Lawrence Wilkerson - Confronting America The Torturer
Despite Gina Haspel's promises, nosotros are inwards existent danger of farther excursions into the night side.
You sometimes wonder if at that topographic point is whatsoever proficient inwards the world. After reading the all the materials that I convey read over the terminal few years I convey been extremely shocked, that the ruling elite tin mutual frigidness bloodily foremost wars to brand coin shows they convey no morality whatsoever. It is merely murder. But this article from The American Conservative is encouraging every bit it seems that at that topographic point are many people on the left too correct who are against torture. I believe most people are, fifty-fifty if they state flippantly to pollsters that they back upwards it. KV Later this calendar month on June 26, the United Nation’s volition observe a Day for Victims of Torture.
Before 2002, America would convey heralded this day, joining inwards the remembrance too using the resultant global solidarity to advance fifty-fifty farther the destination of stopping torture wherever it mightiness occur. No longer. America is straight off 1 of the world’s chief, unrepentant, unapologetic, still-polling-positive-on…torturers.
Since President George W. Bush—under relentless delineate per unit of measurement area from Dick Cheney, his Machiavellian vice president—withdrew America from the Geneva Conventions inwards 2002, ostensibly too hence he could bargain alongside al-Qaeda too Afghanistan’s Taliban, the USA has operated “on the night side.” Recently reaffirming that position, President Donald Trump nominated too the Senate approved torture’s disciple too supervisory practitioner Gina Haspel to atomic number 82 the Central Intelligence Agency.
How did nosotros larn here?
After the tragic deaths on September 11, 2001, America went slightly berserk. Though both international too U.S. domestic constabulary held that no condition, no affair how extreme, could justify the heinous law-breaking of torture, America turned to it anyway. Initially—and maybe understandably if non legally or ethically—we turned to torture nether the misguided belief that it mightiness salve lives. After all, nosotros had exactly suffered an assault worse than that on Pearl Harbor inwards Dec 1941.
But every bit early on every bit Feb 2002, nosotros began to torture for exactly about other reason: to “verify” Iraqi complicity inwards the 9/11 attacks too hence nosotros could larn to state of war alongside Republic of Iraq (I went into greater detail on this for TAC in May). This rationale was to a greater extent than inwards trouble alongside practices inwards countries such every bit Arab Republic of Egypt too Syria, where torture was—and however is—aimed at extracting confessions, non the truth.
The al-Qaeda-Iraq complicity did non exist. But nosotros tortured to compass evidence for state of war anyway via our lackeys inwards Egypt. Among those nosotros tortured was Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi, who said later on he would convey confessed to anything to halt the pain. Acting swiftly on Libi’s “evidence,” Colin Powell made a historic disceptation at the UN that linked al-Qaeda to Iraq.
We all know the residual of the story.
Could at that topographic point survive a to a greater extent than poignant too disturbing illustration of torture non working? Or, maybe ameliorate said, of torture’s unsafe consequences fifty-fifty beyond its moral too ethical repugnancy too illegality?
Let’s grade this twenty-four hr menstruum alongside a tribute to all those inwards the basis who are opposed to torture, from Johannesburg to Auckland, from Vladivostok to Portland. Large majorities inwards close all other nations are anti-torture, knowing it to survive a tyrant’s tool to suppress dissent too industry imitation confessions.
Let’s tip our hats to those who human being the centers for victims of torture the basis over too to those who offering succor to such victims wherever they are institute too who oppose torture wherever it mightiness survive practiced.
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