Tortured logic (Bennington Banner editorial)

Editorial,
Posted: 04/24/2009 03:06:05 AM EDT
Friday, April 24

How did we get there — how did the US of A, the nation supposed to be a beacon of freedom and hope around the world, become the image of a brute torturer to millions?

Well, we could start by investigating how torture became a semi-official policy of this nation during the Bush administration's overblown War on Terror. We could focus on those who, with a wink and a nod, and sometimes, we hope, with a memo or e-mail, authorized waterboarding and other inhumane treatment of prisoners.

Former Vice President Dick Cheney has become the lead defender of torture on the talk show circuit, so his records would be a good place to start, along with those of former Secretary of State and national security advisor Condoleezza Rice; the CIA, the Pentagon, and ultimately, President Bush himself. Mr. Cheney, though, appears as a driving force.

President Obama has wisely decided not to seek prosecutions in most cases but to support investigations so that Americans will understand what happened when paranoia and power madness overtook our government and spread down through the ranks of military and counterespionage personnel ... http://www.benningtonbanner.com/opinion/ci_12216642