Judge: Public Has Right to See Abuse Photos Abu Ghraib prison

[IChing]

By LARRY NEUMEISTER
Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- A federal judge has told the government it will have to release additional pictures of detainee abuse at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison, civil rights lawyers said.

Judge Alvin Hellerstein, finding the public has a right to see the pictures, told the government Thursday he will sign an order requiring it to release them to the American Civil Liberties Union, the lawyers said.

The judge made the decision after he and government attorneys privately viewed a sampling of nine pictures resulting from an Army probe into abuse and torture at the prison. The pictures were given to the Army by a military policeman assigned there.>>>snip

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DETAINEE_RECORDS?SITE=MNMAN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2005-05-26-19-57-43
this is gonna give us a really good pr.
"I do think they could be extremely upsetting and depict conduct that would outrage the American public and be truly horrifying," she said outside court.

[Bluebear]

1. I can hear it already "ANOTHER ACTIVIST JUDGE!"

Trying to implement that checks and balances thing!

Gonna bring it to GD too, thanks for the post!

[Jack Rabbit]

4. We better not hear that after they rammed through Priscilla Owen

Now, she's an activist judge.

[MADem]

34. And he will be the target of their ire, count on it

He was nominated to the bench by the Peace and Prosperity President: http://air.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=2794

BUT....he served in the Army JAG Corps...!

[saigon68]

38. "they" ie delay and the bush criminals can go piss up a rope

we need to shed more light on military THUG CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR.

[whistle]

2. Public has a right to see Bolton documents also

[Lone_Star_Dem]

3. I'm ready to see the American public outraged

It's about time something wakes up the walking zombies that pass for Americans these days.

[rodeodance]

5. whow--this IS news. recall when the Senators got to see them

in secret--a bit after the story broke.

[IChing]

8. rumps field I remember saying that these were really bad

the public might be outrage
I know the world will be.

[MADem]

35. Love your spelling of that twit's name

...but maybe "rumps feeled" would be even more to the point!

[rodeodance]

6. no--Biden said just he and Sen. Dodd will see them.

[rodeodance]

10. not that anxious to see them but glad this legal challenge is

finally done.


.....Judge Alvin Hellerstein, finding the public has a right to see the pictures, told the government Thursday he will sign an order requiring it to release them to the American Civil Liberties Union, the lawyers said.

The judge made the decision after he and government attorneys privately viewed a sampling of nine pictures resulting from an Army probe into abuse and torture at the prison. The pictures were given to the Army by a military policeman assigned there.

ACLU lawyer Megan Lewis told the judge she believes the government has pictures of abuse beyond the Abu Ghraib images that sparked outrage around the world after they were leaked to the media last year.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

16. This judge has the right idea

Before viewing the pictures, the judge said in court that he thought "photographs present a different level of detail and are the best evidence the public can have of what occurred."




I'm just sayin' - Every picture tells a story, don't it?

[mike_c]

7. this is going to really hurt the neocon pig bastards....

Unless the media utterly, studiously, ignores it. And that would just slow it down and make the damage worse in the long run by prolonging public exposure. Unless the Bush admin finds a way to suppress those photos, it's going to take a major hit, I think. Public confidence in the Dear Leader is already flagging. More importantly, as evidenced by the military recruiting crisis, public support for the war against Iraq is in the toilet. More photos of American soldiers acting like Nazis is gonna pull the handle....

[rodeodance]

11. well, i checked the major news websites and do not see this

story yet.

[mike_c]

15. oops, sorry-- I don't mean *this* story,....

....I mean the photos themselves. Sorry if I didn't make that clear.

[MADem]

36. Washington Post AND NYT have it up

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/26/AR2005052601378.html

Government lawyer Sean Lane argued that releasing pictures, even if faces and other features are obscured, would violate Geneva Convention rules on prisoner treatment by subjecting detainees to additional humiliation or embarrassment. He said the emotional wounds would be reopened because detainees could identify themselves and because the public would learn their identities.

The judge, however, said, "I don't believe with suitable redaction there is an unwarranted invasion of privacy." He also said he didn't think it was likely that detainees in redacted photos would be able to be identified.

The judge's decision stems from a lawsuit the ACLU filed in October 2003 seeking information on treatment of detainees in U.S. custody and the transfer of prisoners to countries known to use torture. The ACLU contends that prisoner abuse is systemic.

So far, 36,000 pages of documents and the reports of 130 investigations, mostly from the FBI and Army, have been turned over to the ACLU. The group is seeking documents from the CIA and the Defense Department as well.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/27/politics/27abuse.html

The judge focused on 144 photographs that were turned over to Army investigators last year by Specialist Joseph M. Darby, a reservist who was posted at Abu Ghraib. A small number of the pictures have already been published, including those showing naked detainees piled in a pyramid and simulating sex while their American military captors looked on.

In a closed session in his chambers, Judge Hellerstein looked at a sample of nine of the photographs presented by Sean Lane, an assistant United States attorney. The judge instructed the government to release some of them as they were and to black out faces in others so the prisoners could not be identified, according to an account of the meeting Mr. Lane gave to A.C.L.U. lawyers.

"There is another dimension to a picture that is of much greater moment and immediacy" than a document, Judge Hellerstein said in court. He rejected Mr. Lane's argument that releasing the pictures would violate the Geneva Conventions because some prisoners might be identified and "further humiliated."

The government could appeal the decision.

Megan Lewis, a lawyer who argued on behalf of the A.C.L.U., said the photographs "could be extremely upsetting and depict conduct that would outrage the American public and be truly horrifying."

[calimary]

50. Oh, hilarious. So NOW they're all concerned about not violating the

Geneva Conventions. Only when it stands to hurt themselves. Bastards! Fuckers! I wanna see those photos. I desperately hope those photos are shown to everyone. AKA - THE PUBLIC.

I think it was DUer gratuitous who once posted somewhere here - something to the effect of: "I want to see those photos. I paid for those photos. The activities they show were conducted in my name as an American taxpayer. I want to see what I got for my money." Paraphrased. But painfully true.

[MADem]

55. You got that right

Funny how they are only concerned about prisoner rights when they are seeking cover. It's all shameful.

[Tinoire]

57. That combined with the cover-up of how Tillman really died

and the extent they went to to cover it up (burning his armor and uniform & making up a story about how he went down like a hero) as well as all the military people, chaplains included, speaking out...

Oh yes... they're going down.

[Rainscents]

9. Wow!!! I This is great news!

[LeighAnn]

32. I'd just as soon they be kept under wraps until the war crimes trial

Sorry to say it, if the publication of these pictures speeds along the call for Bush's conviction then I guess it's a good thing, otherwise I'll be sorry to see these pictures released because it's probably going to mean a lot more dead Americans.

Whose pictures are they, anyway? I guess it would depend on who owns the right to them whether or not they ought to be released. Just because something exists doesn't mean everybody has a right to see it, does it?

I don't mean to sound like a bonehead, I'm just worried about National Security. It might be my hometown that gets blown up in retaliation. If these pictures are as horrible as I suspect, we might all get blown up.

[MADem]

39. Nothing good can come from covering this up

We can deal with it now, or deal with it later. Justice delayed is justice denied. The military, hopefully, will adjust their force protection measures upon release of the information.

Of course, TSA will respond by frisking even more grandmas to make us all feel safer!

[gratuitous]

45. Who do the pictures belong to?

I submit that they belong to me and you. We paid for them. I for one want to see what my tax dollars are paying for. If your home town or my home town is in danger because of reaction to these photos, then I at least would like to know what that danger might be. "Forewarned is forearmed," as the old saying goes.

But more than that, and in the interest of justice, I want to know what's being done in my name so that I can make a reasonable and informed petition for redress to my government.

[calimary]

51. AHA! YES! Beautifully put once again, gratuitous! I loved this statement

the first time you said it. It's worth repeating. Glad you mentioned it here. You couldn't be more correct, of course. WE PAID FOR THOSE PHOTOS. We paid for every last frickin' one of 'em with our tax money. They're OURS. Every one of them shows actions and events perpetrated IN OUR NAME AS AMERICAN TAXPAYERS. Those photos are OURS. We're entitled to see what was done in OUR name, and with OUR money. DAMN STRAIGHT.

gratuitous, I hope you bring this up again and again in MANY, MANY threads here (and elsewhere) in the future. If people vote their pocketbooks when it comes down to it, then they should consider THIS most vital pocketbook issue.

[gratuitous]

53. Thanks; I guess I should follow my own advice

I often say we should say things over and over, just so that it sinks in. I'm often guilty of thinking that just because I said something once, that in and of itself should be sufficient (thanks to my dazzling communication skills - hah!) for everyone to get the point.

Thanks for remembering I said it before. I probably need to say it a few more times: Let's see what our tax dollars have purchased. George is fond of saying (as he empties the Treasury into his overrich friends' pockets): "It's your money." So, what have you spent my money on, George?

[KoKo]

62. Good Reminder....and what about everything else we paid for but can't

see...like the "true" costs of expenditures for Iraq Invasion, the Bolton "intercepts," who Cheney met with to forge the US Energy Policy, the minutes of meetings with PNAC about the early plans to Invade Iraq (i.e. the equivalent to the US "Think Tank" document "Secret Memo" which was out there before the secret "Downing Street Memo."

ALL OF IT...There's so much we Citizens whose tax dollars are being scammed need to know. Not only from Bushies but from our own House and Senate!

We paid for it...we OWN IT!

Thanks again for the reminder!!!!

[tabasco]

46. The abuses are hardly a secret to the Iraqi insugents.

We will only be shown what they already know.

[killbotfactory]

12. More frat pranks?

Let's see the damage we've done. :-(

[sce56]

13. Now if we could get the ACLU to demand access to the Video confiscated by

the FBI on 911 of flight 77 hitting the pentagon.
See pentagon strike
see flash presentation 3055KB download

http://www.freedomunderground.org/memoryhole/pentagon.php#Preloader

[tmooses]

19. Impressive video, sce56, on 9/11 and the Pentagon. Has there been

any response from the government on film from gas station, hotel or highway cam? Sorry for my ignorance but I was never even aware of these facts.

[Sperk]

21. Is that supposed to be a pic of the point of impact on the pentagon?

If so, perhaps the pentagon missile theory isn't so crazy after all.
Where the Hell is the plane?

[DoYouEverWonder]

40. In the same place

as the plane that didn't crash into the ground at Shanksville went?

[sce56]

49. Found new links that have the smoking gun err plane!

This should prove the case that we been had on 911!
http://www.tomflocco.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=110


Missile & remote control systems added to small jets before 9-11; same parts found at Pentagon

Two civilian defense contractor employees--told to remain silent--say other workers quietly retro-fitted missile and remote control systems onto A-3 jets at Colorado public airport prior to September 11 when similar A-3 parts much smaller than a Boeing 757 were found at Pentagon

Presidential candidate says scores of retired and active military and intelligence officials would testify before current grand jury probing government involvement in 9/11 attacks

by Tom Flocco

Fort Collins, Colorado -- May 26, 2005 -- TomFlocco.com --
According to two civilian defense contractor employees working at commercial corporate facilities at Fort Collins-Loveland Municipal Airport (left), in the months before the September 11 attacks U.S. Air Force defense contractors brought in A-3 Sky Warrior aircraft under cover of darkness to be completely refitted and modified at the small civilian airport in Colorado.

The revelations are important evidence for a reportedly ongoing secret 9/11 probe because widely available Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) photographs taken during the attacks clearly show that the few aircraft parts found at the Pentagon belonged to a small jet very similar to a modified A-3 Sky Warrior--not the American Airlines Boeing 757.

It is not known whether all members of Congress are aware of the under-the-radar-screen grand jury proceedings, who has already testified, and whether the probe is purposefully being kept from public knowledge, according to government intelligence sources.

The two witnesses say that separate military contractor teams--working independently at different times--refitted Douglas A-3 Sky Warriors (above) with updated missiles, Raytheon's Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) remote control systems, fire control systems, engines, transponders, and radio-radar-navigation systems--a total makeover, seemingly for an operation more important than use as a simple missile testing platform for defense contractor Hughes-Raytheon.

The employees asked not to be identified for personal safety reasons and fear of job retaliation; but both told 2008 independent presidential candidate Karl Schwarz (left) "the Air Force brought in separate teams to do top-secret military work unrelated to commercial aviation at our airport, and we were told by our bosses not to discuss what we had seen with anyone."

The witnesses were quite fearful about several recent "suicides, car wrecks--mysterious deaths--directly related to the aviation experts" working on the systems that were installed on the A-3’s at Fort Collins-Loveland--having breached the government-blocked information flow at great personal risk, according to Schwarz--but providing more evidence for a New York 9/11 investigation.

Schwarz, a former Republican from Arkansas now living in Georgia and running as an independent to clean up government corruption and crime told TomFlocco.com that he met with the employees for about an hour in February to discuss the issue.

The witnesses told Schwarz that each jet was placed in a hanger just big enough for a work crew and one A-3 Sky Warrior; and "we were under strict orders not to discuss what the military teams were doing or what we saw."

The presidential candidate told us "there are about 150 retired and active U.S. military and federal intelligence officers who will come forward and testify regarding government involvement in the September 11 attacks--but only if there is a serious criminal grand jury."

Small plane evidence moved at Pentagon

The approximate 16-foot entry hole at the outside facade of the Pentagon on 9/11 has been the subject of countless questions by those who say the hole was caused by an air-to-ground missile (AGM) fired from a small military jet rather than an impact from a Boeing 757.

Interestingly, the Hughes division manufactures the AGMs; and the Raytheon division maintains the last few A-3 Sky Warriors in operation save 2-4 Air Force jets--while also manufacturing the Global Hawk UAV remote control systems.

Some reasons cited to support a missile hole include evidence that a) the wings and rear stabilizer caused virtually no damage to the outside walls and windows at point of impact, b) no 757 interior or exterior parts were found at the scene, c) the soft nose of a 757 would have had difficulty piercing through three Pentagon wall rings, and d) three aircraft parts found were similar to the somewhat outdated but still serviceable Douglas A-3 Sky Warrior military attack jet rather than the much larger Boeing 757.

Air-traffic controllers from the Washington, DC sector originally said the incoming plane was a military jet according to reports; but no grand jury has called them to testify and they have been strangely gagged from speaking out.

One air traffic controller from another Northeast sector revealed to a 9-11 widow that FBI threats were made of both a personal and career nature: "You are ordered never to speak about what you saw on your screen during the attacks; and if you do, things will not go well for you and your family."
Curiously, a large piece of wreckage was found in the entry hole; but the public was kept from closely observing what appears to be a sheared-off piece of wing from a much smaller jet than a Boeing 757.

A group of military personnel and federal officials in suits tightly covered the piece of wreckage with a blue tarp and carried it away to a waiting truck. No reporters or independent aircraft experts have been permitted to examine any of the recovered aircraft parts and no subpoenas have been issued to hear public grand jury testimony from the "movers."

Other government officials who looked more like FBI agents than rescue workers were also photographed moving evidence around immediately after the crash; but none have been subpoenaed to publicly testify as to whether they were bringing evidence to or removing it from a mass murder crime scene.

As if they had prior knowledge, within minutes after the Pentagon crash--FBI agents quickly confiscated a) video tape from a gas station security camera aimed directly at the exact point of impact while recording the size of the plane and/or missile, b) security camera video film from a nearby Sheraton hotel and c) film from a Virginia Transportation Department freeway overpass camera.

[sce56]

25. For the two follow on ?

Look to the following web sites for more info. There are a lot of them some complain that some of them are just to confuse the issue or as in pentagon speak Disinformation ops or as we now say the Corporate Media.
these just scratch the surface their are a lot more including one looking for more info in a RICO lawsuit naming GWB as head conspirator in the execution of 911
http://www.911forthetruth.com/
http://www.reopen911.org.uk/freedvd.php





http://www.911inplanesite.com/

http://www.911wasalie.com/phpwebsite/



download (bit torrent) Loose change DVD
http://www.911wasalie.com/phpwebsite/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=22


Who ran this operation look back at the most famous black op coup in the USA http://jfkii.com/order.php

see a prior black op job to prevent world peace
http://www.ratical.org/ratville/JFK/SAP.html
http://www.ratical.org/ratville/JFK/ST/
http://www.119-questions.com/media/start.htm
http://www.911truth.org/index.php
A letter by UL
The following letter was sent today by Kevin Ryan of Underwriters Laboratories to Frank Gayle of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Underwriters Laboratories is the company that certified the steel componets used in the constuction of the World Trade Center towers. The information in this letter is of great importance http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/november2004/121104easilywithstood.htm
http://www.erichufschmid.net/index.html
http://www.legitgov.org/essay_kane_fema_terror_drill_102904.html
http://www.the-movement.com/

http://www.911truth.org/links.php

[sce56]

26. RICO LAWSUIT

http://www.911forthetruth.com/pages/RodriguezComplaint.htm
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA

PHILIP J. BERG, ESQ.
Attorney for Plaintiff
706 Ridge Pike
Lafayette Hill, Pennsylvania 19444-1711
Telephone [phone]

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
WILLIAM RODRIGUEZ,

Plaintiff, No.

-against- COMPLAINT IN CIVIL ACTION

GEORGE HERBERT WALKER BUSH,
GEORGE WALKER BUSH,
JOHN “JEB” BUSH,
NEIL MALLON BUSH,
MARVIN BUSH,
RICHARD CHENEY,
DONALD H. RUMSFELD,
DOV ZAKHEIM,
COLIN POWELL,
RICHARD ARMITAGE,
CONDOLEEZA RICE,
JOHN ASHCROFT,
ROBERT S. MUELLER III,
DAVID FRASCA,
GEORGE J. TENET,
PORTER GOSS,
NORMAN Y. MINETA,
LARRY K. ARNOLD,
TOM RIDGE,
MARK RACICOT,
THE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE, INC.,
ALAN GREENSPAN,
THOMAS A. KEAN,
JAMIE S. GORELICK,
PHILLIP D. ZELIKOW,
JOHN F. LEHMAN,
FRED F. FIELDING,
KARL ROVE,
THOMAS DeLAY,
RICHARD PERLE,
PAUL WOLFOWITZ
RICHARD MYERS,
RALPH E. EBERHART,
KENNETH R. FEINBERG,
HALLIBURTON COMPANY,
KELLOG BROWN & ROOT SERVICES,
THE PROJECT FOR THE NEW AMERICAN CENTURY, INC.,
ELECTION SYSTEMS & SOFTWARE,
DIEBOLD VOTING SYSTEMS, INC.,
WALDEN O’DELL,
SEQUOIA VOTING SYSTEMS, INC.
CHUCK HAGEL,
SAXBY CHAMBLISS,
NEW BRIDGE STRATEGIES, LLC
JOE M. ALLBAUGH,
JAMES A. BAKER III,
JOHN SWEENEY,
MATTHEW SCHLAPP,
THOMAS PYLE,
MICHAEL MURPHY,
GARRY MALPHRUS,
CHARLES ROYAL,
KEVIN SMITH,
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
55. THE UNITED STATES. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY,
56. THE FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY; and
57. DOE #1 Through DOE #100,
Defendants.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………………P. 6

II. PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AND VENUE……………………………………………...P. 22

III. FACTS ON WHICH CLAIMS FOR RELIEF ARE PREDICATED……………………P. 38

A. THE WTC TWIN TOWERS, AS WELL AS WTC BUILDING #7, WERE DESTROYED BY CONTROLLED DEMOLITION, AS CLEARLY PROVEN BY THE LAWS OF PHYSICS; THIS DEMOLITION COULD ONLY HAVE BEEN AN "INSIDE JOB."……………………………………………………P. 38

B. FEMA, WHICH REMOVED THE EVIDENCE BEFORE IT COULD BE INDEPENDENTLY EXAMINED, MAINTAINS A BLACK-OP SHADOW GOVERNMENT DESIGNED TO REPLACE THE ELECTED GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES…………………………………………………..P. 47

C. DEFENDANTS DELIBERATELY CONCEALED THE FACT THAT THEY HAD AMPLE WARNINGS OF TERRORIST ATTACKS AND FAILED TO ACT ON THEM, A WAR ON TERRORISM BEING NECESSARY TO JUSTIFY THEIR POLITICAL AGENDA………………………………………………………………….….P. 65

D. DEFENDANTS CONSPIRED TO AND DID ALLOW THE ATTACKS TO HAPPEN BY DELAYING MILITARY INTERCEPTION OF THE HIJACKED PLANES………………………………………………………………………P. 80

1. FLIGHT 11 (NORTH TOWER WTC) COULD HAVE BEEN BUT WAS NOT INTERCEPTED………………………………………………...P. 83

2. FLIGHT 175 COULD HAVE BEEN BUT WAS NOT
INTERCEPTED………………………………………………….…..P. 88

3. FLIGHT 77 NOT ONLY COULD HAVE BEEN INTERCEPTED BUT WAS ALLOWED TO FLY UNCONTESTED A FULL 50 MINUTES BEFORE STRIKING THE PENTAGON…………………………….P. 95

4. AN UNPRECEDENTED NATIONWIDE "GROUND STOP" ORDER, WHICH MUST HAVE HAD WHITE HOUSE APPROVAL, PREVENTED EVEN THE MILITARY FROM FLYING AND ALLOWED THE ATTACKS TO PROCEED………………………P. 102

5. THE CRASH OF FLIGHT 93 IN SOMERSET COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA, RAISES SERIOUS ADDITIONAL UNANSWERED QUESTIONS………………………………………………………...P. 108

6. SOME ADDITIONAL REASONS TO DOUBT THE OFFICIAL STORY OF 9-11……………………………………………………..P. 117

E. THE ENTERPRISE HAS ENGAGED IN A CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT ELECTION FRAUD………………………………………………………...P. 124

F. ENTERPRISE'S FLORIDA RECOUNT RIOT: ADDITIONAL
PREDICATE ACTS UNDER RICO………………………………………...P. 136


G. ADDITIONAL ALLEGATIONS AS TO INDIVIDUAL DEFENDANTS, PREDICATE ACTS OF RACKETEERING COMMITTED BY THEM, AND THEIR ROLES IN THE RICO ENTERPRISE……………………………...P. 139

H. THE FOREGOING FACTS SUPPORT CLAIMS AGAINST THE DEFENDANTS FOR MULTIPLE ACTS OF CONSPIRACY, RACKETEERING, DOMESTIC TERRORISM AND OTHER CRIMES…P. 146

IV. COUNTS…………………………………………………………………………….P. 149

1. MISPRISION OF A FELONY (18 U.S.C. Section 4)…………………………...P. 149

2. MISPRISION OF TREASON (18 U.S.C. Section 2382)………………………...P. 151

3. PATTERN OF RACKETEERING ACTIVITY (18 U.S.C. Section 1962c)…….P. 152

4. RACKETEERING ACTIVITY (18 U.S.C. Section 1961(1))……………………P. 154

5. CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT RICO VIOLATIONS\
(18 U.S.C. Section 1962 (b, c))……………………………………………….….P. 155

6. INJUNCTIVE AND DECLARATORY RELIEF (18 U.S.C. Section 1964c)…...P. 156

7. INJUNCTIVE RELIEF (18 U.S.C. Section 1964c)……………………………...P. 157

8. COMMON LAW INJUNCTIVE RELIEF……………………………………. ...P. 159

9. DECLARATORY JUDGMENT (28 U.S.C. Section 2201 et seq.)……………...P. 159

10. INJUNCTIVE RELIEF……………………………………………………….…P. 161

11. RELIEF UNDER ANTI-TERRORISM ACT (18 U.S.C. Section 2333)…….….P. 162

12. RELIEF FOR AND FROM CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY………………..P.163

13. RELIEF UNDER WAR CRIMES ACT (18 U.S.C. Section 2441)……………..P. 172

V. PRAYER FOR RELIEF…………………………………………………………………P. 175

VI. EXHIBITS………………………………………………………………………..P. 178 to 211

* * *


RICO Complaint Part 2 here






TRIAL BY JURY DEMANDED

[zann725]

31. The Defendant list reads like a "who's who" of Shrubco.

'...while visions of orange jump-suits dance in their heads.'

If only justice were served...

[Frederik]

14. would these be

the rape pics?

[KayLaw]

37. I think so

Even most Republicans would be disturbed by photos of women and little children being raped (I hope). We need to see what we're getting in exchange for our Social Security, and we need to know why the rest of the world hates us so: we torture, rape and murder harmless and mostly innocent detainees. Maybe even some of the greedy corporate types will think twice before supporting another invasion.

[nookiemonster]

17. Can you say....

ENDGAME!

I love watching these fuckers squirm. :rofl:

[baby_bear]

18. This will be appealed, so don't celebrate yet

from the same article:

<snip>
The judge ordered the transcript of comments made during his viewing of the pictures sealed. He did not disclose his findings in court, but said his order "will lead to production (of the pictures) or further proceedings."

"Further proceedings" presumably referred to possible appeals by government lawyers, who declined to comment as they left the hearing.
</snip>

In case one didn't realize why the conservatives are trying to pack the appellate courts with total right-wingers, this is a good example.

b_b

[Ms. Clio]

20. Guess what, Mr. Schonfeld, the public DOES have a right to know

You traitorous weasel.

[IChing]

22. kick

[Disturbed]

23. Is it correct that that the Pentagon has around ...

1K photos and some Videos that they have refused to relelase?

Wouldn't the back of the plane be visible?

[thebigidea]

24. meanwhile, the Washington Post continues sitting on hundreds of photos

Woodward knows best, after all. Thanks, liberal media!

[Miss Chybil]

27. Too bad this decision didn't come last October.... nt

[Benhurst]

28. Have Dubya and Jeff Gannon seen them? NT

[Voltaire99]

29. Seymour Hersh has warned...

...that what has not been shown to us is far, far worse than what has been.

However, I suspect that even if this ruling withstands appeal, the photos will still never see the light of day. The best hope is that someone within the intelligence establishment releases them.

[DoYouEverWonder]

41. Hersh also wrote

that after he published his story about Abu Ghraib another soldier came forward and gave him another CD full of abuse pictures. To date, those pictures have not been published.

[Roland99]

44. An Audience With Seymour Hersh

http://www.conjur.com/blog/2005/03/04/an-audience-with-seymour-hersh/

The Washington Times wrote that Bush credits his faith in God for the “accomplishments” of his foreign policy. Bush feels that he is on a mission to do God’s work to spread democracy. What the Washington Times failed to mention was that the mission of Bush/God to spread democracy meant only a certain few countries that happened to be vital to U.S. oil interests. Why aren’t we spreading democracy to North Korea, Pakistan, or Cuba?

One reason mentioned by Hersh, near the end of the question-and-answer session, is that Pakistan is obliging the Bush administration. The Pakistani generals are distrustful of Gen. Musharraf but they keep quiet. Why? Because if they move to oust Musharraf, Pakistan would likely be put on the list of evil-doers and risk U.S. action to attack Pakistan or work to eliminate its nuclear weapons and programs (and put Pakistan at a decided disadvantage to its nuclear neighbor, India.)

Bush has also been recently claiming credit for recent developments in Lebanon and Libya. Libya’s Qhadafi tried for years to engage in talks to handover his weapons programs in return for economic relations. Hersh has spoken with European leaders and, in those discussions, their distaste of the American president is obvious. According to Hersh, they hate Bush (or, at least, his foreign policy decisions.) Ignoring the Iraqi invasion or working with Bush to repair Iraq is a “lose-lose” situation to them. The European leaders lose support from their citizens who want no involvement in Iraq and they lose by not participating in making Iraq a stable country working toward a democratic government.

Speaking of the new Iraqi government, Hersh brought up an interesting point: it’s been five weeks since the Iraqi elections and there has yet to be any sort of decision for the formation of an independent (non-American puppet) government. Hersh questioned why that was. His answer came in form of the current Prime Minister, American puppet Iyad Allawi. The convenient 48% “majority” obtained by the Shi’a in the recent Iraqi election is evidence of the American push to install Allawi in a position of power in the new government. Bush’s foreign policy all but demands a pro-American figurehead leading Iraq in order to obtain a formal request to keep American troops in Iraq. This means the new Iraqi government will, indeed, not be a democratic government but, rather, another in a string of American interventionist results.


So, how did we end up in Iraq in the first place? Intelligence was inconclusive and was based upon dubious and non-credible sources, much of it from Ahmed Chalabi and exiled members of the Iraqi National Congress (INC) who had their own axes to grind against Saddam. The Bush administration had to go into heavy spin mode, spreading propaganda that intimated that Saddam and Iraq were linked to the 9/11 attacks. This is evidenced by the large number of people that still believe Saddam was tied to the 9/11 attacks, some polls showing as many as 40% still believing this. Within the administration, critics of the plan to invade Iraq were ostracized while those following inline with the administration’s plans received promotions. Hersh also mentioned that, aside from the typical PNAC neocons that were dead-set for invading Iraq, Newt Gingrich and Doug Wormser (from Cheney’s office), were key members in fomenting the U.S. plans to invade Iraq and spreading the propaganda to garner enough public support for the war.

The British were also involved in the biggest sales pitch of all-time. Hersh labeled Tony Blair, the British Prime Minister, Bush’s puppy. In 2002, a British JIC memo was uncovered that revealed that the British were tasked with helping Bush to convince the American public of the need to invade Iraq. Part of this involved the now-famous forged documents that were faked to show an Iraqi interest in purchasing yellowcake from Niger. It is this piece of propaganda that is the basis for an investigation by Fitzpatrick into the leaking of then-covert CIA agent Valerie Plame to the press. Robert Novak printed her name in a column and that started a long-lasting and controversial scandal that has failed to come to fruition two years after-the-fact. Many people, including myself, have labeled Novak with disparaging names for his part in this. However, Hersh stated that Novak is a good conservative writer and has the utmost in integrity. Perhaps Hersh’s assessment is the most accurate in light of recent reports that Novak did name, during his grand jury testimony, the person who leaked Plame’s name to him. Hersh is of the opinion that Fitzpatrick is on to something bigger than just the leaking of a CIA agent’s name (which is a difficult thing to prove was a malicious act and knowingly in violation of Federal law.) Only time will tell, in this case. How much time is needed, though, is unknown.

Hersh also spoke of an impending civil war in Iraq between Shi’a and Sunni. The minority Sunni ruled Iraq (in its various forms throughout history) for centuries. Certain elements of the Sunni will not voluntarily give up that power to the Shi’a easily. The Iraqi National Guard is largely comprised of Shi’a. The Shi’a civilians, in turn, are becoming increasingly upset with the current security structure over the inability to prevent repeated attacks from the resistance, now focusing on Iraqis working with the occupying forces.

Before continuing, I want to point out something that has been discussed by some in the past and was specifically mentioned by Hersh. The Bush administration and the American media keep referring to the source of the fighting in Iraq as coming from insurgents. That is incorrect. An insurgency implies a period of peace has been in place and then an organized resistance forms against the occupiers. That is not the case with the current situation in Iraq. We are fighting the same group of people as on day one of the invasion. Saddam knew Bush was serious and was going to invade. Groups of the Baathists and other Saddam supporters disappeared before U.S. troops reached Baghdad. They created caches of weapons and ammunition so that they could be easily recovered later for use in guerilla warfare against the American troops. (See this article for some detail on the plans Saddam had for a resistance.)

The renewed resistance started in earnest in August 2003. At that point, Iraqi infrastructure, such as water pipelines, was being attacked in far more serious ways than was being reported in the American media. American intelligence was working off of the assumption that the resistance was comprised of three-man cells, perhaps even 10- to 15-man cells. The American intelligence had no solid information as to the true size of the Iraqi resistance. Some thought a couple thousand while others said as many as 20,000. At one point, several thousand detainees were held in Abu Ghraib alone. That would have been half the resistance if everyone detained were part of the resistance. That was, sadly, very far from the truth.

The Pentagon began inventing facts to cover for the attacks and the massive roundup of “insurgents” that made their way to prisons, such as Abu Ghraib. Hersh pointed out that the U.S. was incapable of obtaining decent intelligence on the Iraqi resistance but is apparently very adept at picking up on “sensitive communications” between bin Laden and Zarqawi that happen to make it to FOX News broadcasts.

The Iraqi resistance has the government wired. They have people in various key areas of the government. Hersh made a point of emphasizing that. In the meantime, American intelligence about the resistance remains at about the same level as it did eighteen months ago, scattered and incomplete. This lack of intelligence is what led to wholesale roundups of suspected members of the resistance (for a prime example of how house-to-house searches were conducted, see the Extra Features on the Fahrenheit 9/11 DVD. Specifically, the interview with the Swedish journalist who went along with American troops on house-to-house searches in Samarra.) Most of the detainees were kept in Abu Ghraib. Abu Ghraib has a notorious reputation amongst Iraqis. It is the site of the most heinous acts against prisoners by Saddam Hussein and his supporters during his reign. The Americans at Abu Ghraib, however, took things even further. Aside from the heinous actions involving beatings, using dogs trained to bite the groin areas, and even outright murder, one aspect that has raised the ire amongst Iraqis, Muslims, and others around the world, is the sexual abuse levied against the prisoners. Hersh prefaced this segment of his speech by stating that those involved in the actual application of abuse and torture in Abu Ghraib were not just acting out of ignorance or out of being victims of circumstance (understaffing an over-crowded prison.) On the contrary, the specific actions taken had to only be at the behest of people in charge of the intelligence gathering in Iraq. This goes all the way to the White House.

Hersh went into a bit of detail in the drafting of the so-called Torture Memo by Jay Bybee approved by now-Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and consulted by now-Secretary of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff. This Torture Memo was written with one goal in mind, creating a narrowly defined term of torture that would allow the Bush administration a great amount of latitude in its techniques for obtaining information. This all began with abuse and torture of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Some of the detainees at Guantanamo were elderly men, as old as being in their 80s, who were in no way a part of Al Qaeda or the Taliban in Afghanistan. When these innocent people were finally released, some released more than two years after being captured, Hersh opined, if they were not enemies of America before, they were now. U.S. techniques were creating more enemies and were resulting in useless information as detainees were confessing to anything in order to stop the torture and abuse.

At Abu Ghraib, the Bush administration orchestrated policies that were focused on humiliating detainees through sexual means. In the Muslim world, sex is an incredibly taboo subject. Men are not allowed to touch women in certain situations, being seen naked or forced to perform certain sexual acts brings shame upon a family that, in Muslim society, is a sentence worse than death. This was surely known by members of the Bush administration that recruited people to setup and train officers and interrogators at the prisons. We now know that five key men all had severe human rights abuses in their past careers in running prisons here in America. This was surely known by Ashcroft, despite the statements otherwise by the DOJ Inspector General. Hersh was also made aware of first-hand stories from former detainees of Abu Ghraib. He found that some woman at Abu Ghraib were so ashamed of the sexual abuse to which they were submitted that they sent messages to their family and friends to kill them when they came to visit them in the prison or when they were released. They were so ashamed of what was done to them or what they saw that they preferred to be killed than to live with the shame. Other prisoners were intimidated by the taking of photos of them in various sexual positions. These photos were used as carrots to get the prisoners to join the resistance report back to the officers with intelligence on the resistance. Failure to do so meant that the photos would be disseminated around their village and they would forever be shamed. The actual group in charge of Abu Ghraib was previously involved in traffic control and could not have known of the extreme taboo surrounding Muslims and sexual abuses. These orders had to have come from above.

The abuses at Abu Ghraib are also leaving an indelible mark in the psyche of the “worker-bee” soldiers ordered to take the photos and carry out some of the abuses. An example is the case of a female soldier who returned to the States, Indiana, specifically, from Iraq. Her mother noticed a marked change in her daughter’s attitude. The soldier’s condition worsened and wouldn’t even talk or meet with her mother. The mother, however, did come across a CD during a visit to her daughter’s home. On that CD was a folder named “Iraq” and it contained many photos of the abuses that occurred in Abu Ghraib. As a reaction to the stress, this female soldier had been consistently going to a tattoo parlor and had been having her body covered in black tattoos.

But, still, the resistance raged on and even intensified. U.S. troop deaths have surpassed the 1,500 mark. The last 500 were killed more quickly than the previous 500 that were, in turn, killed more quickly than the first 500 before them. American intelligence is still very lacking in terms of the structure and operation of the resistance. American forces are relying more and more on renditions (the process of abducting a suspect and flying them to a country where human rights are not as recognized as here in the U.S., for example: Egypt or Jordan.) In fact, the CBS News program 60 Minutes on March 6, 2005 had a segment covering renditions and tracked down two particular planes used for the process. The Bush administration has made changes to the rules regarding renditions so that Congress is no longer needed for authorization. The Bush administration is becoming an authoritarian one that has worked to remove the checks and balances that are part and parcel of a democracy. This administration preaches about its mission to spread democracy abroad while it works to dismantle it here at home.

Hersh also discussed, briefly, the situation that arose in Falluja when the U.S. laid siege to the city. Hersh spoke of an article in the British paper, The Guardian, in which Adnan Chaichan was interviewed (scroll down to ‘December 27’). The article mentioned that doctors were locked in a hospital and then tied up. The wounded were not allowed to be transported to the hospital. A curfew was in place such that any traffic was considered to be part of the resistance and would be fired upon. The U.S. forces seized mobile and satellite phones. That meant the doctors were unable to communicate with citizens of Falluja other than by a few hard-line telephones, which were used by doctors to direct people with how to treat the wounded.

The destruction of Falluja was but one of many actions by the U.S. military that has been met with harsh emotions from Iraqi citizens who are frustrated with the U.S. occupation and the continued lack of security and the lack of reconstruction. Hersh is all but convinced that a civil war will breakout in Iraq leading to further unrest throughout the Middle East, including Iran.

In regards to Iran, Hersh stated that his contacts and research points to four different groups of U.S. Special Forces being in place in Iran. A member of the audience questioned Hersh’s credibility and accused him of harboring an anti-Bush bias. Hersh replied to the written question that the articles he writes are based upon information from his contacts, many of which are very high up in the intelligence community, the Pentagon, and the government and his information usually shows up a few weeks later in the mainstream media as accepted fact. He hasn’t been wrong yet. Hersh only reveals the names of his sources when allowed to do so. Most of his contacts, however, work in intelligence and revealing their names would compromise their safety and their jobs. Hersh did say that some high-ranking Pentagon officials are very critical and upset with the Bush administration but are unable to make public comments to that effect. As far as Hersh’s comments that fighting with Iran is imminent, he was told that if he wrote the piece correctly, there wouldn’t be a fight (meaning, if he uncovered enough information and enough people read it and criticized the Bush administration, an invasion or an attack on Iran would not happen.) Hersh also tossed aside talk of a draft stating the Pentagon doesn’t want to see an influx of people who do not want to fight and, also, getting a draft through Congress would be very difficult right now.

The general sentiment coming out of Hersh’s speech and the question-and-answer segment was that the Bush administration was selling fear in the name of a mission to do God’s work, on a very selective basis. Hersh is genuinely frightened of this administration and its penchant to do anything and say anything with almost total impunity. Hersh also was of the belief that our media is all but complicit in the fear mongering coming from the Bush administration, failing to be objective and critical of the government, as its job should be. The mega-media companies that have resulted in the wake of the FCC deregulation have harmed the credibility of our media and the American public is not protesting as effectively as the anti-war demonstrators during the Vietnam era.

[calimary]

52. So, if Hersh has more photos in a DVD that some soldier reportedly

gave him, WHY DOESN'T HE RELEASE THEM? OR LEAK THEM TO THE VILLAGE VOICE OR SOME SUCH OUTLET? The last paragraph here speaks of fear - that Hersh, too, is genuinely frightened - has he, too, been threatened or intimidated, or had such a threat made against a member of his family perhaps?

[Roland99]

54. I don't know if he has a DVD. He was telling a story of a soldier's mom.

The mother found the CD.

[BeHereNow]

30. My tax dollars paid for it-

So HELL YES.
I want to know where my tax dollars
are going!
So should the rest of brain dead 'murikkka.
We have been lied to about everything, so at the very
least, we should view the results of those lies and
our current budget deficit brought about by those lies.
BHN

[Judi Lynn]

33. Looks as if we've been wrong about Bush.He DOES care about these guys.

Look what his lawyer claims:

Government lawyer Sean Lane argued that releasing pictures, even if faces and other features are obscured, would violate Geneva Convention rules on prisoner treatment by subjecting detainees to additional humiliation or embarrassment. He said the emotional wounds would be reopened because detainees could identify themselves and because the public would learn their identities.

Touching, isn't it?

[Massachusetts]

42. REMEMBER WHAT SILENCE CAN DO!

"Judge Alvin Hellerstein, finding the public has a right to see the pictures, told the government Thursday he will sign an order requiring it to release them to the American Civil Liberties Union, the lawyers said."

[Vickers]

43. Garsh, I hope the release of these photos does not inspire violence

like the Newsweek story quoting a government official (who later "recanted") did about flushing the Quran.

:sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm:

[Tinoire]

59. They can always force the photographers to recant & apologize

for not having cleared it with the Pentagon before getting their film processed.

Lol, what a point we've sunk to!

[suffragette]

47. kick for the ACLU's work in fighting for truth and justice

[Barrett808]

48. Sy Hersh: "You haven't begun to see evil"

Last year, Hersh said there are much worse images and videos that we haven't seen. Children being raped by US soldiers...

[Tinoire]

58. I shudder. Don't want to see more pictures but we MUST.

We MUST, as a nation, face the truth of what we are doing before we can deal with this disease destroying us.

If they shocked Sy Hersch after those other pictures, we are in serious trouble.

[sintax]

56. Graphic images Have Impact No Words Can

"The occupiers should leave immediately," he explains while sipping tea, "They only came with their own interests and we can manage Iraq for ourselves. We do not need them for any reason."

" ... the United States, for generations, has sustained two parallel but opposed states of mind about military atrocities and human rights: one of U.S. benevolence, generally held by the public, and the other of ends-justify-the-means brutality sponsored by counterinsurgency specialists. Normally the specialists carry out their actions in remote locations with little notice in the national press. That allows the public to sustain its faith in a just America, while hard-nosed security and economic interests are still protected in secret. ": Robert Parry, investigative reporter and author

=

Our men . . . have killed to exterminate men, women, children, prisoners and captives, active insurgents and suspected people from lads of 10 up.... Our soldiers have pumped salt water into men to "make them talk," and have taken prisoners people who held up their hands and peacefully surrendered, and an hour later. . . stood them on a bridge and shot them down one by one, to drop into the water below and float down, as examples to those who found their bullet-loaded corpses.": Philadelphia Ledger newspaper in 1901, from its Manila correspondent during the US war with Spain for the control of the Philippines

[napi21]

60. OH GOD! He was nominated by Clinton!

http://air.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=2794

The fundies are going to be screaming AGAIN that these damn LW judges are making law instead of interpreting it!!!!

[Tinoire]

61. Look at the pictures America. Study them long and hard.

(snip)

As the revelations of brutal torture by the victors were first spilling from conquered Iraq, Hersh was contacted by a family member of a young U.S. woman who had served in a unit policing Abu Ghraib, the Guardian reports. The young soldier had "come back a different person," the relative said: distraught and angry, turning her back on her family.

The relative retrieved a computer she'd lent the soldier to use in Iraq -- and found there a file crammed with torture porn: photo after photo of a naked Iraqi prisoner writhing before the onslaught of fierce police dogs. One of the pictures was later published and became an emblem of the dehumanizing brutality of the U.S. occupation.

The young soldier thought she'd been sent to fight for democracy and freedom, the relative told Hersh, but it was a lie. Instead she found herself in Hell, committing crimes, violating her own nature, her sense of duty perverted by leaders who twisted it into a weapon to serve aggressive war. Since her return, said the relative, the young soldier keeps getting black tattoos, more and more of them, slowly covering her entire body -- literally trying to change her skin.

The fate of this soul-broken, tormented daughter of America embodies the nation itself under the malevolent reign of President George W. Bush. The whole country is changing its skin, trying to cloak its complicity and shame with a wilful disfigurement. Who could look on the hideous form of Bush's America -- the snarling faces belching rancor on Fox News; the rabid partisans oozing bile through the halls of Congress; the money-glutting religious extremists relentlessly pushing ignorance, intolerance and theocratic dominion; the corporate beasts devouring the landscape, destroying communities, writing their own laws, gorging on unprecedented profits wrung from global sweatshops, corruption and war; the somnolent, silent, acquiescent public, blankly countenancing torture, deceit, military aggression and the destruction of their constitutional order -- and not see in all this a body politic in profound psychological crisis: traumatized, guilt-ridden, turning itself inside out in a frantic attempt to escape the truth?

(snip)

We have reported here in great detail on the voluminous evidence establishing that the endemic, systematic torture in Bush's gulag was instigated by the White House, sanctioned by Bush's appointed "legal experts" who ruled that as commander in chief, he is not constrained by laws against torture -- or, indeed, by any law whatsoever. Equally copious evidence establishes that Rumsfeld and selected Pentagon officials eagerly implemented the torture regimen -- then systematically worked to block or limit investigations once the truth began leaking out. For example, one of the low-ranking "bad apples" finally convicted in the Afghan murders -- after extended Pentagon cover-ups -- was sentenced to just three months in jail by a military court this week, The Associated Press reports. Three months for helping beat a chained, helpless man to death.

The evidence of the Regime's culpability for torture and mass murder is overwhelming. The burden of proof is no longer on Bush's accusers, but on those who would defend his evil actions. Yes, evil is the word. The Nuremberg Tribunal called aggressive war "essentially an evil thing." To initiate such a war -- under any circumstances -- "is not only an international crime," said the tribunal, "it is the supreme international crime," because it carries all the others in its wake. It breaks down all barriers of law and morality, in states and in individuals, creating the necessary inner chaos -- and physical opportunity -- for the most abysmal perversions of human nature.

(snip)

http://context.themoscowtimes.com/story/142697/

[Nothing Without Hope]

63. One more crack in the wall of suppression. See this other thread as well:

It deals with revelations in another set of FOIA documents, this time from the FBI, that had been requested by the ACLU. They still need to be thoroughly analyzed, but already there are smoking guns. Read the entire thread and see:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1811545
Thread title: “Smoking Gun Alert: DoD e-mails show plot to blame FBI for Torture!”

There is also a section detailing abuse approved by a Bush executive order. This is horrific material, and it will complement the photos that are released as a result of the decision described in the current thread. It's all part of the same evil picture.