Ouch! Shhhh...That's Classified

Mr. Bush, and the forces of darkness that occupy the offices of his Attorney General, have reached new heights (or is it lows?) in their pursuit of destroying the justice system, throwing out the Bill of Rights, and twisting legal logic to bizarre extremes in order to justify their despicable actions in the so-called "War on Terror".

The latest twist is this: A prisoner who has been the subject of "alternative" interrogation techniques (torture to those of us without law degrees), has, by virtue of being tortured, come into possession of classified information. Because the "alternative" interrogation techniques are classified, the prisoner finds that he is prohibited from disclosing anything about his treatment without being subject to arrest and imprisonment for revealing classified information.

This is the situation:

You are sleeping in your warm and cozy bed. Suddenly men with guns and masks burst in and throw a hood over your head. They bind your hand and legs together and whisk you off to who knows where? You find yourself beaten, starved of nourishment and sleep, forced to assume uncomfortable and painful postures for long periods of time, and you are not allowed contact with anyone you know and love. Your family and friends have no idea where you are. You have become, like many thousands before you who lived under the dictatorships of such as Pinochet, one of the Disappeared.

You are subjected to waterboarding, made to believe that you are being drowned. You are asked questions to which you have no answers. But you want to answer. You want to tell them what they want to hear. You want them to stop the torture.

Years of this treatment goes by. Then, one day, you are allowed to return to the outside world. But there is one condition: You are now privy to classified information and must not reveal anything about your treatment....that would be breaking the law.



George Dubya Bush, and the gangsters, ideologues, and fanatics with which he has surrounded himself, have not only purposefully led his nation, and others, into an unnecessary, unwinnable, and unjustifiable war, he has set about undermining the international treaties that define the proper conduct of war. He has also set about undermining the Constitution of his own country. Rights that were fought for and not easily won, have been rendered impotent by his usurpation of power.

Mr. Bush's legal advisors have put forward the argument that, because he is the Commander in Chief, and the country is at war, he has what amounts to absolute power. Congress has no right to interfere with his conduct of the war. If he wants to order torture, then he has every right to do so, and to keep those orders secret from the American people and the Congress.

But now his secret is out. So now he wants Congress to approve his conduct and make it legal. Secret prisons, incarceration without charge or trial, torture of prisoners, and no one held responsible or accountable for their actions.

This is America, beacon of Freedom, the bright and shining city on the hill that hopes to lead the world for the betterment of all humanity. What the fuck is wrong with the American people, that they would tolerate this atrocious and demonic assault on decency and law? I know that most of the Congress are lawyers, and therefore used to justifying anything for money. Perhaps there are no limits to the arguments that can be made in favor of Mr. Bush's diabolical decisions, but surely there are limits to the arguments that must be accepted.