THE BUSH LEGACY — by Steve Nadis
George W. Bush, as everyone knows, is in his lame-duck term–a time when all presidents start thinking about their legacies. How will they be remembered? What did they bring to the world or take from it? It’s clear now that Bush’s number one priority is to trash the Geneva Convention and “push the envelope” when it comes to acceptable conduct for treating prisoners. Sorry, did I say prisoners? I meant to say “enemy combattants,” because in this Administration’s playbook, it’s OK to go tougher on them. It amazes me that Bush is so upfront about this agenda, constantly putting it ahead of all other issues, as if legalizing aggressive and abusive interrogations were the nation’s top priority. I’ll say this for our president: He doesn’t shy away from his flirtation with torture and try to sweep it under the rug; he puts it front and center for the whole world to see. And therein lies the rub. For while there’s little doubt as to what the Bush legacy will be, there is a more troublesome point to consider: As a result of his actions, and statements, and blatant disdain for international law, what will our legacy be?
Posted by
at
03:22:43
Absolutely true, Snake. However, just because something is sanctioned, doesn’t mean it necessarily has to be put into practice; that is, just because you can do something doesn’t mean you will. But you leave that to me and my colleages… that’s our job.
NO WONDER
THE WHOLE PLANET ,,HAS GOT-A-BEEF
WITH THE UNITED STATES….
FRONT AND CENTER…SO WHOS CHIEF
DOESNT MATTER ..
YOU KNOW THE SAYING
……..”SAME SHIT DIFFERENT DAY”
GS, your comment worries me. Z, your comment saddens me.
I understand your concern, but the idea is that one man’s theory doesn’t dictate doctine. One of the few things that the media does, is keep humanity in check, for better or for worse, but I’m getting ahead of myself. If it seems like we are obscessed with the treatment of prisoners, then I say its because we are too soft-eyed as a nation. Let’s say we treated them in a more historical manner, say, in the manner of our own prisoners during the Civil War on both sides of the Mason-Dixson. What about the Nazi prisoners camps?… you know why we don’t hear about them? Because we just killed them after the war was over. Oh, and my personal favorite - PROJECT: PHOENIX during the Vietnam War. Don’t know that one? Look it up; shock and awe will not define your response.
Normal POW camps suck, and suck hard. The problem is when you make them too PC, i.e. so that those who have not seen what these monsters do to you if they were free may look at them with their children on Prime Time TV like some sort of educational zoo exibit; you have to get creative in how to make these people be uncomfortable and want to give up information, which is just part of what a POW camp wants to achieve. Creativity and cruel and unusal punishment go hand-in-hand. These peope at Guantanamo Bay are in white jump suits and white linen beds. The Imperial British Trading Companies in Africa didn’t have it so good.
Now, do I think that American Soldiers should be torturing prisoners? No. Under no circumstance should American Soldiers or Officers be torturing prisoners. Should they be detaining them and maintaining the military detention facilities? Yes. But lets be very very real about one thing. There always has been and always will be ’secret’ goverment facilities as well, and further, there are invisible members of each and all civilized governments on this planet who do the dirty laundry of their administrations. And so what? True it is not our President’s finest hour to bring these issues to the forefront so that the media can have a field day with it. However, the CIA, the ones who used to do this so well, are now incapable of so much as causing a coup at a tea party. And we have both Republicans and Democrats to blame for that dismantling. Bottomline; leave high-level cross examinations to those who do it best… and who that really is… is none of our business.
Got a problem with it? Stop thinking James Bond movies are cool.
I must admit, GS, you’re a lot closer to this world than I am, and you’ve given us all much food for thought…