Subject: Warning, gross photo: I am taking sides in this: "Pentagon
fears blowback from ‘humane’ Guantánamo video release," by Carol
Rosenberg, Miami Herald (McClatchy paper), December 3,
2014
You might have guessed, from my position in favor of release of the CIA torture records, that I favor the disclosure of absolutely anything that people who allegedly work for me and in my name do that is wrong, most especially things that are seriously wrong, things that are seriously below us of the American tradition including especially our military tradition.
Warning, gross photo: "Pentagon fears blowback from ‘humane’ Guantánamo video release," by Carol Rosenberg, Miami Herald (McClatchy paper), December 3, 2014
I think that force feeding a conscious person who does not want to eat or to be fed is wrong. Many people feel the same way I do, or so I read.
That stuff and stuff like it needs to be stopped, and the only way I know of to stop it is to expose to American criticism the people who are doing it, whatever happens next after that. It is our way of living that is part of what is important. I oppose giving it up voluntarily by managing to avoid looking and knowing what those employees--yes, yes--and contractors of ours are doing.
We can take care of ourselves well enough without being the same as everybody else, or as a lot of other people in the world seem to be, rather. Can't we? Arguably--and it has been argued many times in our history--we might as well die as try to be worse than those other people are, those individuals in other parts of the world who may actually pride themselves on being the worst or trying to be the worst.
Worry that our wrongful behavior is recruiting for "the enemy"? Of course! So even if we are not going to end war right away, let's stop being our own worst enemies. The only way to do that in this context seems to be to try to stop our employees from doing at least some of what they are doing. In the case of feeding Guantanamo inmates by force, even if we're never going to charge them with having done anything illegal, try them, or let them out, we could at least let them choose a dignified death. We don't have to actually help them commit suicide, but there is no virtue whatsoever in getting in their way once it's clear they have decided.
Larry
You might have guessed, from my position in favor of release of the CIA torture records, that I favor the disclosure of absolutely anything that people who allegedly work for me and in my name do that is wrong, most especially things that are seriously wrong, things that are seriously below us of the American tradition including especially our military tradition.
Warning, gross photo: "Pentagon fears blowback from ‘humane’ Guantánamo video release," by Carol Rosenberg, Miami Herald (McClatchy paper), December 3, 2014
I think that force feeding a conscious person who does not want to eat or to be fed is wrong. Many people feel the same way I do, or so I read.
That stuff and stuff like it needs to be stopped, and the only way I know of to stop it is to expose to American criticism the people who are doing it, whatever happens next after that. It is our way of living that is part of what is important. I oppose giving it up voluntarily by managing to avoid looking and knowing what those employees--yes, yes--and contractors of ours are doing.
We can take care of ourselves well enough without being the same as everybody else, or as a lot of other people in the world seem to be, rather. Can't we? Arguably--and it has been argued many times in our history--we might as well die as try to be worse than those other people are, those individuals in other parts of the world who may actually pride themselves on being the worst or trying to be the worst.
Worry that our wrongful behavior is recruiting for "the enemy"? Of course! So even if we are not going to end war right away, let's stop being our own worst enemies. The only way to do that in this context seems to be to try to stop our employees from doing at least some of what they are doing. In the case of feeding Guantanamo inmates by force, even if we're never going to charge them with having done anything illegal, try them, or let them out, we could at least let them choose a dignified death. We don't have to actually help them commit suicide, but there is no virtue whatsoever in getting in their way once it's clear they have decided.
Larry
