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Should the Report on Torture Be Released Publicly?

Should The Torture Report be Released Publicly?

  • Total voters
    90
radioman said:
No impact.
It's not as if this info. is a secret.
I think gov't agencies just oppose any releases of information.
Possibly for legitimate reasons, but mostly to avoid embarrassment.
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Probably both legitimate and embarrassment. As long as no intel assets are put at risk the release may not hurt a thing. But I do wonder about cooperation of third countries in our efforts to combat terrorism and ISIS. This is something that must be weighed. It is my understanding all this stopped sometime in the Bush administration. I think we all knew we were doing some as they call it enhanced interrogation. But if it has stopped, probably a good 8 years ago, why release it? You can stop something that has already been stopped.

Those who wanted it stopped have already won the day. So why release it in the first place?
 
Perotista said:
Those who wanted it stopped have already won the day. So why release it in the first place?
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Who knows?
As per usual in politics, all may not be as it seems.
I do think sunshine is the best disinfectant and I'm equally sure this report will be heavily "redacted".
 
radioman said:
Who knows?
As per usual in politics, all may not be as it seems.
I do think sunshine is the best disinfectant and I'm equally sure this report will be heavily "redacted".
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I guess the simplest way to look at this is the report is going to be released tomorrow or so I have heard. So if the consequences are negative then we know whom to blame, if the consequences are positive, then we know whom to give credit.

None of us know which way it will go or even what is in the report yet. This just might be a hyper whoopee do over nothing. We shall see.
 
ocean515 said:
Well, thank goodness an objective mind has solved the case.

My turn. I think they have remarkable respect for human rights and use whatever means necessary to ensure people are protected from those who seek to eliminate their right to exist in the greatest number possible.
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Sending someone to a country where it is known he will be tortured is the same as doing it yourself.
 
cpwill said:
Pretty much this. Democrats are less interested in accuracy than they are interested in scoring points with their base against an administration that hasn't been in power for more than half a decade, and are willing to screw over US CT and foreign policy for years in order to do it.
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Or...maybe...people would like to see what was done in our name, with our money, using the power we give our government. Can't be that though.

Also, I'm totally fine with secretive US organizations not doing things with their power that wouldn't hold up to scrutiny if known to the population they are serving. That's ok with me.
 
I don't think it matters.

Nothing new will be learned from this report. Democrats will hold it as proof waterboarding, etc. doesn't work while Republicans will insist it's partisan idiocy the same way Democrats insist Republican hearings on Benghazi is. There are going to be no real bombshells to find out about. Just the same things one party has been campaigning on for over a decade.
 
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iliveonramen said:
Or...maybe...people would like to see what was done in our name, with our money, using the power we give our government. Can't be that though.
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You don't already know?

:roll:

It's not like anything new is expected to come from this report.
 
iliveonramen said:
Then there's no reason they shouldn't release it.
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Which is why I said it doesn't matter if they release it.

This isn't a "fact finding" thing. It's a political thing.

I suspect 10 minutes won't go by before the DNC sends out emails about it to fund raise.
 
shavingcollywob said:
Which is why I said it doesn't matter if they release it.

This isn't a "fact finding" thing. It's a political thing.

I suspect 10 minutes won't go by before the DNC sends out emails about it to fund raise.
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If there's nothing in it that's new it won't last long in the news cycle.
 
radioman said:
I remember when Iran's Ahmadinejad was considered the new Hitler.
Now, Iran is helping against ISIS.


True for now.
But if the bad guys ahead of them in line, are beaten down, the Taliban will be targeted again.


But as we focus on ISIS, Al Qaeda will be said to have reconstituted and, therefore, will resume being the current bad guy du jour in the ME.

My point is, this ME snakepit will always produce a new bad guy which is a recipe for endless war.
Not worth it IMHO.
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Creative marketing by the USA weapons industries because you have to gin up wars or fears of wars to keep the National psyche geared for war. Not enough MSM time reveals the true OILY cause between ME events and US involvement. For instance, the Saudis behead more people than ISIS every month and have been doing so for as long as anyone can remember. That the same scumbag Saudis that are our great ally against ISIS (on paper only). US Corporate wants the pipeline rights across Syria and Iraq and that nice Syrian port at Tartus that the Russians lease. Iran is made to look like the boogeyman and Saudi Arabia is one of the good guys and it is done with media participation/collaboration. The NARRATIVE (nice word for story) is promoted that there are all kinds of evil doers over there that if we don't stop them there, we'll have to stop them here. I, for one, see that as bullcrap, but damn good marketing if you want to gin up that fear that sells weapons and keeps those MIC contractors in silk shirts and Cuban cigars.
 
Here's an easy macro to determine my answer to a question:

Does whatever is in question make the government more transparent?

If yes: Yes
If no: Do other things
 
That torture is a partisan issue should be very frightening to a lot of people.
 
Yes, government operations of all kinds should be as transparent as possible. A better option that was not included in the poll would be to stop torturing people altogether.
 
radioman said:
No impact.
It's not as if this info. is a secret.
I think gov't agencies just oppose any releases of information.
Possibly for legitimate reasons, but mostly to avoid embarrassment.
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If the result of that "embarrassment" were "damages relations with important country X upon whose partnership we depend", then would that not be a legitimate reason?
 
radioman said:
I remember when Iran's Ahmadinejad was considered the new Hitler.
Now, Iran is helping against ISIS.
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Rouhani makes the Iranian threat less immediate, if no less real. But the threat is less directly aimed at us, except inasmuch as we are the Great Satan. Israel is the one under existential threat, there. Ahmadenijad was nutter, but also mad as a hatter. Rouhani has the same core beliefs, but is smoother at enacting them, and thus more willing to stick to a longer term game plan. So ole A-Jad would have tried to wipe out the Jews because it was Wednesday and his eggs were scrambled when he likes them over-easy, but would have maybe struck before he was capable. Rouhani will engage in endless negotiations in order to actually achieve capability at an undefined point in the future.

True for now.
But if the bad guys ahead of them in line, are beaten down, the Taliban will be targeted again.
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I'm fine with that. MMO claims the title of Emir al Mu'minin. That's the title Abubakr al-Baghdadi claims as well. Both intend their movements to eventually take over the world, the Taliban are simply currently more geographically focused than ISIL is.

But as we focus on ISIS, Al Qaeda will be said to have reconstituted and, therefore, will resume being the current bad guy du jour in the ME.
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AQ never stopped being the bad guy, but they aren't limited to the ME anymore, nor were they really ever.

My point is, this ME snakepit will always produce a new bad guy which is a recipe for endless war.
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I think you should take a look at North Africa.

Not worth it IMHO.
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Oh. So, you're a farmer, then?
 
iliveonramen said:
Or...maybe...people would like to see what was done in our name, with our money, using the power we give our government. Can't be that though.
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Contra Mrs Pelosi, Democrats in the Congress were briefed on this when it was going on. I'm sure that is what they tell others, and what they tell themselves. I'm also pretty sure that if they were morally horrified at the notion that we might trade Abu McSlayTheChildrenOfTheInfedels being uncomfy for a few hours in return for saving dozens or hundreds of lives, they had the opportunity to speak up and chose not to.

Also, I'm totally fine with secretive US organizations not doing things with their power that wouldn't hold up to scrutiny if known to the population they are serving. That's ok with me.
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Our problem is more that our public has unrealistic expectations. They think it works like a TV show.
 
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MMC said:
Diane Feinstein and the Democrats are releasing the Torture Report this week, they are saying. They meaning the Demos, Feinstein, and the MS Media.

Foreign governments and U.S. intelligence agencies are predicting that the release of a Senate report examining the use of torture by the CIA will cause "violence and deaths" abroad. BO is backing the release of this report. Since he came out and stated we tortured some folks. Then other countries Intel services stated this will cause more violence and death to take place. This was all reported back to BO. Yet he and the Democrats are all for it.

The Republicans are disputing this report and will come out with their own report. Feinstein said she would go ahead with the release. Even after Kerry asked her to hold off with the timing.

What say ye?
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Shouldn't have started torturing people in the first place. I mean, torture? How`frickin' third-world can you get?
 
Grand Mal said:
Shouldn't have started torturing people in the first place. I mean, torture? How`frickin' third-world can you get?
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Wait, what? I think there are some countries around who could show what real torture is all about....not what our PC country's watered down version is.
Loud music and water discomfort? No wonder other countries laugh at us.
 
Would GOP excuse-makers want the report released if parties were reversed?
We've seen how they've behaved with Darrel I$$A .
 
The report will show what a liar Dick Cheney was about torture once and for all.
There's a reason he can't leave this country .

WCH said:
One of the last Leftist's final attempts to throw the Right under the bus.
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And you can be sure the GOP would have done this to the DEMs long ago if roles were reversed .
 
With all due respect...there is no doubt that both the dems and the repubs have been guilty of torture.
I would imagine any POW that had been sent to another country for enhanced interrogation had some sincere pain applied.....from either party.
Not a left or right thing...but just a thing.
 
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