George Bush Report Card

[iplaw]

quote:Originally posted by NellieBly

And the U.S. takes the high road....


Each day brings more information about the appalling abuses inflicted upon men and women held by the United States in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere around the world.

U.S. forces have used interrogation techniques including hooding, stripping detainees naked, subjecting them to extremes of heat, cold, noise and light, and depriving them of sleep—in violation of the Geneva Conventions and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

This apparently routine infliction of pain, discomfort, and humiliation has expanded in all too many cases into vicious beatings, sexual degradation, sodomy, near drowning, and near asphyxiation. Detainees have died under questionable circumstances while incarcerated.

[}:)]  You must be blind.  

FYI, posting material from other websites without attributing credit to its author is plagiarism.

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by NellieBly

And the U.S. takes the high road....


Each day brings more information about the appalling abuses inflicted upon men and women held by the United States in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere around the world.

U.S. forces have used interrogation techniques including hooding, stripping detainees naked, subjecting them to extremes of heat, cold, noise and light, and depriving them of sleep—in violation of the Geneva Conventions and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

This apparently routine infliction of pain, discomfort, and humiliation has expanded in all too many cases into vicious beatings, sexual degradation, sodomy, near drowning, and near asphyxiation. Detainees have died under questionable circumstances while incarcerated.

Good suggestion for you Nellie: Why waste your breath with us?  Next time you pass a few returning troops at TIA, why don't you confront them about being torturers, sodomites, and impress them with your knowledge and applicability of the Geneva Convention?

[iplaw]

quote:Originally posted by NellieBly

And the U.S. takes the high road....


Each day brings more information about the appalling abuses inflicted upon men and women held by the United States in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere around the world.

U.S. forces have used interrogation techniques including hooding, stripping detainees naked, subjecting them to extremes of heat, cold, noise and light, and depriving them of sleep—in violation of the Geneva Conventions and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

This apparently routine infliction of pain, discomfort, and humiliation has expanded in all too many cases into vicious beatings, sexual degradation, sodomy, near drowning, and near asphyxiation. Detainees have died under questionable circumstances while incarcerated.

[xx(]

[mr.jaynes]

quote:Originally posted by cannon_fodder

Mr. Jaynes - so the people's failure to evacuate NO, the cities failure to plan for the inevitable, the state failure to respond, and FEMA's lackluster response is a reflection on the president?  I didnt know he was so intimately involved with every cities disaster planning.  When did he visit with Tulsa on our tornado response planning?

pmcalk - I wasnt really grading him on a % correct/wrong basis.  I guess an F would be everything that could have gone wrong has - a severe negative.  C would be maintain the status quo and "A" would be perfectly handled.

As for the "President," he could have overlooked politics, and loosened the bureaucracy a bit. Hey, there's plenty of blame to go around, from the local level to the Federal level.

[cannon_fodder]

quote:Originally posted by NellieBly

And the U.S. takes the high road....


Each day brings more information about the appalling abuses inflicted upon men and women held by the United States in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere around the world.

U.S. forces have used interrogation techniques including hooding, stripping detainees naked, subjecting them to extremes of heat, cold, noise and light, and depriving them of sleep—in violation of the Geneva Conventions and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

This apparently routine infliction of pain, discomfort, and humiliation has expanded in all too many cases into vicious beatings, sexual degradation, sodomy, near drowning, and near asphyxiation. Detainees have died under questionable circumstances while incarcerated.

[continued]...This must end. Torture or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading practices should be as unthinkable as slavery. U.S. Department of Defense officials have announced that certain stress interrogation techniques will no longer be used in Iraq. But President Bush should ban all forms of abuse during interrogation in Iraq and everywhere else that the United States holds people in custody. It is wrong in itself and leads to further atrocities.

- Human Rights Watch.  Online Data Source:
http://hrw.org/campaigns/torture.htm, last visited 5/11/2007.

[rwarn17588]

Speaking of torture, Gen. Petraeus has come out publicly against it. Here's a letter from a few days ago:

10 May 2007

Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen serving in Multi-National Force—Iraq:

Our values and the laws governing warfare teach us to respect human dignity, maintain our integrity, and do what is right. Adherence to our values distinguishes us from our enemy. This fight depends on securing the population, which must understand that we—not our enemies—occupy the moral high ground. This strategy has shown results in recent months. Al Qaeda's indiscriminate attacks, for example, have finally started to turn a substantial portion of the Iraqi population against it.

In view of this, I was concerned by the results of a recently released survey conducted last fall in Iraq that revealed an apparent unwillingness on the part of some US personnel to report illegal actions taken by fellow members of their units. The study also indicated that a small percentage of those surveyed may have mistreated noncombatants. This survey should spur reflection on our conduct in combat.

I fully appreciate the emotions that one experiences in Iraq.

I also know firsthand the bonds between members of the "brotherhood of the close fight." Seeing a fellow trooper killed by a barbaric enemy can spark frustration, anger, and a desire for immediate revenge. As hard as it might be, however, we must not let these emotions lead us—or our comrades in arms—to commit hasty, illegal actions. In the event that we witness or hear of such actions, we must not let our bonds prevent us from speaking up.

Some may argue that we would be more effective if we sanctioned torture or other expedient methods to obtain information from the enemy. They would be wrong. Beyond the basic fact that such actions are illegal, history shows that they also are frequently neither useful nor necessary. Certainly, extreme physical action can make someone "talk"; however, what the individual says may be of questionable value. In fact our experience in applying the interrogation standards laid out in the Army Field Manual (2-22.3) on Human Intelligence Collector Operations that was published last year shows that the techniques in the manual work effectively and humanely in eliciting information from detainees.

We are, indeed, warriors. We train to kill our enemies. We are engaged in combat, we must pursue the enemy relentlessly, and we must be violent at times. What sets us apart from our enemies in this fight, however, is how we behave. In everything we do, we must observe the standards and values that dictate that we treat noncombatants and detainees with dignity and respect. While we are warriors, we are also all human beings. Stress caused by lengthy deployments and combat is not a sign of weakness; it is a sign that we are human. If you feel such stress, do not hesitate to talk to your chain of command, your chaplain, or a medical expert.

We should use the survey results to renew our commitment to the values and standards that make us who we are and to spur re-examination of these issues. Leaders, in particular, need to discuss these issues with their troopers—and, as always, they need to set the right example and strive to ensure proper conduct. We should never underestimate the importance of good leadership and the difference it can make.

Thanks for what you continue to do. It is an honor to serve with each of you.

David H. Petraeus
General, United States Army
Commanding

[cannon_fodder]

Looks like we may have the right man for the job over there. His letter is well written, to the point, and perfectly tailored for his audience.

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by rwarn17588

Al Qaeda's indiscriminate attacks, for example, have finally started to turn a substantial portion of the Iraqi population against it.

Wait a second, I thought Al-Qaeda wasn't in Iraq...

[rwarn17588]

Not before we invaded.

[mr.jaynes]

quote:Originally posted by Conan71

quote:Originally posted by rwarn17588

Al Qaeda's indiscriminate attacks, for example, have finally started to turn a substantial portion of the Iraqi population against it.

Wait a second, I thought Al-Qaeda wasn't in Iraq...

And now, like Tribbles, they just keep on replicating themselves....

[iplaw]

quote:Originally posted by rwarn17588

Not before we invaded.

For christ's sake, how can you be so uninformed?  

Zarqawi (the now-dead leader of Al-Qaeda in Iraq) was in Baghdad BEFORE we arrived in 2003.  Saddam was giving safe passage to Taliban refugees from the Afghanistan war.  These are proven facts and there are numerous news reports backing those statements up.  Iraq was not their base of operations, that was Afghanistan, but they certainly were given safe passage.

The more I discuss these issues with you people it's becoming more clear to me that several of you just pull things out of your a$$ without having done any research whatsoever.

[iplaw]

quote:Originally posted by mr.jaynes

And now, like Tribbles, they just keep on replicating themselves....

Yes.  And the only way to get them to stop is to give in and walk away.  We can never retaliate or deal heavyhandedly with a rouge terrorist state ever again, because it just upsets them.  What nonsense.

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by rwarn17588

Not before we invaded.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/02/05/sprj.irq.alqaeda.links/

[iplaw]

Getting back to the topic at hand, it's interesting to see today that Congress' approval rating is lower than the President's...

[Conan71]

What ever happened to the "First 100 hours"?