Bush official admits "We tortured…"

A senior Bush official has come forward saying that the US Military has tortured a Saudi man being held at Guantanamo Bay. Since they went ahead and tortured the guy, he apparently cannot be referred for prosecution. Whew…He sure lucked out of that one.

The top Bush administration official in charge of deciding whether to bring Guantanamo Bay detainees to trial has concluded that the U.S. military tortured a Saudi national who allegedly planned to participate in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, interrogating him with techniques that included sustained isolation, sleep deprivation, nudity and prolonged exposure to cold, leaving him in a “life-threatening condition.”

“We tortured [Mohammed al-]Qahtani,” said Susan J. Crawford, in her first interview since being named convening authority of military commissions by Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates in February 2007. “His treatment met the legal definition of torture. And that’s why I did not refer the case” for prosecution.

via BoingBoing

Air Force launches anti-blog campaign

Bloggers: If you suddenly find Air Force officers leaving barbed comments after one of your posts, don’t be surprised. They’re just following the service’s new “counter-blogging” flow chart. In a twelve-point plan, put together by the emerging technology division of the Air Force’s public affairs arm, airmen are given guidance on how to handle “trolls,” “ragers” — and even well-informed online writers, too. It’s all part of an Air Force push to “counter the people out there in the blogosphere who have negative opinions about the U.S. government and the Air Force,” Captain David Faggard says. […]

The flow chart lays out a range of possible responses to a blog post. Airmen can offer a “factual and well-cited response [that] is not factually erroneous, a rant or rage, bashing or negative in nature.” They can “let the post stand — no response.” Or they cancan “fix the facts,” offering up fresh perspective. No matter what, the chart says, airmen should “disclose your Air Force connection,” “respond in a tone that reflects high on the rich heritage of the Air Force,” and “focus on the most-used sites related to the Air Force.”

Original from Wired | via Technoccult

Don't Talk To the Police

With the recent outbreak of police violence towards protesters at the Republican National Convention and the Democratic National Convention, I’ve had a hard time deciding what I wanted to say about the whole series of events. I mean – people knew that this was coming. The conventions are not a place for the public to voice their opinions. It is a place for the policy-makers to tell us what our opinions really are.

With the horrendous treatment of Amy Goodman and her crew of Democracy Now, the police are only shooting themselves in the collective boot. With preemptive raid and detaining of political groups before and during the RNC was astounding. The police led sieges and raids on the houses and meeting places of political groups and bloggers in the area, arresting people on charges of “conspiracy to riot”. Yes – people were arrested on the charge of “planning to be in a place during a protest that may or may not turn into a riot”. Justice, indeed.

What is important to note is that many news sources are claiming that this violence has only been directed towards a group of anarchists referred to as a Black Bloc collective. While the videos taped by numerous sources at the conventions tell a completely different story.

Professor James Duane of Regent Law School produced a lecture entitled “Don’t Talk to the Police” which I found insightful and helpful. Perhaps would-be-protesters and political activists should pay attention to what James Duane has to say:

While during the time span of the protests in the US, a Spanish doctor in Madrid has discovered that young men are dying for unknown reasons while in police custody. The doctors are claiming that this is a new symptom “similar to one that kills some wild animals when they are captured”. Apparently, the extreme levels of stress experienced by people undergoing police treatment during detention are enough to trigger the body to shut down.

I’m sure it has nothing to do with the way that the police force in this country are starting to view its citizens – as cattle; meant to be herded around and owned. Just take for instance “The Peacemaker” (shown below), purchased by Richland County, South Carolina sheriff Leon Lott.

The armored personel carrier pictured was purchased for use by their local police force. He “insists that using a caliber of ammunition that even the U.S. military is reluctant to use against human targets (it’s generally reserved for use against armored vehicles) will ‘save lives.’”

"Soldier" Brags of Torture, Rape & Murder

Although the people in this video are probably actors, the events described within are real and typical.

WARNING: The following video contains language, descriptions of torture and murder, and representitive psychopathy. This content might be considered distasteful, grotesque, and offensive to most any human. This is weight of war.
FOR MATURE AUDIENCE ONLY!

FEMA trains are nigh

Apparently FEMA will be expanding the use of trains to evacuate citizens during hurricanes from the Gulf Coast.

FEMA official Glenn Cannon today testified before a congressional subcommittee in New Orleans.

Cannon says FEMA is looking at passenger trains as a method to get people with physical impediments out of harm’s way.

New Orleans has become something of a guinea pig for train evacuations.
…
City officials say Congress and FEMA should create a national plan to use trains in disasters. Link

Boys with toys in New Orleans! (from interdictor)

As much as I would love to take a ride on the FEMA express, I can’t help but be reminded of the terrible works that they’ve done. Not to mention the FEMA detainment camps which were used widely during the Hurricane Katrina crisis. And this is all thanks to practice with the Rex 84 readiness exercises that the government carried out to simulate the detainment of large portions of American citizens. This idea has been updated, expanded, and legalized by CONPLAN 0400 aka Operation Granite Shadow which allows the military to operate independently against citizens within the US during a national crisis.

Guess who gets to head up all these plans? FEMA – thanks to a few key presidential directives.