In Torture We Trust

[kpete]

In Torture We Trust
By ROBERT FANTINA

The U.S. Congress sent President Bush a bill that would have banned the CIA from using ‘harsh interrogation methods,’ which most of the world sees as torture and which even the military is forbidden to use. Said Mr. Bush: “The bill Congress sent me would take away one of the most valuable tools in the war on terror.”

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So Mr. Bush makes the judgment on who is a ‘hardened’ terrorist and who is a ‘lawful combatant.’ What he uses to make such decisions is anybody’s guess. It must be remembered that, in Mr. Bush’s view, a 15-year-old youth fighting in Afghanistan is a ‘hardened terrorist.’ Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen, is now 21-years old and has been rotting in the U.S. sponsored hell of Guantanamo for six years.

Is it at all possible that the Iraqi people might see U.S. soldiers as ‘hardened terrorists?’ It is U.S. soldiers who break into homes at all hours of the day or night, ransack those homes and drag out any males over the age of 12 as their mothers, wives and sister scream. Prior to the invasion and occupation by U.S. soldiers, Iraqi citizens could rely on the things most U.S. citizens take for granted: electricity, running water, etc. Now these are available in short supply, for limited times during the day, if at all.

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Although the words of Ms. Pelosi and Mr. Reid have nothing behind them, what they say is true: while the U.S. has never been a moral leader it has been perceived as such, at least by Americans, and that illusion is now shattered forever. A nation that not only condones torture, but actually practices it, cannot possibly be seen as anything but renegade, to be shunned by all civilized societies except in the context of what kind of danger it might present to the world. With the U.S.’s floundering economic might, it must now rely more than ever on its military strength. This combination, no moral compass, diminished stature in the world, a strong military and a deteriorating financial base, all add up to a very dangerous mix. Mr. Bush’s insistence of the continued use of U.S.-sponsored torture is simply another symptom of this deadly disease.

more at:
http://counterpunch.com/fantina03142008.html