Friday, August 27, 2004
Trickle down torture
Jackson Diehl of the Washington Post has an analysis of the Schlesinger Report on the Abu Ghraib prison torture scandal.
The report directly states that no official policy mandated or allowed the torture to take place and that no official above the rank of colonel deserved prosecution or formal punishment. But in the classic Washington style of twisting, turning and stretching, the report directly implicates Bush, his top aides and senior military advisors.
So while Schlesinger is loathe to hold any of the civilian or brass command responsible in terms of court action or punishment, it's pretty clear that he couldn't put his report together without showing an accounting for how their decisions led to the torture of prisoners at Abu Ghraib, as Diehl notes:
The causal chain is all there: from Bush's February 2002 decision to Rumsfeld's December 2002 authorization of nudity, stress positions and dogs; to the adoption of those methods in Afghanistan and their sanction in Iraq by a commander looking back to Bush's decision; and finally, to their use on detainees by soldiers who reasonably believed they were executing official policy.
As we've seen with pretty much ever foible from the Bush Administration, the buck stops anywhere but Bush's desk. It's no shock that this one doesn't either. That said, Diehl is hinting strongly that these tortures took place not just at Abu Ghraib, but throughout the military prison system.
I've been questioned in the comments section of a different post about how I could possibly think that the US is less secure since we invaded Iraq. The rest of the world is watching what we do and how we handle ourselves right now. Torturing prisoners (many of whom had nothing to do with any terrorist acts and are linked to noone who does) puts us in the position of being the neighborhood bully. Such arrogance and reprehensible behavior completely undermines our moral high ground and gives us no leg to stand on when it's time for us to complain about the treatment of US citizens. Further it gives impetus to those looking for more excuses to hate us and to come after us. Yes I know...some groups don't need an excuse. But many do. This is just another link in their chain.
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The report directly states that no official policy mandated or allowed the torture to take place and that no official above the rank of colonel deserved prosecution or formal punishment. But in the classic Washington style of twisting, turning and stretching, the report directly implicates Bush, his top aides and senior military advisors.
So while Schlesinger is loathe to hold any of the civilian or brass command responsible in terms of court action or punishment, it's pretty clear that he couldn't put his report together without showing an accounting for how their decisions led to the torture of prisoners at Abu Ghraib, as Diehl notes:
The causal chain is all there: from Bush's February 2002 decision to Rumsfeld's December 2002 authorization of nudity, stress positions and dogs; to the adoption of those methods in Afghanistan and their sanction in Iraq by a commander looking back to Bush's decision; and finally, to their use on detainees by soldiers who reasonably believed they were executing official policy.
As we've seen with pretty much ever foible from the Bush Administration, the buck stops anywhere but Bush's desk. It's no shock that this one doesn't either. That said, Diehl is hinting strongly that these tortures took place not just at Abu Ghraib, but throughout the military prison system.
I've been questioned in the comments section of a different post about how I could possibly think that the US is less secure since we invaded Iraq. The rest of the world is watching what we do and how we handle ourselves right now. Torturing prisoners (many of whom had nothing to do with any terrorist acts and are linked to noone who does) puts us in the position of being the neighborhood bully. Such arrogance and reprehensible behavior completely undermines our moral high ground and gives us no leg to stand on when it's time for us to complain about the treatment of US citizens. Further it gives impetus to those looking for more excuses to hate us and to come after us. Yes I know...some groups don't need an excuse. But many do. This is just another link in their chain.
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