Cheney Admits He Approved Torture (VIDEO)

Cheney admits authorizing detainee’s torture

Raw Story- David Edwards and Stephen C. Webster
Published: Monday December 15, 2008

Outgoing VP says Guantanamo prison should stay open until end of terror war, but has no idea when that might be.

Monday, outgoing Vice President Dick Cheney made a startling statement on a nation-wide, televised broadcast.

When asked by ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl whether he approved of interrogation tactics used against a so-called “high value prisoner” at the controversial Guantanamo Bay prison, Mr. Cheney, in a break from his history of being press-shy, admitted to giving official sanctioning of torture.

“I supported it,” he said regarding the practice known as “water-boarding,” a form of simulated drowning. After World War II, Japanese soldiers were tried and convicted of war crimes in US courts for water-boarding, a practice which the outgoing Bush administration attempted to enshrine in policy.

“I was aware of the program, certainly, and involved in helping get the process cleared, as the agency in effect came in and wanted to know what they could and couldn’t do,” Cheney said. “And they talked to me, as well as others, to explain what they wanted to do. And I supported it.”

He added: “It’s been a remarkably successful effort, and I think the results speak for themselves.”

ABC asked him if in hindsight he thought the tactics went too far. “I don’t,” he said.

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So What?

Man, you just have to admire the deep humanity of those “compassionate conservatives.” The moronic monkey is the perfect example of the “compassionate conservative” in action, as he devotes all of two words to answer a question about the hell he unleashed upon a people who had done nothing to him, or to any of us.

Tens of thousands of lives at least, and maybe hundreds of thousands of lives, were ended when Chimpy decided to one-up his daddy by going after Saddam. In the ensuing years, we’ve lost more of our own people there than Osama managed to take out on September 11. Our economy, in the meantime, has become a shambles, and a lot of THAT can also be traced back to the moronic monkey’s war of choice. Kabul in Afghanistan is well on the way to becoming a modern-day Dien Bien Phu, pirates rule the seas near the Arabian Peninsula, and starvation is a distinct reality for millions of people worldwide. ALL OF THIS can be traced right back to the moronic monkey’s Oedipal disaster.

So what?

In an interview with a reporter following a shoe being thrown at his head, President George W. Bush had a snippy answer for the fact that al Qaeda didn’t take a stand in Iraq until he invaded: “So what?”

Bush spoke with ABC’s Martha Raddatz following the shoe incident in Baghdad, which reportedly left White House spokesperson Dana Perino injured during the melee that ensued as the Iraqi journalist who threw the shoe was being subdued.

During the interview, Bush says his legacy will “take time,” but includes No Child Left Behind and “52 months of uninterrupted job growth,” then speaks about his role in “protecting” America after 9/11. He mentions that al Qaeda has turned out to be a problem in Iraq.

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i wear a size 8 ladies

by betmo

i have been on hiatus from blogging regularly.  i don’t have all that much to comment on these days- not much has really changed and we are all in waiting mode.  my personal thought- the holiday season won’t start until january 20, 2009.  which brings me to today’s hot story- shoes.  i read suzie q every day and i also read bob cesca- another contributor here at suzie’s blog– dare i say religiously?  in light of the shoe throwing incident in iraq, bob took a dissenting view- and i do agree with him in theory- but you can’t rationalize emotions.

bob’s overall thought was that the shoe throwing was a violent act directed at the president of the united states and it should be treated accordingly.  i agree- and my first thought was- ‘why did it take so long for secret service to intervene?’ now, i realize that it was only seconds- but the secret service are right there next to the president- and i just wonder at their response time.  but i digress…

i guess i don’t need to explain to bob why so very many people worldwide are cheering for the shoe wielding journalist rather than bush.  mr. al-zaidi knew the repercussions of his actions but stood and did what he did anyway-and it’s what all of us want too- to show bush that the entire world does not approve.  it is 8 years of frustration for americans and 5 years of devastation for the iraqis packaged in 2 men’s shoes.  and the fact that bush did not initially know what it meant to have a shoe thrown at you in an arabic nation- one we invaded and whose people we have horribly mistreated- well, it’s representative of the last 8 years.

still, bob goes on to explain about the office of the presidency being separate from the occupant- and he does a damned fine job- and again, i agree.  politics aside- the office of the presidency should be held to a high standard and should be protected to the fullest- and as much as we may agree with mr. al-zaidi we cannot believe that violence towards an american president can be tolerated.  but, i guess the iraqis are smarter than most americans give them credit for– they aren’t charging mr. al-zaidi with throwing shoes at bush- but at mr. al-maliki.  we all know he was referring to bush as the dog- but this saves face for everyone and hopefully spares mr. al-zaidi.  most iraqis look at him as a hero (and so does the left here in america) and many iraqis have good reason not to trust american politicians from the bush administration.

as for bush, well, apparently, he has good reflexes and remains good natured (at least in public) about the whole thing.  he said that he thought it was a ‘sign of a free society’– and since america is still partially free- there are going to be several peace rallies in washington on wednesday– featuring, of course, shoes.

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Obama Had No Direct Contact With Blagojevich Regarding Senate Replacement

llinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, left, says goodbye to his two daughters in a mini van as his wife Patti waits to depart their home in Chicago, Monday, Dec. 15, 2008. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

Obama: No Blagojevich Contact, No “Inappropriate Discussions”

December 15, 2008 05:08 PM EST |

CHICAGO — President-elect Barack Obama had no direct contact with Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich about the appointment of a Senate replacement and his aides had “no inappropriate discussions,” a spokesman for the transition office said Monday in disclosing the results of an internal review.

The spokesman, Dan Pfeiffer, said the review itself would be kept confidential at least until the week of Dec. 22 at the request of federal prosecutors “in order not to impede their investigation of the governor.”

Controversy has swirled around the president-elect and his incoming White House chief of staff, Rep. Rahm Emanuel, following Blagojevich’s arrest last week on charges he schemed to trade Obama’s Senate seat for personal gain.

As governor, Blagojevich has sole authority to appoint a replacement, although fellow Democrats have demanded he refrain from doing so and Illinois lawmakers may consider legislation stripping him of his power.

State lawmakers also took the first step toward possible impeachment during the day.

MORE HERE

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Captain Sherlock Solves 9/11

Field McConnell Born 1949 to career USAF bomber pilot and WWII army nurse. He is a member of Scholars for 9/11 Truth and Pilots for 9/11 Truth.

His web site is at CaptainSherlock.com

Biography:

1949-1967: USAF dependent living in Texas, Florida, Massachusetts, Puerto Rico, Hawaii
1967:Graduated from Punahou School, Honolulu
1967-1971: US Naval Academy, Annapolis
1971-1977: US Marine Corps pilot A4, KC130
1977-1993: North Dakota ANG pilot, F4, F16
1978: William Tell, World-wide fighter competition
1986: William Tell, World-wide fighter competition
1993: Retired as Lieutenant Colonel
1978-2007: North Central, Republic, Northwest Airline pilot
Retired early 3-5-07 due whistleblowing 9-11
Captain DC9, A320, DC10, B747-400

I began my study of 9-11-01 when the local paper, the Fargo Forum, called me at home early in the after noon of 9-11-01. The reporter talk about 40 minutes then asked if I could be
photographed for a front page story. The Fargo Forum, a Pullitzer Prize winning daily in Fargo ND, sent a photo guy out to my farm near Glyndon MN 13 miles east of Fargo ND.
I have that front page and page A5 [rest of the story and can email it to you]. On 9-12-01 the headline was “Our National Saw Evil” with photo of rubble, Osama, GW and me.

That demonstrates clearly that I was sought as an “expert” on 9-11. The newspaper knew that I had flown with and retired from the ND ANG as a L/C after having flown 16 years with them in the F4 Phantom and F16 Falcon.

My interested has remained high as my college classmate, [ USNA 71 ] was the Captain of AA77 which was vaporized over the Atlantic 45 minutes prior to the unmanned aerial vehicle that killed another USNA alum, Capt Gerald DeConto whose window the object flew into. I felt strongly on 9-11 it was an inside job, and by 9-12-01 I knew with a moderate degree of certainty that it, in
fact, was.

Read more about Captain McConnel’s classmates.

Here is the full version of his movie from Google or you can buy a CD from his web site. It is beautifully presented and contains information that won’t be found anywhere else. It is 1 hour 16 minutes and can be streamed.

Full Movie

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India & Pakistan Ready To Wipe Each Other Off The Map?

Well, If you didn’t see this coming then you are just not living on planet earth.

Pakistan and India have been notorious enemies for decades and the Kashmir situation has not improved. Perhaps the Mumbai “false flag” was the final straw. It’s clear someone is trying to start a regional war (Hint: Dick Cheney)

WASHINGTON (CNN) — The United States believes that India’s air force began preliminary preparations for a possible attack against Pakistan in the immediate aftermath of the recent massacre in Mumbai, CNN has learned.

Edition.CNN.com

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Did FBI Lawyers Know Warrantless Wiretaps Were ‘Probably Illegal’?

Whistleblower: FBI lawyers knew warrantless wiretaps were ‘probably illegal’

Raw Story- Nick Juliano
Published: Monday December 15, 2008

The former FBI agent who blew the whistle on the Bush administration’s decision to circumvent the law in order to warrantlessly eavesdrop on Americans decided to go to the press after a senior government lawyer tried to steer him away from questioning the “probably illegal” surveillance program.

Newsweek investigative reporter Michael Isikoff profiled Thomas M. Tamm this weekend, revealing the circumstances surrounding the decorated agent’s decision to become a secret source for the New York Times reporters who would reveal the story of the warrantless wiretapping activities.

Tamm uncovered evidence of the extra legal surveillance while working with the Justice Department’s Office of Intelligence Policy and Review, which handled sensitive wiretaps of suspected terrorists, when he discovered that some surveillance seemed to be happening outside the boundaries of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

MORE HERE

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Afternoon Jukebox- Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

Judy Garland-Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

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Iraqi Group Has Filed 200 Lawsuits Against Rumsfeld And American Security Firms For Torture

Iraqi group files 200 lawsuits against Rumsfeld, US security firms for torture

Via Raw Story/Agence France-Presse
Published: Monday December 15, 2008

AMMAN, Dec 15, 2008 (AFP) – A Jordan-based Iraqi rights group said on Monday it has filed 200 lawsuits against US former defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and American security firms for their alleged role in torturing Iraqis.

Ali Qeisi, head of the group the “Society of Victims of the US Occupation in Iraq,” said the cases, relating to torture and abuse of Iraqi prisoners, have been recently filed in federal courts in Virginia, Michigan and Maryland.

“Around 30 lawsuits have been accepted so far,” Qeisi told AFP. The others are still under consideration.

“The torture was systemic, and those responsible for it should be punished and the victims should be compensated,” he said.

Qeisi said he himself was tortured by US troops in Iraq during a six-month detention, though he refused to elaborate.

MORE HERE

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Economic Earthquake Slams Global Markets…

Calling Foreign Debt ‘Immoral,’ Leader Allows Ecuador to Default

By Anthony Faiola – WAPO

Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa said yesterday that his nation is defaulting on its foreign debt, fulfilling his longtime populist pledge to leave international creditors in the lurch.

The default, Ecuador’s second in 10 years, could rattle already jittery investors who have pulled billions of dollars out of emerging markets in recent months as the global financial crisis has spread. It could also set back U.S. interests in Latin America, as Correa now seeks to deepen financial ties with allies like Iran, which this week granted the South American nation a new $40 million credit line.

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