him right back.

Refurbish Alcatraz, new jobs for a big project and there's no way to escape. In fact nobody has ever escaped from a maximum security prison in the U.S. It's not as if Obama wants to turn them loose on Main Street USA to ticker tape parades. Gitmo prisoners? Hardin, Montana wants them

On Capitol Hill, politicians are dead-set against transferring some of the world's most feared terrorists from Guantanamo to prisons on U.S. soil. But at City Hall in this impoverished town on the Northern Plains, the attitude is: Bring 'em on.

Hardin, a dusty town of 3,400 people so desperate that it built a $27 million jail a couple of years ago in the vain hope it would be a moneymaker, is offering to house hundreds of Gitmo detainees at the brand-new, never-used institution.

And yes, Bush said, "Bring 'em on!" not "Bring IT on" as I see misquoted so often. A small complaint but yet another example of the truth being irrelevant to "reporters" and their "audiences" of misinformed sheep.

The real terrorists who blew up the WTC were all Saudis. The men imprisoned in Gitmo are Iraqis, Afghanis, Pakistanis, Canadians, etc. 240+ of them, and surely some of them just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. I have zero sympathy for terrorists from ANY country, none at all but to lower ourselves to their level goes against everything upon which this country was founded. We have become that which we claim we detest, torturers and terrorists, in the name of God, per the memos sent to Bush by Rumsfeld. A Crusade. With God on our side....Donny knew exactly how to "play" Bush the moron and inflict Dominionism on our troops. More exposure of Dept. of Defense grotesque Christianism. Rumsfeld played to Bush's limited knowledge of "The Bible" in all his briefing cover pages.
MRFF's Response to Rumsfeld Crusade Memos: We Told You So! Onward Christian Soldiers, Slideshow of Rummy's top secret cover pages.

We were NOT founded as a Christian nation as some rabid religious nutjobs claim, but a secular one. Separation of Church and State is clear. Bush said, "God Told Me to Invade Iraq"...."in God's name" or his "higher father" as he has referred to the voices in his head. Perhaps he'll just go for the criminally insane defense. "I hear the voices, and I read the front page, and I know the speculation. But I'm the decider, and I decide what is best. And what's best is for Don Rumsfeld to remain as the secretary of defense."

Don, Dick, Dubya, Fredo, Yoo, and all of their accomplices MUST be held accountable or we can never again claim to be better than the most savage of terrorists whom we supposedly abhor. This country, once the salvation for so many, this country founded upon liberty, justice, the pursuit of happiness, and freedom from religion has shamed itself via the worst administration in our history by the most cruel people to ever occupy our White House. In God's name. For oil and revenge. I'm ashamed of the actions of our "government" and how easily they got away with it all...so far. I personally INSIST that they should be arrested, tried, and put into prison where they can't hurt anyone else ever again....the entire administration. The truth is the ONLY solution to this ethical and moral violation of the international laws on torture. Accountability and responsibility, trials and jail time, our only hope for redemption.

I can't say this often enough....9/11 happened on Bush's watch. He ignored the intelligence provided to him regarding Bin Laden's plan to attack the United States. It was made perfectly clear back in August of 2001 during one of his lengthy vacations at his fake ranch. "Bin Laden determined to strike in US" (August 6, 2001 transcript.) He DELIBERATELY ignored it...almost as if he didn't care one way or the other if Bin Laden succeeded or not. Post 9/11, stunned Americans understandably livid, enraged, out for blood, attacked Afghanistan to "find" Bin Laden. "Dead or alive", said Cowboy Bush. That wasn't good enough for PNAC which had already announced their plans to attack Iraq as far back as 1998.

Golly, "No One Could Have Anticipated’ Terrorists Flying Planes Into Buildings Before 9/11". In fact, intelligence analysts had been warning for some time that terrorists could hijack planes. On December 4, 1998, for example, the Clinton administration received a President’s Daily Brief entitled “Bin Ladin Preparing to Hijack US Aircraft and Other Attacks.” The Clinton administration responded by convening its top counter terrorism experts and heightening security at airports around the nation. The whitewashing 9/11 Commission gave us no answers, just more questions. September 11 Coverup. Bush Junta Suppressing Last Chapter of the 911 Commission Report, October 30, 2004. (Well worth reading for those interested in facts.) They waited until AFTER the election.

Moreover, the Federal Aviation Administration “had indeed considered the possibility that terrorists would hijack a plane and use it as a weapon,” and in 2001 it distributed a CD-ROM presentation to airlines and airports that cited the possibility of a suicide hijacking.

In response to that threat warning, the Bush administration did nothing. The 9/11 Commission reports, “We have found no indication of any further discussion before September 11 among the President and his top advisers of the possibility of a threat of an AL Qaeda attack in the United States.”

What an utter load of codswallop that 9/11 White House Whitewash Commission truly was. Every American should be enraged at having been so blatantly lied to. Condi's version, "I mean, no one could have anticipated that kind of attack — or very few people." Right, just about anyone who watches movies, reads books, the newspapers...those "very few" millions of us? And of course, there's Richard Clarke's book, for those of you who read it, Against All Enemies. Dick and Un-Curious George chose to ignore ALL intelligence that didn't suit their goals.

The upshot, Dick got his precious pipeline but wasn't finished there. He and Georgie the frog-blower-upper and red hot coat hanger burner of pledges , (he enjoyed it) hurt and tortured people to get "anything" to make a connection between Al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein to justify attacking Iraq and taking their oil. Bush LIKES to destroy All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful: The Lord God made them all, even terrorists...so much for George's "religious" side.

In 1967, the Yale Daily News exposed the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity's penchant for branding pledges with red hot wire hangers. The New York Times picked up the story, which featured a former president of the frat, one George W. Bush, dismissing the resulting "insignificant" wound as "only a cigarette burn" that leaves "no scarring mark, physically or mentally." So, Bush's first quote in the national press was a defense of torture.

Did Bar burn him with cigarettes, is that why he knows that nasty little piece of information? Ma Bush is as nasty a piece of work as her son. What a classless old broad, she said of Hillary Clinton, "Rhymes with witch" and is still portrayed as the doting old grandmother and matriarch of that den of snakes.

Keeping in mind that the Bushites had already tried negotiating (and failed) with KNOWN terrorists, the Taliban, to build a pipeline across Afghanistan, "A carpet of gold or a carpet of bombs", when the Taliban refused to cooperate, suddenly Saudi Arabians decided it was a perfect time to attack the United States. Dick must have REALLY pissed them off. Bin Laden ultimately got what he had demanded all along, the removal of U.S. bases from Saudi soil, and the destruction of the Constitution of the United States of America. And where is he, by the way? Dead or alive? Dick and George have CREATED terrorists who, if they didn't already hate us and our "freedoms" when scooped up and put in our detention camps, sure as hell now detest us. The pictures from Abu Ghraib were the ultimate recruitment posters. We destroyed Iraq, ruined their economy, decimated their workforce, supported killing sprees between Shiites and Sunnis...and left many idle young men without any means of making a living to fester and turn their hatred our way. But the Bushites refused to talk with Saddam (this time) and kicked out Hans Blix and his team hunting for the illusionary WMDs from Iraq, telling them they'd get bombed if they didn't exit post haste prior to the scheduled "Shock and Awe" TV show from hell. Rumsfeld had no problem chatting up Saddam when he SOLD military helicopters to Iraq.



Dick and Don, having learned their lessons well from Watergate made sure that everything they did was technically "legal" and forced their Patriot Act down Congress' throats before anyone had a chance to read it. (Akin to Hitler's Enabling Act of 1933 following the Reichstag Fire.) "You're either with us or with the terrorists" and your plane might crash or you might receive Anthrax in the mail or simply be told to "Go fuck yourself" by a rabid mentally ill man from hell. If we the people and our Congress didn't go along with all of Dick's plans, FOR SURE WE'D BE ATTACKED AGAIN. How Dick could be so certain about that is still a mystery.
His main thrust while campaigning for "re-election" in 2004 was that Democrats would get us all killed. He and his daughter are still out there on the airwaves stating that Obama is "un-American" and has made America "less safe"...and they're being given airtime whenever they want it to spout the TPs already approved by the RNC. No challenges on the veracity of the memos whatsoever from the corporate owned media, not until today was a dissenting voice raised from Senator Levin who has also read the famous "memos" Dick wants released that "prove" he saved us from further attacks by torturing people into saying what he wanted them to say. Dick's "release the classified memos" hue and cry is very selective. Why not just release all of it Dick...we can handle the truth, something anathema to you. Unless, like his daily logs they've been scrubbed, along with all of Karl's emails. And of course, after feeble protests, John Warner and John McCain gave George the power to overlook the Geneva Conventions if he felt like it. The Decider, Commander Guy got to choose who got tortured. And let's NEVER forget that the GOP ruled Congress for twelve years, including the first six of Dick's George's illegal occupation of our White House. And the last two years while there were more Democrats in the House and Senate, FAR too many of them are DINOs. Or spineless, or both.
Liz Cheney will indeed run for political office, her loyalty to daddy will not go unrewarded. Another dynastic move by a member of the Bush administrations. Surely Senator Levin knows what danger he's now in...no small plane flights, plenty of bodyguards and food tasters...I'd recommend he keeps copious notes as did Senator Bob Graham. Nancy Pelosi on the other hand sent a staffer to be briefed by the CIA which is incomprehensible to me. She apparently didn't really want to know the truth. Once she "took impeachment off the table" she lost all my respect. How fucking DARE she shut the door on impeachment. She's bungling this situation too in her usual over-surgically wide-eyed blinkitude, interjecting her large veneers in a pretend smile, akin to a grimace, while saying nothing and/or contradicting herself. She should have immediately said, "Wait a cotton pickin' minute, knock off the lying diversionary bullshit! Who DID the damned torturing? Not I!" But she's too "polite" for that or worst case scenario, she DID know what they were doing and didn't stop it by going public and having some spine. She's currently in China. Now the question is "What did Nancy Pelosi know and when did she know it?" instead of when did Bush and Dick start torturing people and how many detention centers do we really have worldwide where there is no law, no justice, only torture. Whatever happened to "rule of law" where the Bush team is concerned? The GOP plan to make the Democratic Party equally culpable is going well. As long as Democrats don't fight back against the charge that they too were guilty of torturing detainees, we'll be lumped in with the REAL torturers, the Bush/Cheney monsters. One can't help but wonder about all that FISA wiretapping and the results produced in terms of "having" something on Democrats. The only wiretapping of Americans I seem to have heard of are Democrats and their sexual exploits. Were any Republicans wiretapped making their heinous monetary deals that screwed most Americans, or any of their secret chats about making the Department of Justice work only for the GOP, or insider trading by big wheels in the GOP to make more campaign funds for each other. No, just a Democrat, the hirsute Governor Blago, apparently Republicans never made a phone call that couldn't withstand public scrutiny while Democrats were always up to no good. I'm still enraged at the DINOs who voted FOR wiretapping American citizens. They betrayed us and our Constitution yet again.
I'm still pissed off over FISA and the DINOs who voted to make eavesdropping on ALL of us "legal" for Dick and his pals.

House DINOs for wiretapping Americans:


Senate DINOs for wiretapping Americans:

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Was Waterboarded 183 Times in One Month

According to the May 30, 2005 Bradbury memo, (PDF) Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was waterboarded 183 times in March 2003 and Abu Zubaydah was waterboarded 83 times in August 2002.

I'm not reprinting the entire 40 page PDF memo even though things sometimes disappear down the memory hole if they're inconvenient. Instead, the Jay S Bybee memo (below) which is proof enough even for those who refuse to believe that George Bush KNEW these torture techniques were going to be or had been used and had the "blessing" of the U.S. Department of Justice... his "loyal Bushies" justice department employees. Ashcroft wasn't quite as loyal as he needed to be, hence good pal, Fredo was relied upon as legal counsel to Bush for torture purposes as it appears Ashcroft balked one time too many until replaced by Gonzo for Bush's second "term" as his Attorney General. A position for which he wasn't qualified in ANY way.
Gonzales totally corrupted our Justice Department. His claim to fame, good buddy of George who "hid" George's criminal records for DUIs, cocaine use and the "time" he served while being AWOL from his TANG unit. His "time" was in the form of doing political work (badly and lazily just like he does everything) instead of going to jail. No wonder George loved Fredo so much. A former real estate lawyer, Gonzo covered up George's crimes just in time for the 2000 "election" that was decided by the Supreme Court and NOT the people.

From insects to waterboarding: 10 'torture' techniques blessed by Bush
From Times Online, April, 2009:

In this August 1, 2002 memo, Jay S Bybee of the US Department of Justice approves ten methods of "enhanced interrogation" on the suspected terrorist Abu Zubaydah. He was writing to John Rizzo, CIA acting general counsel

These ten techniques are: (l) attention grasp, (2) walling, (3) facial hold, (4) facial slap (insult slap), (5) cramped confinement, (6) wall standing, (7) stress positions, (8) sleep deprivation, (9) insects placed in a confinement box, and (10) the waterboard.

You have informed us that the use of these techniques would be on an as-needed basis and that not all of these techniques will necessarily be used.

The interrogation team would use these techniques in some combination to convince Zubaydah that the only way he can influence his surrounding environment is through co-operation. You have, however, informed us that you expect these techniques to be used in some sort of escalating fashion, culminating with the waterboard, though not necessarily ending with this technique.

Moreover, you have also orally informed us that although some of these techniques may be used more than once, that repetition will not be substantial because the techniques generally lose their effectiveness after several repetitions. You have also informed us that Zubaydah sustained a wound during his capture, which is being treated.

Based on the facts you have given us, we understand each of these techniques to be as follows.

Attention grasp

The attention grasp consists of grasping the individual with both hands, one hand on each side of the collar opening, in a controlled and quick motion. In the same motion as the grasp, the individual is drawn toward the interrogator.

Walling

For walling, a flexible false wall will be constructed. The individual is placed with his heels touching the wall. The interrogator pulls the individual forward and then quickly and firmly pushes the individual into the wall. It is the individual's shoulder blades that hit the wall.

During this motion, the head and neck are supported with a rolled hood or towel that provides a c-collar effect to help prevent whiplash. To further reduce the probability of injury, the individual is allowed to rebound from the flexible wall. You have orally informed us that the false wall is in part constructed to create a loud sound when the individual hits it, which will further shock or surprise the individual. In part, the idea is to create a sound that will make the impact seem far worse than it is and that will be far worse than any injury that might result from the action.


Facial hold

The facial hold is used to hold the head immobile. One open palm is placed on either side of the individual's face. The fingertips are kept well away from the individual's eyes.


Facial slap

With the facial slap or insult slap, the interrogator slaps the individual's face with fingers slightly spread. The hand makes contact with the area directly between the tip of the individual's chin and the bottom of the corresponding earlobe. The interrogator invades the individual's personal space. The goal of the facial slap is not to inflict physical pain that is severe or lasting. Instead, the purpose of the facial slap is to induce shock, surprise, and/or humiliation.


Cramped confinement

Cramped confinement involves the placement of the individual in a confined space, the dimensions of which restrict the individual's movement. The confined space is usually dark. The duration of confinement varies based upon the size of the container. For the larger confined space, the individual can stand up or sit down; the smaller space is large enough for the subject to sit down. Confinement in the larger space can last up to eighteen hours; for the smaller space, confinement lasts for no more than two hours.

Wall standing

Wall standing is used to induce muscle fatigue. The individual stands about four to five feet from a wall, with his feet spread approximately to shoulder width. His arms are stretched out in front of him, with his fingers resting on the wall. His fingers support all of his body weight. The individual is not permitted to move or reposition his hands or feet.


Stress positions

A variety of stress positions may be used. You have informed us that these positions are not designed to produce the pain associated with contortions or twisting of the body, Rather, somewhat like walling, they are designed to produce the physical discomfort associated with muscle fatigue. Two particular stress positions are likely to be used on Zubaydah: (1) sitting on the floor with legs extended straight out in front of him with his hands raised above his head; and (2) kneeling on the floor while leaning back at a 45 degree angle. You have also orally informed us that through observing Zubaydah in captivity, you have noted that he appears to be quite flexible despite his wound.

Sleep deprivation

Sleep deprivation may be used. You have indicated that your purpose in using this technique is to reduce the individual's ability to think on his feet and, through the discomfort associated with lack of sleep to motivate him to cooperate. The effect of such sleep deprivation will generally remit after one or two nights of uninterrupted sleep.

You have informed us that your research has revealed that, in rare instances, some individuals who are already predisposed to psychological problems may experience abnormal reactions to sleep deprivation.
Even in those cases, however, reactions abate after the individual is permitted to sleep. Moreover, personnel with medical training are available to and will intervene in the unlikely event of an abnormal reaction. You have orally informed us that you would not deprive Zubaydah of sleep for more than eleven days at a time and that you have previously kept him awake for 72 hours, from which no mental or physical harm resulted.


Confinement with insects

You would like to place Zubaydah in a cramped confinement box with an insect. You have informed us that he appears to have a fear of insects. In particular, you would like to tell Zubaydah that you intend to place a stinging insect into the box with him, You would, however, place a harmless insect in the box. You have orally informed us that you would in fact face a harmless insect such as a caterpillar in the box with him.


Waterboarding

Finally, you would like to use a technique called the "waterboard" in this procedure, the individual is bound securely to an inclined bench, which is approximately four feet by seven feet.

The individual's feet are generally elevated. A cloth is placed over the forehead and eyes. Water is then applied to the cloth in a controlled manner. As this is done, the cloth is lowered until it covers both the nose and mouth. Once the cloth is saturated and completely covers the mouth and nose, air flow is slightly restricted for 20 to 40 seconds due to the presence of the cloth. This causes an increase in carbon dioxide level in the individual's blood. This increase in the carbon dioxide level stimulates increased effort to breathe. This effort plus the cloth produces the perception of suffocation and incipient panic," i.e., the perception of drowning.

The individual does not breathe any water into his lungs. During those 20 to 40 seconds, water is continuously applied from a height of twelve to twenty-four inches. After this period, the cloth is lifted, and the individual is allowed to breathe unimpeded for three or four full breaths. The sensation of drowning is immediately relieved by the removal of the cloth. The procedure may then be repeated. The water is usually applied from a canteen cup or small watering can with a spout.

You have orally informed us that this procedure triggers an automatic physiological sensation of drowning that the individual cannot control even though he may be aware that he is in fact not drowning. You have also orally informed us that it is likely that this procedure would not last more than 20 minutes in anyone application.

We also understand that a medical expert with SERE experience will be present throughout this phase and that the procedures will be stopped if deemed medically necessary to prevent severe mental or physical harm to Zubaydah. As mentioned above, Zubaydah suffered an injury during his capture. You have informed us that steps will be taken to ensure that this injury is not in any way exacerbated by the use of these methods and that adequate medical attention will be given to ensure that it will heal properly.

Oh, well, that's all right then, as long as his wounds still heal properly.

Where is the naked guy whose arms are shackled behind him to a wall with women's underwear on his head and where's the part about miscellaneous things shoved up their rectums? I didn't see that written anywhere. And the violation of their religious beliefs? Imagine if somebody tried to take away George's Spaghetti Monster...he'd be livid.
Inside Guantanamo Photo Essay.

The one thing recently that disappointed me is that Obama isn't just letting HIS Attorney General deal with the rule of law here, properly and within the law. Looking forward is one thing, ignoring our atrocious illegal past is another. Backing down on prosecution does us a serious disservice as a nation. For Christ's sake, Dick has admitted he tortured people and Bush just agreed with him. Isn't that grounds to prosecute them despite their protestations that all they did was "legal" and to protect Americans. Lying sacks of shit!