I've been waiting for this moment for several years now, and it finally arrived. General Colin Powell, in the space of 3 short paragraphs, gave President Bush a savage beat-down.
Even though I am a life-long Democrat, I like and respect General Powell. He is a man of wisdom and intelligence and does not allow politics to cloud his judgement. He had a long and distinguished military career and is a shining example of what is right with the military. Hell, if he were running for president, I would even consider voting for him over several Democrats.
General Powell was savagely tossed under the bus by the Bushies, sent before the United Nations with what was known to be false information, in order to justify the US's invasion of Iraq. This man of honor was used heinously, and if you ever need reminding as to how craven and shameless Bush et al are, just remember how they treated Powell. They sold his honor for a blowjob from a crackwhore.
Once the truth came out, General Powell walked away, holding his tongue. Not a public word of anger about how he was used. He conducted himself in a manner becoming an Officer and a Gentleman.
But now... The Administration touched on a sore spot. They went too far and General Powell felt that it was time, for the good of the country, to speak out.
At issue is the battle to redefine Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. Now frankly, I'm a little confused by the various legalities because from reading it, it sounds like it applies to non-combatants. But clearly, judging by the controversy, it at least somewhat applies to those captured/arrested on suspicion of being an Al Qaeda symp.
Let's just breeze past the question of to whom it applies and proceed. Article 3 is pretty straightforward in how people are to be treated. To wit:
(T)he following acts are and shall remain prohibited at any time and in any place whatsoever with respect to the above-mentioned persons:
(a) Violence to life and person, in particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture; {emphasis provided}
(b) Taking of hostages;
(c) Outrages upon personal dignity, in particular humiliating and degrading treatment;
(d) The passing of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous judgment pronounced by a regularly constituted court, affording all the judicial guarantees which are recognized as indispensable by civilized peoples.
2. The wounded and sick shall be collected and cared for. Seems pretty straightforward, right? No torture allowed.
But apparently anything above the level of "The Pet Goat" seems beyond those in the Administration. White House Spokesman Tony Snow said ""If you have people in the field trying to question terrorists, if you do not have clear legal definitions, they themselves will be subject to the whims and the differing interpretations given by foreign courts, foreign judges and foreign tribunals....and we don't think that's appropriate."
Whims????
This, Dear Readers, cuts straight through to the very heart of the problem with the Bush Administration. Long-standing international law to them is a whim. Never mind it was the US that was the driving force behind establishing these conventions. But now they don't fit our perceived need and they become whims.
General Powell and the other critics of this proposed reinterpretation have got it right. They see the long-term implications inherent in this. Sadly, as we have seen in Iraq, El Presidente can't formulate a strategy much beyond what to have for lunch, never mind how to put in place contingency plans for the inevitable twists and turns of events. If we give the OK for the CIA to hook electrodes up to a suspected Al Qaeda's nutsack, we then establish the precedent that it's o-tay to do this. So what happens when a US soldier is captured?
Right.
And you don't think other tin-pot dictators are watching this with glee? They are about to be let off the hook. If we allow each country to set their own interpretation of Article 3, we might as well just burn the Geneva Conventions. Although at this point, we pretty much have done that.
That is the ultimate burn in all of this. As a country we have sunk to the level of a bargain basement Third World dictatorship.
This is where General Powell, in a few short words, drove a stake through the heart of Bush.
"The world is beginning to doubt the moral basis of our fight against terrorism." Goddamn. That is as apt a summation of the madness and stupidity we have endured these past 6 years as I have read. Or even written.
That is the great sadness in all this. Since 9/11, Bush has squandered untold amounts of moral capital and people are openly questioning what is the greater of the two evils- Al Qaeda or the United States. When you can't even garner a 35% approval rating in allied countries, there is a huge problem.
For fuck's sake, we're at war with crazed maniacs and we are fucking
LOSING the battle for hearts and minds. Something is seriously wrong with this picture.
Clearly, General Powell had enough. The General has spoken. Sadly, as has been the case all along, Bush and his "braintrust" (an oxymoron if ever there was one) will arrogantly dismiss Powell's criticisms and continue blindly on their path of madness. We have come to expect no less of them.
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