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Why Torture? ASK JOHN McCAIN

by: One Citizen

Thu Aug 21, 2008 at 11:30:53 AM EDT


( - promoted by Carnacki)

The Charleston Gazette's August 20, 2008, op/ed piece Torture
Psychologists Help
posed some interesting questions about the ethics of torture regarding the American Medical Association and American Psychiatric Association, who prohibit their members from participating in torturing prisoners, and a different professional group, the American Psychological Association, who, according to the piece,
"still lets its members oversee some forms of prisoner interrogation in Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay and U.S. military detention centers around the world."

While the article is very interesting and provides much insight, it skips over the most basic of questions, like why does the U.S. torture in the first place?

I know the answer to that question. And so does John McCain.

One Citizen :: Why Torture? ASK JOHN McCAIN
Since the Gazette limits its comments to 1000 characters, I had to keep it simple and straightforward.

A British Medical Journal recently revealed that up to half of all torture survivors report that a doctor oversaw their abuse, and that more doctors abet torture than treat the millions of victims.

How many doctors' ethics have been compromised via Cheney's "defense" contracts, we'll likely never know. Yet top interrogation experts have sworn to Congress and in our courts that torture NEVER PRODUCES RELIABLE INFORMATION.

So why torture?

Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi, an al-Qaeda prisoner captured after 9/11 was tortured into providing false information that Iraq had trained al-Qaeda to use WMD. The CIA knew the information was false in 2002. Still,  Colin Powell presented that info to the UN as evidence of Iraqi WMD programs in Feb. 2003.

Sen. John McCain, who admits to "confessing" war crimes to the VietCong, condones the use of torture by our CIA. Even though it is only reliable for producing lies.

Is he backing torture because HE wants to produce false justification for war?

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Not torture (4.00 / 1)
Under the Bush administration rules, that McMansion now supports, none of what happened to him constitutes torture.

When a man embarks upon a crime, he is morally guilty of any other crime which may spring from it. Sherlock Holmes.

A McClueless fan challenged my facts, so I responded. (4.00 / 2)
"MONROE" alleged that "OneCitizen is mistaken or just lying about John McCain's position on torture. McCain is against all forms of torture."

...Hey, I CAN PROVE I'm right.

On Feb 20, '08, the Senate passed their "Anti Torture Bill", fashioned to restrict the CIA to using only the 19 interrogation techniques listed in the Army field manual. That legislation now bars the CIA from waterboarding, sensory deprivation, and other "harsh coercive methods" to break prisoners who refuse to answer questions. They were ALL BANNED BY THE MILITARY IN 2006. But after Bush announced that he'd veto it, McCain stated his support of Bush's veto.

In an AP article titled: "McCAIN: BUSH SHOULD VETO TORTURE BILL", McCain said: "I think I can show my record is clear. I said there should be additional techniques allowed to other agencies of government as long as they were not torture."

But WAIT! That's been Bush's claim ALL ALONG hasn't it? That the U.S. doesn't "torture," RIGHT?

It's really tough to get everything you want to say packed into a statement limited by the Gazette's "under 1000 characters per statement" rule.

So it's really lucky that a "friend" chimed in with a follow up which reads...

On February 13, 2008, (Roll Call 22 on the Conference Report - HR 2082) Senator John McCain voted against banning the use of torture, despite all the months he jawboned the media about respecting the Army's field manual interrogation techniques.

On 6/18/08, Colin Powell's former chief of staff Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson (US Army, Retired) testified before Congress that many detainees had died, and autopsies indicated that many were homicides committed while in U.S. custody. Human Rights First reported that many were tortured to death. Does anyone really wonder why the CIA destroyed their interrogation tapes?

McCain has publicly admitted to confessing to committing war crimes while being interrogated by the Viet Cong. So of all people, he should realize that torture is primarily used to produce propaganda for war and will never produce reliable intelligence.

Yet he voted in favor of Bush's use of torture.

Go figure.



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