Reality, in everyday usage, means "the state of things as they actually exist".-
Obama Releases Bush-Era Memos Authorizing Torture Techniques, Rules Out Prosecuting CIA Interrogators who Carried Them Out
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The Obama administration has released four memos from the Bush-era Justice Department that approved and provided the legal basis for the CIAs use of torture. While President Obama has said he will not pursue prosecutions of CIA employees, he did not explicitly address the question of prosecuting the former Justice Department lawyers who authored the memos. The memos release comes as a Spanish court is considering bringing indictments against six Bush-era lawyers. We get analysis from human rights attorney Scott Horton.
Scott Horton, New York attorney specializing in international law and human rights. He is also a legal affairs contributor to Harpers Magazine and a writer at The Daily Beast.
The clinical detail of the discussion of the torture techniques is just astonishing. You know, I think the bugs-in-the-box instance that you cited, which we really hadnt heard anything, before the discussion of waterboarding. But just back up and put some perspective on this. These are techniques that federal prosecutors previously charged as crimes. Moreover, in prosecutions that occurred at the end of the World War II, American federal prosecutors sought the death penalty, sought capital punishment, for people who did these things. And now we see a man who is a federal judge sitting in San Francisco writing a memo saying wink, nod, fine with me, just go right ahead and do it. Its just astonishing, and I think also astonishing that that individual in particular can sit as a federal judge today when the world knows that these memos have been crafted and, in fact, when hes the subject of a pending criminal proceeding in Spain
ORIGINAL TEXT
In addition to using the confinement boxes alone, you also would like to introduce an insect into one of the boxes with Zubaydah. As we understand it, you plan to inform Zubaydah that you are going to place a stinging insect into the box, but you will actually place a harmless insect in the box, such as a caterpillar. If you do so, to ensure that you are outside the predicate act requirement, you must inform him that the insects will not have a sting that would produce death or severe pain. If, however, you were to place the insect in the box without informing him that you are doing so, then, in order to not commit a predicate act, you should not affirmatively lead him to believe that any insect is present which has a sting that could produce severe pain or suffering or even cause his death. [Redacted section] so long as you take either of the approaches we have described, the insects placement in the box would not constitute a threat of severe physical pain or suffering to a reasonable person in his position. An individual placed in a box, even an individual with a fear of insects, would not reasonably feel threatened with severe physical pain or suffering if a caterpillar was placed in the box.
Were seeing the realization of two famous pieces of literature, arent we? George Orwells 1984 with the rat—remember, the rat was selected after psychoanalysis of the subject revealed that he had a fear of rats, so this was being used to terrorize, quite literally, the individual—as well as Terry Gilliams filming of Brazil, where we know again study of fear was used to drive, to craft special techniques. And thats the predicate paragraphs, prior to the ones you just read, suggest that with respect to this prisoner, the diagnosis of psychiatrists and psychologists who had studied his case was that he had an irrational fear of insects. So lets use this fear to unhinge him.
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USA - 911by gfde08119 views
All involved should be in prison...
dale3858 1 year ago
Hey when will any "liberals" like Amy Goodman mention the fact that every single one of the torture tactics used against Muslims and Arabs in Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere, was already used against the Branch Davidians under Clinton?
Why is the connection ever made? Is it because you hate White Christians in Texas, for whatever reasons?
They even played rock music and the sounds of animals being slaughtered, and would up burning children to death - just like Bush in Iraq.
Goodman - hello?
CarryANationIII 2 years ago