Generally Warned

Okay, I will finally tackle the idea of water boarding which was at the forefront of the Michael Mukasey confirmation hearing as the new Attorney General. Actually, before I get on to that, let's take a moment to remember the tenure of one Alberto Gonzales. Not that we needed another example of the poor decisions our current administration has made, but the Gonzales appointment was a mistake from the beginning. Gonzales' ties to the President, he was his own personal council, were much too close. This is not entirely the fault of the President because his "advisers" should have clued him in on the potential for personal conflict about to enter the fray of what is already a difficult job. Anyways, Gonzales made his own bed in the end by firing those federal attorneys and paid the ultimate price by offering his resignation while under fire from both major political parties. In order to combat accusations of being overly liberal, I will link this article from Foxnews about the Justice Department's investigation of Gonzales' testimony to Congress that has drawn such negative attention. In my opinion, the reaction of the Congress and both parties is completely warranted. Here is a nice little summation of how I felt from www.salon.com.

Now, on to Mr. Mukasey. While he is less biased than Gonzales, the thing that troubles me is the debate about how to handle accusations that U.S. interrogators use the waterboarding method of torture when coercing information out of detainees. For those of us that are not familiar with the concept of waterboarding, it is a torture method that tricks prisoners into thinking they are drowning. The detainees are fastened to a board, tipped to an angle that positions their feet about their head and then a hood is put over their faces. After positioning and dressing the victim, water is poured over their heads until there lungs are filled with water. The fact that their heads are covered psychologically tricks the brain into believing that the person in drowning. I don't know about most people, but I consider this to be cruel and unusual punishment, which was a sticking point in the appointment of Mukasey.

Mr. Mukasey refused to label waterboarding as a method of cruel and unusual punishment, which has drawn the ire of both liberals and conservatives. While Mukasey might be slightly more fair and impartial than Gonzales or his predecessor John Ashcroft, another Bush stalwart, he must insist on a resolution that prohibits any U.S. interrogators from waterboarding detainees. It is wholly hypocritical for us as a nation to stand behind this method as an acceptable method of attaining information. If we stand against torture, we need to see this hideous act for what it is. Perhaps if the current administration needs to be convinced, they should take the advice of none other than author Stephen King suggests. During a recent Time magazine, King suggests that in order for the administration to effectively gage if waterboarding is cruel or not, they should test it on someone close to Mr. Bush. Specifically, King suggested Jenna Bush.

This entry on the Huffington Post by Rep. Jerrold Nadler and Rep. William D. Delahunt details their effort to pass new anti-torture legislature. The important thing that should be outlined is the fact that America as a nation prides itself on freedom and equal treatment, which is not evident if we continue to allow this vicious method of torture.