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I Thought We Had to Torture?

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Despite repeated statements by voices on the US political Right about the need to torture terrorist suspects in order to get actionable intelligence, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab – the Crotch Bomber – is singing like a bird from his US Federal prison cell near Detroit.

Mike Allen & Kasie Hunt at Politico have this:

The “underwear bomber” has begun cooperating with FBI counterterrorism agents and has provided “useful, current” intelligence, a law enforcement source told POLITICO. The source said: “It started last week, and has continued for several days. … We have been following up. The intelligence is not stale.” He certainly sees that there are incentives provided by the criminal justice system to cooperate.

It’s a wild idea for the Party of Lincoln and Real Americans to grasp, but the American system of justice and human rights might be the right one to use when pursuing justice and human rights in American terms.

George Bush and all of the same Republicans now accusing the President of the United States of Treason certainly thought so in December, 2001:

Republican criticisms were further undermined by reports that shoe bomber Richard Reid, who tried to bring down an airplane in December 2001, was read Miranda rights five minutes after being arrested. The Bush administration specifically rejected using a military tribunal to try Reid, instead opting to try him in civilian court.

I don’t know, maybe now isn’t the time to be following the likes of George Washington and Eisenhower.  There’s always the methods of Stalin and Tojo to keep in mind – now them’s was some real American heroes!


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/ 55 Comments

55 comments

  1. DTOzone

    to watch my torture-loving friends try to make sense of this on their tweets.

    One tweets;

    Olbermann is excited that AbdulMutallab is talking without having been tortured. Yeah, but with family pressure. Not always so lucky.

    and

    Olbermann thinks the administration should trumpet the successes of the AbdulMutallab case already. Wow, I forgot how insane this guy was.

    You really can’t debate anyone who’s point of view you just cannot understand.

  2. louisprandtl

    I bet some are under the belief that Jack Bauer is the real thing and intelligence is gathered from the captured terrorists by the authorities as they show in Fox TV show 24!

     

  4. creamer

    Over the weekend McCain was critical of letting the FBI interogate the “underwear bomber” for 45 minutes.Paraphrasing ” as some who’s been interogated, you don’t get much information in 45 minutes.”

    And from Susan Coliins per 1st Read:

    “I remain concerned that there was no consultation with intelligence officials before the Department of Justice unilaterally decided to treat Abdulmutallab as if he were an ordinary criminal. If Abdulmutallab is now talking in the context of plea negotiations, that is, of course, welcome, but it implies that the government is willing to grant him a measure of leniency for the information he is willing to provide. We will never know whether the quality and quantity of information might have been superior had he not been given a lawyer who is now guiding him on what to reveal and what not to disclose. The lack of coordination on the front end and the inexplicable, reflexive choice to use a law enforcement approach were dangerous decisions.”

    That sounds like an ego turf war thing. “I glad we’ve gained some intelligence, I’m just not happy how we got it.”(paraphrasing). Thats not the kind of crap I’m use to hearing from Ms. Collins. The doublespeak is so obvious.

    Its is quite consistent with Republican tactics, if the truth doesn’t support your narrative ignore it an push on.

  5. Shaun Appleby

    To choosing to live in fear or not.  Those who choose to do so, or have majority constituencies of such people, are mad at the rest of us for exposing their bad choices.

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