Luster Is Off Obama’s ‘High Moral Ground’

Back in April, the U.S. government snatched Raymond Azar out of Afghanistan. His waist, wrists, and ankles were shackled; he was stripped naked and photographed, made to wear headphones, blindfolded, hooded, and stuffed into an executive jet and flown to the United States. Azar says his eyeglasses were taken and he was left in an … Continue reading “Luster Is Off Obama’s ‘High Moral Ground’”

The Chimera of Total Security

"No one can terrorize a whole nation unless we are all his accomplices." – Edward R. Murrow Let’s talk about the next terrorist attack. We cannot know what form it will take, where it will occur, or what the casualty count will be. But one thing we do know: we know we’ll be told it … Continue reading “The Chimera of Total Security”

Pelosi’s Torture Stance Is Pure Partisanship

Somebody call me when Nancy Pelosi gets her story straight. So far, the House speaker’s explanation of what and when she knew about the Bush administration’s policy of torturing suspected terrorists is crookeder than Dick Cheney’s smile. Indeed, it has evolved from a straightforward avowal that, with apologies to Sgt. Schultz from Hogan’s Heroes, she … Continue reading “Pelosi’s Torture Stance Is Pure Partisanship”

Torture and Fool’s Gold

Our story so far: In the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, hundreds of men identified as members of al-Qaeda were captured and imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. There, they were subjected to sexual humiliation, sleep deprivation, dehydration, extreme temperatures, waterboarding, being chained to the floor for hours in their own waste, and … Continue reading “Torture and Fool’s Gold”