The Senate Intelligence Committee report on the CIA’s use of torture reminds us that these reprehensible practices are entirely inconsistent with our national values and detrimental to our moral leadership in the world. It also reconfirmed what most intelligence professionals have said for a long time: that torture is an ineffective way to gather information—dangerous not only to our values, to our troops, and to our national leadership, but also to our basic ability to obtain quality intelligence. I applaud those, including President Obama and Senator McCain, who have sought to curb these ‘enhanced interrogation techniques’ and hope that this report forces us to reaffirm the moral and legal standards that are fundamental to our American values.
As someone who wore the uniform, your words, like those Sen. McCain and Sen. Reed who have linked their outrage over this to their service, I am glad to see you speak out so eloquently in favor of our values and against putting our own troops at risk by continuing this unjust policies.
How can we achieve accountability for those responsible and safeguards against this happening in the future?
His voting record negates his public comments.
I was fairly certain it was one of the few areas where his maverick reputation held up. Wouldn’t be surprised if this is not the case, and obviously he has votes for all the military operations that got us into this morass in the first place.
It’s mostly wink, nod, and “let the CIA handle it” if you get my drift.
I think the claim has been that waterboarding isn’t torture.
I’m not sure how anybody can claim that killing a man by stripping him, dousing him with water, and chaining him to a wall until he dies is anything but torture and murder.
Japanese soldiers for waterboarding American prisoners after WWII.
Germans were also convicted as war criminals for torture techniques included freezing temps and long standing.
All I am saying is that I am not aware of a question being put before Congress for a vote saying something like, “Shall the United States be authorized to engage in the following techniques for the purposes of eliciting intelligence?”
McCain had previously said that waterboarding is torture. So, yes, I would say he has voted in favor of torture.
Here is the article quoted above.
[Comment editing is still a false promise.]
as he speaks for honorable service and love of country.
We have previously discussed the obvious ineffectiveness of torture and the immorality.
What is not often discussed is what it does to those who torture. It may be difficult to view them as victimized as the those who were on the receiving end of the torture. It may not be equal, but it is still horrific. When viewing the pictures released of Abu Grahib, I saw enthusiastic young volunteers who were turned into monsters by Dick Cheney.
As in the Milgram esperiments, most went in with the hopes of protecting their country and returning home heroes, but were assigned to carry out immoral acts. Critics of the Milgram experiments have pointed out the adverse effects on those who are tricked into immoral acts and are unethical, and physically and psychologically abusive.
Further many of those who received confusing messages of the ends justify the means, come home to serve in public safety.