Talking Rights

The Obama Administration just announced the creation of a new, multi-institution group that will take over the questioning of high-value suspects in the “war on terror.” According to the Los Angeles Times, interrogators will “stay within the parameters of the Army Field Manual when questioning suspects,” meaning no torture.
This comes on a day when we [...]

This Los Angeles Times editorial on accountability for torture seems well thought out — there have been too many hysterics since the Obama administration released the torture memos and not enough calm thought.
An in-depth and impartial investigation, possible targetted prosecution and a full accounting to the American people. Not much to argue with here.
…As we [...]

There is quite a kerfluffle going on now about Obama’s position on extraordinary rendition.
The Los Angeles Times recently reported that “under executive orders issued by Obama recently, the CIA still has authority to carry out what are known as renditions, secret abductions and transfers of prisoners to countries that cooperate with the United States. Current [...]

Here is a sickening defense of torture — and it is from a coward.  Someone with cojones would have actually used the words:  “I support torture.” But John Yoo is not only wrong and a criminal — he is sin cojones…
I’ve included refutations of his argument in parentheses.
Obama Made a Rash Decision on Gitmo
by John [...]

New Yorker writer Jane Mayer has a new piece on President Obama;s thinking on torture.  A vignette that stands out (and was highlighted by Swampland, the Time political blog) show how deeply our military abhors torture.
Not only is this important for the right to understand; the left, which has a knee-jerk reaction to anything in [...]

From today’s Washington Post:
…in a broad swipe at the Bush administration’s lawyers, Obama nullified every legal order and opinion on interrogations issued by any lawyer in the executive branch after Sept. 11, 2001.

Paul Krugman makes a powerful appeal in Rolling Stone:
I’m an economist, but I’m also an American citizen — and like many citizens, I spent the past eight years watching in horror as the Bush administration betrayed the nation’s ideals. And I don’t believe we can put those terrible years behind us unless we have a [...]

I’m writing to stand up for all of the people in Washington on Inauguration Day who booed Bush when he appeared on the Jumbotrons and later appeared on the Capitol steps.
I’ve heard several journalists decry the boos as bad form and disrespectful. I understand, but reject that argument.
The boos were not bad form — they [...]

No one has said it more eloquently:
“As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake.”
Barack Obama