CALLS FOR FEDERAL JUDGE JAY BYBEE TO STEP DOWN

Back in March I wrote about Spain considering indictments against several Bush administration officials, Jay Bybee being one of them.






Jay Bybee was an assistant attorney general when he signed off on memos justifying the torture of people in the custody of the United States. From the opinion page of the Philidelphia Inquirer online:


Judge Bybee's cruelty: In approving torture, his remoteness from the actual torturers increases his degree of responsibility.




Go ahead and waterboard him. Admittedly, the procedure "causes an increase in carbon-dioxide level in the individual's blood. This increase in the carbon-dioxide level stimulates increased effort to breathe. This effort plus the cloth [placed over the mouth and nose and saturated with water] produces the perception of 'suffocation and incipient panic,' i.e., the perception of drowning." But "although the subject may experience the fear or panic associated with the feeling of drowning, the waterboard does not inflict physical pain. ... The waterboard is simply a controlled acute episode."

If you scroll down and read some of the comments, one misguided individual states the same tired argument about the terrorists not showing quarter to our people, etc. It is a tired, worn argument.

"The point is not whether torture is morally justifiable, the point
is that it is fucking illegal."

Tell me it was okay for the sheriff in Texas to waterboard prisoners for a confession. Go ahead. That motherfucker received 10 years in prison for that and the deputies involved received 4 years a piece.



You see? When an elected official or an appointed one, such as a judge or a police officer violates the public trust by breaking the law the consequences should be so unpleasant that one would be quite reticent in fucking around at all in the first place.


This shit pisses me off. It is the absolute arrogance of these assholes to not only break the law in such a violent fashion, but to write memos talking each other into believing it is justifiable and legal-when it clearly is not. Their behavior is absolutely unconscionable.

Jay Bybee needs to be removed from the bench; impeached, then prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Please do not expect me to obey the rule of law in the United States when we have such pathetic examples in our government officials.

I know people like this personally; you probably do also.

I sure as hell hope Spain hands down those indictments, furthermore, here in the US, the perpetrators of this shit need to be put on trial and we need to find out the truth about what was going on and what the hell these people were thinking.

I believe that although it might be painful for the United States to have a truth commission of sorts, (truthfully I would like to see Cheney/Bush et al behind bars,) it is absolutely essential for our country to move forward. This bullshit about not going after past crimes is absolutely ridiculous, for how can any crime be prosecuted if the prosecutor refuses to look in the past? It makes no sense whatsoever.



Call your members of Congress for your district, tell them you are not going to tolerate this crap. Here is a link to all fifty states...


Peace

image, thank you
Thanks to philly.com

CHENEY ADMITS TO TORTURE, CONDONES WATERBORDING

In an ABC interview, US V.P. Dick Cheney admitted to "getting the process cleared" or authorizing the use of water boarding on prisoners of war. While invoking 9/11 yet again, (which has become the get out of jail free card, and the "do anything you want and get away with it" pass), Cheney was adamant in insisting it was the right thing to do, despite the fact that it is against U.S. and International law.

If Cheney is allowed to admit on television his disregard for the law, without fear of prosecution, it will set a dangerous tone for future administrations to wantonly disregard law, human rights, and liberty, and flaunt their ability to avoid legitimate prosecution for their crimes. Furthermore, administrations will find it increasingly easy to use torture tactics on all people, American citizens included, when they deem necessary.

The blatant disregard for law, ethics and morality in this Conservative Christian administration is appalling. I have voted for this administration twice, I have been duped, I have held the measuring stick to them and they have fallen far short. I am thankful the term is almost finished.

If the President of the United States as well as the Vice President, SecDef, SecState, the Attorney General for God's sake, can violate the letter as well as the spirit of so many laws, why would I expect anyone to respect the legal system in my country, obey the law, and even give a damn that we have laws?

It is a question worth asking, and delving into. I believe we need to hold our elected officials, appointed politicians such as some judges, law enforcement personnel, accountable for their actions and make it extraordinarily painful if they violate the public trust.

Just some thoughts on a snowy Wednesday morning in Vancouver.
Peace-
Mike