Torture must be investigated, not tolerated Nov 19, 2008
At Guantanamo, at Abu Ghraib and in a little gulag of secret CIA prisons overseas, the Bush administration failed to live up to these basic responsibilities, and thus sullied us all ... Years from now, we will be shocked to see those pictures of naked prisoners being humiliated and abused at Abu Ghraib and we will be ashamed of a U.S. government that punished low-level troops for their sadism but exonerated the higher-ups who made such sadism possible. (Albany Times Union)
An end to Guantánamo, torture era Nov 19, 2008
At Guant;namo, at Abu Ghraib, and in a little gulag of secret CIA prisons overseas, the Bush administration failed to live up to these basic responsibilities and thus sullied us all. We will look back on the Bush years and find it incredible, and disgraceful, that individuals were captured in battle or "purchased" from self-interested tribal warlords, whisked to Guant;namo, classified as "enemy combatants" but not accorded the rights that that status should have accorded them, held for years... (Daily Iowan, IA)
Anti-torture group hosts documentary Nov 19, 2008
With footage of soldiers, their attorneys, a released detainee, U.S. Attorney John Yoo, and news footage and photos, the film tells a story of abuse at Bagram Air Base, Abu Ghraib and Guant;namo Bay. It looks at actions taken by President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Secretary Rumsfeld, and Attorney General Gonzalez. (NJ.com -- Times)
Bauer power: 24 movie prequel freshens show Nov 18, 2008
Since then, however, the fighting in Iraq has grown far less popular, and stories like those surrounding the Abu Ghraib prison and Guantanamo Bay expose the difficult and morally questionable real-life choices that the country, its soldiers, and its leaders face. That means Bauer is now exposing an uncomfortable aspect of ourselves that we already see in the newspapers. (MSNBC -- News)
Closing Guantnamo Nov 17, 2008
Abu Ghraib, in 2004, further contributed to that image. Closing Guant;namo likely would go a long way in helping to re-establish the United States' good name around the world. (San Diego Union-Tribune -- Opinion)
Jack Bauer of '24' seeks 'Redemption' in movie Nov 17, 2008
"The post-9/11 scenario of wish fulfillment that Jack represented was replaced by some of the things that happened in the country, from Gitmo to Abu Ghraib. Our conduct in the world became a bigger issue, and Jack became a darker, more complex character.". At the same time, he says, "we couldn't renounce Jack's behavior; it would discredit the entire series. But the issue comes back time and again, and we give voice to the price that's paid for the 'whatever it takes' mind-set. I don't want to... (USA Today)
Applause for a new fright club Nov 16, 2008
One thing that really seems to have made an impression in America was Abu Ghraib. The fact that we were capable of behaving in a completely inhuman manner that was utterly degrading to everyone concerned. (Boston Globe)
Iraq Mulls Security Pact Nov 16, 2008
For instance, U.S. soldiers will be granted immunity for crimes in connection with the scandal of Abu Ghraib. To Maliki, the pact as it stands is preferable to another UN security council mandate to extend the stay of U.S. troops. (Suite101.com)
No country for the burnt Bushes Nov 16, 2008
The outgoing Commander-in-Chief can add to his CV the flawed intelligence on weapons of mass destruction, Republican corruption and the Abu Ghraib jail scandal. Note, too, the bungled response to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, interrogation techniques such as waterboarding, Guantanamo Bay isolation and the Walter Reed National Army Medical Centre scandal of sub-standard treatment of wounded Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. (Melbourne Herald Sun)
Group plans protest today outside fort, in SV park Nov 16, 2008
Kennon said the fort s past association with the former School of the Americas in providing manuals to train Latin American military on how to use torture means the Intelligence Center has a history of teaching such unsavory practices and that, along with what happened at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq where Iraqi detainees were harassed, are the reasons for protesting the fort. The Schools of the Americas no longer exists. (Sierra Vista Herald, AZ)
S Tharoor: How Obama can win trust Nov 16, 2008
A good shortlist to start with would be to close down Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib, abjure torture and rendition, prosecute Blackwaters killings of civilians, and vow that America will never conquer its enemies by behaving like them. Its important to accept that these mistakes were made, and that the Ugly American was not merely the title of a novel. (India Times, India)
The American Future: A History Nov 15, 2008
AMERICAN GIs tortured Arab prisoners at Abu Ghraib in 2004, about the time George Bush's failure on climate change was looking obstinate, destructive. My fondness for America wore thin. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
Will Republicans give President Obama a fair shake? Nov 15, 2008
Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib, Military Service sexual abuse. no-bid contracts. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
Once-missing Soldier inducted into Gimlet brotherhood Nov 15, 2008
From the day Maupin went missing, an ongoing and vigorous search mission was passed down to each successive unit assigned the operational responsibility of the northern Baghdad and Abu Ghraib areas the area from which Maupin went missing. Early in 2008, as 1st Bn. (KWTX.com, TX)
Who's An Enemy? Nov 14, 2008
Over the past 20 years or so, he's also addressed the prison industrial complex, from Abu Ghraib to torture to Guantanamo Bay. Images. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Entertainment)
Letter from America Nov 14, 2008
Almost all the surveys point to foreign policy - the war in Iraq, the scandal of the Abu Ghraib prison, the detention camp in Guantnamo Bay, Cuba - as the principal reasons for disenchantment. While improvement on the foreign policy front has remained static, however, private organizations have started various initiatives to tackle the image problem on a more personal level. (International Herald Tribune)
He's got the whole world in his hands, but can Obama do it justice? Nov 13, 2008
Suddenly the American flag is waving not burning, the world expects he will somehow right the wrongs of Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib, of Bush Administration defiance of the United Nations and the Geneva Conventions ... But its insistence on confidentiality meant its reports were sent in secrecy to commanding officers, who, in the case of Abu Ghraib, chose to ignore them - until one leaked to The Wall Street Journal. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Nigeria: Obama's Victory and the Resurrected Hope Nov 12, 2008
Yes, American military prowess has drained away into what Winston Churchill called "the thoughtless deserts of Mesopotamia," and its moral authority has been weakened by events in places from Guantanamo Bay to Abu Ghraib. Yet, the United States remains the world's only superpower, the only nation that matters in every part of the globe, the only country capable of mobilising international action to tackle global problems. (allAfrica.com)
Free advice for Barack Nov 12, 2008
Stop repudiating the values for which the United States has long stood close down Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib, abjure torture and rendition, prosecute Blackwater's killings of civilians and vow that the United States will never conquer its enemies by behaving like them. Show the world that America will again be a land animated by hope, not impelled by fear. (Montana Standard, MT)
Discounting Family Values Nov 11, 2008
Private Lynndie England s infamous exploits in the Abu Ghraib prison were another sign of the Pentagon s direct complicity in the feminist-inspired degradation of American women. In pursuit of its military agenda, the Bush administration achieved another landmark of gender-role engineering. (The American Conservative)
Desmond Tutu: A new icon of an age beyond race Nov 11, 2008
We saw the horrific images from Abu Ghraib and learned of gruesome acts performed in the name of gathering information. Sometimes the torture itself was couched in the government's euphemisms calling waterboarding an "interrogation technique.". (Sacramento Bee -- Opinion)
Warrior martyrs Nov 8, 2008
At that time, only the committed knew or cared about the incarcerated of Guantanamo Bay and just a handful of people had heard of Abu Ghraib ... "Of course," says McQueen, "with the war going on, all those comparisons are being made. But what I liked about this subject was that it was happening in Western Europe; these things took place in British prison cells. It wasn't in a faraway country, like Cuba or Iraq. People have short memories. This only happened 27 years ago. Young people are... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
My vision for America: Speeches by Barack Obama Nov 8, 2008
America is just an occupying Army in Muslim lands, the shadow of a shrouded figure standing on a box at Abu Ghraib, the power behind the throne of a repressive leader. They say we are at war with Islam. (Independent)
More of this story Nov 8, 2008
It's Great 2B American is the solo performance artist's most political work, tackling everything from the Pledge of Allegiance to Abu Ghraib in an analysis of what it means to be an American - and specifically for Kwong, to be Chinese-Japanese-American - with fearlessness and wit ... His punk-rock take on Abu Ghraib features a dancing masked prisoner and a video montage that ends with an image of George W. Bush and Condoleezza Rice looking like actors in a movie poster with guns. (Los Angeles Downtown News, CA)
After Bush, Arabs see hope in Obama Nov 7, 2008
Negative imageOver past years, the bloodshed in Iraq, fears of war with Iran, abuse at Abu Ghraib and prisoners at Guantanamo convinced many that the United States was an anti-Arab, anti-Muslim bully. A feeling of despair and hopelessness became widespread and few believed U.S. policies would ever change. (MSNBC -- International)
Andrew J. Bacevich: Evangelical foreign policy is over Nov 6, 2008
In the eyes of critics, Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo show that all of Bush's freedom talk is simply a lie. Viewed from a Niebuhrean perspective, they become the predictable if illegitimate offspring of Bush's convictions. (Boston Globe)
Africa, and world, celebrate Obama victory Nov 6, 2008
The Bush administration alienated the Middle East by mistreating prisoners at its detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and inmates at Iraq s Abu Ghraib prison human rights violations also condemned worldwide. Some Iraqis, who have suffered through five years of a war ignited by the United States and its allies, said they would believe positive change when they saw it. (DeKalb Daily Chronicle, IL)
MSNBC Trumpets: 'This is What the World Wanted' Nov 6, 2008
Pointing to Iraq as the primary culprit ("so many believed it was invaded on false pretenses"), Friesen also highlighted "other reasons," such as how "after Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay, the U.S. is perceived by many as a violator rather than an upholder of human rights" and "America is seen contributing, but not doing much to solve, global warming." From Istanbul, she concluded. "Here in Turkey, as in much of the world, people want to turn a page on the Bush years. In fact, polls show the... (MediaResearch.org)
Obama cheered around globe Nov 6, 2008
The Bush administration alienated the Middle East by mistreating prisoners at its detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and inmates at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison - human rights violations also condemned worldwide. Originally published in the Athens Banner-Herald on Thursday, November 06, 2008. (Athens Banner-Herald)
Three anti-Qaida fighters killed in Baghdad explosions Nov 6, 2008
In a separate incident, a local leader of the Awakening Council group was killed in the Abu Ghraib area in western Baghdad, when an explosive charge planted in his car went off on Thursday morning, the source added. Recently, a wave of bomb attacks and gunfire killed dozens of the councils' fighters. (Xinhuanet, China)
For the Republicans, It Could Have Been Worse Nov 6, 2008
After eight ugly years of AIG, WMDs, Abu Ghraib, Enron, Blackwater, freedom fries, yellowcake, record deficits, Fannie and Freddie and Brownie, Mark Foley and Duke Cunningham and Tom DeLay, the Republican Party should qualify for a bailout. Retiring GOP Congressman Tom Davis memorably declared that if Republicans were a dog food, they'd be pulled off the shelves and their usually well-funded candidates were badly outspent this cycle. (Time.com)
Blame for power hikes falls on high fuel costs Nov 6, 2008
BERLIN - The world was riveted by the election drama unfolding Tuesday in the United States, inspired by the hope embodied by Barack Obama or simply relieved that - whoever wins - an administration that spawned Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay was coming to an end. (Metro Canada - Halifax)
World watches, assesses results Nov 5, 2008
The Bush administration alienated Muslims by mistreating prisoners at its detention center for terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and inmates at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison. Nizar al-Kortas, a columnist for Kuwait's Al-Anbaa newspaper, saw an Obama victory as "a historic step to change the image of the arrogant American administration.". (Boston Globe)
New twist on government control of data: use of subpoenas Nov 5, 2008
In addition, they contend, this administration has used the rubric of national security to cover up controversial activities - from the Abu Ghraib prison abuses to the National Security Agency's domestic wiretapping. "[National security has] been abused to shield high-level political leadership on the torture issue. It's been used as a way to intimate the press [and] create a climate of fear and intimidation about government employees to dissuade whistle-blowers," says Romero of the ACLU.. (Yahoo News -- Privacy Issues)
Leaning Obama, But Happy With Any Change Nov 5, 2008
(AP) The world was riveted by the election drama unfolding Tuesday in the United States, inspired by the hope embodied by Barack Obama or simply relieved that - whoever wins - the administration that spawned Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay was coming to an end ... Alexander Rahrdirector of the German Council on Foreign Relations The Bush administration alienated Muslims by mistreating prisoners at its detention center for terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and inmates at Iraq's Abu Ghraib... (CBS News -- World)
Victoria snubs Mel B.s invite Nov 5, 2008
BERLIN - The world was riveted by the election drama unfolding Tuesday in the United States, inspired by the hope embodied by Barack Obama or simply relieved that - whoever wins - an administration that spawned Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay was coming to an end. TAIPEI, Taiwan - Taiwan and China set aside decades of hostilities Tuesday, agreeing to expand flights and allow shipping links across the Taiwan Strait - a potential hotspot that has long threatened to become a war zone. (Metro Canada - Toronto)
Meet 'FOX & Friends' Nov 3, 2008
He was among the first reporters to cover the Abu Ghraib prison scandal and the subsequent court martial cases held in Baghdad. Wright also spent time embedded with U.S. and British troops, reporting on the military s humanitarian efforts in Baghdad, Basrah, and Mosul. (Fox News -- Politics)
Syria and `the law of the jungle' Nov 3, 2008
Abu Ghraib, Guantanomo Bay, suspension of habeus corpus, Patriot (ha. Act etc. (Toronto Star)
Looking Back Nov 2, 2008
AlHaj was imprisoned twice, once in Baghdad's notorious Abu Ghraib facility. In 1991, AlHaj's mother sold everything she had to raise the $25,000 it cost to buy her son an illegal passport and spirit him out of Iraq. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Entertainment)
How eloquence shrank to election buzzwords Nov 1, 2008
But when O'Connor read Winthrop's words centuries later, it was at the same time that the horrific images of the torture and humiliation of prisoners at Iraq's Abu Ghraib jail by American forces were everywhere in the news. That part of Winthrop's sermon seemed like a prophesy fulfilled. (Globe and Mail)
Who would have thought? Nov 1, 2008
Who would have thought Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib were illegal. Who would have known that you can spy on Russia from Wasilla, Alaska. (Lodi News Sentinel, CA)
Super fun doing the limbo Oct 31, 2008
Morris, whose last film, "Standard Operating Procedure," was about the events at Abu Ghraib, told us he's at work on his first feature film in years. Called "Barstow, Texas," it's being produced by Laura Ziskin and written by the two-time Oscar winner Alvin Sargent. (Boston Globe)
* HRW warns US on transfer of detainees Oct 31, 2008
But after the US made itself synonymous with abuse of detainees in Iraq during the Abu Ghraib scandal, the least it can do now is assure that a security agreement does not pave the way for further abuse, said Sarah Leah Whitson, HRW director for the Middle East and North Africa. The rights group, which documented torture and ill-treatment of detainees by Iraqi police and security forces, called on the the US government to ensure detainees are not in danger of further abuse. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Trudy Rubin: McCain talks of diplomacy, but seems to prefer a more militant U.S. Oct 31, 2008
"Our task will be to involve other nations in the creation of a new order so they think it's their own." Kissinger said America's image in Western Europe had been harmed "by behavior at the beginning of the current administration," such as the rejection of the Kyoto treaty, the Bush preemption doctrine on Iraq, and the images that emerged from Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. Could a Republican president convey a new image. (Sacramento Bee -- Opinion)
A real-life horror show with few surprises Oct 30, 2008
Yes, "Torturing Democracy," written and produced by Sherry Jones, highlights the deeply disturbing conditions at Guantanamo Bay and Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison. We see images of shackled men with covered heads and cowering in cells - sometimes in reenactments based on courtroom testimony. (Boston Globe)
LETTERS: NCT, Oct. 29, 2008 Oct 30, 2008
Do you know nothing of Abu Ghraib, of Bush's desecration of our Constitution, of habeas corpus, waterboarding, torture. If not, do not vote. (North County Times)
Bush whacked in debate on moral authority Oct 30, 2008
The former NSW premier Bob Carr brandished pictures of the atrocities at Abu Ghraib prison and asked how such a government could be considered moral. The former Labor leader's theatrics were the icing on the cake after the Herald's chief correspondent, Paul McGeough, hammered the point home. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
10 comments Oct 30, 2008
They colluded to publish the slander that the Bush administration sponsored abuses at Abu Ghraib, created inhumane conditions at Gitmo, and routinely tortured enemy prisoners. Democratic presidential candidates Al Gore, John Kerry and Barack Obama have all blithely and falsely accused our troops of atrocities, from systematic torture and prisoner abuse to raping Iraqi civilians to air raiding Afghan villages. (Human Events Online)
US fell off the moral high ground Oct 29, 2008
Translation: going rogue has a price, only a part of which was the obscenity of Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay. There is a problem here, but does it lie in Bush the man, or in the American presidency and all its attendant institutions. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
The world and the new U.S. president Oct 29, 2008
Yes, American military prowess has drained away into what Winston Churchill called "the thoughtless deserts of Mesopotamia," and its moral authority has been weakened by events in places from Guantanamo Bay to Abu Ghraib. All that is true. (Globe and Mail -- International)
Hoover documents detail Iran's role in Iraq Oct 23, 2008
Any prisoner with potential of being spared the torture and death sentence will confess to anything, Abu Ghraib prison inmate being one example. Posted by Joe, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, 4 hours ago. (Palo Alto Online, CA)
Meanwhile, back at the War on Terror Oct 22, 2008
Updated: Wednesday, October 22, 2008 12:29 AM CDT FONT SIZE. By Leonard Pitts - Columnist (No comments posted. (DeKalb Daily Chronicle, IL)
LEONARD PITTS JR.: RIP truth, justice and the American Way Oct 22, 2008
Call: (800) 877-3400. Web Search powered by YAHOO. (Fresno Bee -- Opinion)
If bin Laden reemerges, McCain stands to gain Oct 21, 2008
The analysts speculated that bin Laden believed that Bush's aggressiveness in Iraq, as well as embarrassments such as the treatment of prisoners at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison and at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, had devastated America's image on the "Arab Street," sending many young radicals into Al Qaeda's hands. Whatever bin Laden intended, American voters clearly resented his taunting of their commander in chief, and the video helped rally last-minute support for Bush. (Boston Globe)
Nets Trumpet Powell's 'Major,' 'Powerful' 'Endorsement of Year' Oct 21, 2008
Reporter Dawna Friesen warned that the next President "faces a grim reality: Much of the world deeply distrusts, even dislikes, the United States" and she rued "much of the sympathy and solidarity that existed after 9/11 evaporated during the Bush years." Pointing to Iraq as the primary culprit ("so many believed it was invaded on false pretenses"), Friesen also highlighted "other reasons," such as how "after Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay, the U.S. is perceived by many as a violator rather than... (MediaResearch.org)
Journalist shares tale of her secret Jewish roots Oct 21, 2008
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Oliver Stone’s “W.” more of a curiosity than a potent piece of filmmaking Oct 21, 2008
wrote on Oct 20, 2008 12:35 PM:" A friend of mine by the way sent me the 2007 Oscar winning documentary 'Taxi to the Dark Side' which I wish could be as 'prominent' a film as 'W.' It is an examination of the Bush administration's DELIBERATE undermining of the post WWII, post Holocaust Geneva convention accords in order to use horrendous, even 'medieval' as well as more 'sophisticated' methods of torture REGULARLY and SYSTEMATICALLY at Bogram air base in Afghanistan, at Guantanamo AND of course... (La Crosse Tribune, WI)
New on DVD: 'Indiana Jones' still in fighting form Oct 17, 2008
By Mike Clark, USA TODAY A documentarian interviews the prison guards at Abu Ghraib, a lonely Japanese father encourages his daughter to marry, and Dorian Gray sells his soul to the devil ... The notorious Abu Ghraib prisoner-abuse and torture photos, their symbolic power and narrative limitations, dissected in one of the most provocative non-fiction movies yet from the incomparable Errol Morris. (USA Today -- Life)
'Soldiers of Conscience': To kill or not kill Oct 16, 2008
" In "Soldiers," Weimberg and Ryan focus on eight young soldiers, four of whom decide they can't pull the trigger after they reach the battlefield. Viewers may wonder why anyone with pacifist tendencies would join the Army, but each soldier has a trench epiphany - what the military calls a "crystallization of conscience" - and it's clear only the realities of wars can dredge up such emotions. Each man takes a different path. Sgt. Kevin Benderman, 10-year veteran from Tennessee, is most troubled... (San Francisco Chronicle)
CIA Tactics Endorsed In Secret Memos Oct 15, 2008
The second request from Tenet, in June 2004, reflected growing worries among agency officials who had just witnessed the public outcry over the Abu Ghraib scandal. Officials who held senior posts at the time also spoke of deteriorating relations between the CIA and the White House over the war in Iraq -- a rift that prompted some to believe that the agency needed even more explicit proof of the administration's support. (Washington Post)
KEVIN FERRIS: How to stop creating extremists: Separate, protect, re-evaluate Oct 15, 2008
Changes had begun long before Stone arrived, prompted by the abuses at Abu Ghraib and by riots and other disturbances at Bucca and Cropper. But it was under Stone and Petraeus that those changes received a boost in funding and support. (Fresno Bee -- Opinion)
RPT-FEATURE-US brings Iraq prison camp out of legal black hole Oct 15, 2008
The U.S. military says the system has been completely overhauled since the Abu Ghraib debacle in 2004, when photographs of soldiers sexually humiliating detainees brought the military into global disgrace ... Bucca may be a huge improvement over Abu Ghraib, but it has seen its share of problems ... Quantock, first sent to Iraq in 2004 in the wake of the Abu Ghraib scandal, has returned to run the detention system after writing a new detentions manual that stresses rehabilitation. (AlertNet)
Shaw Festival Announces Fall Lecture Series Oct 15, 2008
He has broken some of the biggest cover ups of the modern era -- from My Lai to Abu Ghraib -- and his work continues to uncover deceit and challenge corruption at the highest levels. In his analysis of U.S. foreign policy, he exposes the often shadowy world where official foreign policy stance meets political reality in other parts of the world. (Yahoo News -- Press Releases)
Bush officials 'endorsed torture' Oct 15, 2008
The request was made after the abuse of Iraqi detainees by US soldiers at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison became public, it said. Administration officials confirmed the existence of the memos, but neither they nor former intelligence officers would describe the still classified documents in detail, the newspaper reported. (Aljazeera.net)
Bush govt gave nod to torture: report Oct 15, 2008
Tenet made a second request in 2004 as revelations of abuse at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison came to light. "Officials who held senior posts at the time also spoke of deteriorating relations between the CIA and the White House over the war in Iraq - a rift that prompted some to believe that the agency needed even more explicit proof of the administration's support," the report said. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
