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Up In Smoke: CIA Subjected Cole Bomber To Second-Hand Smoke
This via CNS News:
Abd al Rahim al-Nashiri, according to the 9-11 commission report, was the mastermind of the Oct. 12, 2000, attack on the U.S.S. Cole that killed 17 U.S. sailors.
Nashiri was also the target of an "unauthorized" CIA interrogation technique (that had not been legally vetted by the Justice Department) that is described in a May 7, 2004, CIA inspector general’s report that was partially declassified by the Obama administration this week.
CIA officers blew smoke in Nashiri’s face, according to the report, and they used cigars.
The IG’s office described this smoke-blowing as one of several "unauthorized or undocumented techniques" it discovered had been used in isolated incidents by CIA employees interrogating high-level al-Qaida terrorists.
"An Agency (redacted phrase) interrogator admitted that, in December 2002, he and another (redacted phrase) smoked cigars and blew cigar smoke in al-Nashiri’s face during the interrogation," said the IG report.
I know it sounds like a brutal war crime, but the interrogators had a reason for blowing smoke:
"The interrogator claimed they did this to ‘cover the stench’ in the room and to help keep the interrogators alert late at night," said the IG report. "This interrogator said he would not do this again based on ‘perceived criticism.’ Another agency interrogator admitted that he also smoked cigars during two sessions with al-Nashiri to mask the stench in the room. He claimed he did not deliberately force smoke into al-Nashiri’s face." The interrogators learned their lesson: Don’t blow smoke at terrorists.
Only in America could something this absurd actually be real. Second-hand smoke is considered an “unauthorized” interrogation technique?
I guess if you happen to break wind in front of a detainee you have to report that as well.
What he should have done is put that cigar out in al-Nashiri’s eye. Now that’s what I call an “unauthorized” technique. Oh yeah!!!
-Chris Jones
Nobody Cares If Terrorists Were Tortured
Attorney General Eric Holder has been salivating at the chance to prosecute someone for “torturing” terrorists after 9/11 and it looks like he’s getting ready to do just that.
What Holder will soon find out is that he’s badly miscalculated public opinion on this issue. He’s expecting public outrage to grow after releasing the previously classified AG report that lists detainee abuses, but there will be no outrage.
The vast majority of Americans have a lot to worry about right now with the economy in the shitter, etc. Whether or not the CIA roughed up some terrorists after they knocked our buildings down is just not something most people are concerned about.
Some of the allegations against the CIA interrogators include threatening one terrorist with a gun, threatening to kill the mother and children of a terrorist, mock executions, and other seemingly useful techniques.
Why should anyone care if the CIA threatened to kill the children of 9/11 mastermind KSM? We didn’t touch his children — we just threatened him with that to get him to talk. Seems pretty reasonable to me.
It seems logical that you would threaten the lives of the people closest to the terrorist you’re interrogating.
If you have a gun handy, why would you not threaten the person you’re interrogating with it?
This administration has no idea what kind of shit storm they’re unleashing with this political witch hunt. Fortunately, this makes it all the more likely that Barack Obama will be a one-term president.
Then we can get back to the business of killing the enemy and gathering intelligence.
Lanny Davis: Let’s Indict Cheney
Liberal pundit Lanny Davis who’s on record as opposing any Bush-era prosecutions has changed his mind — at least about Cheney.
Davis now says he’s in favor of at least prosecuting Dick Cheney since he’s been so out front about authorizing “torture” (his word) and declaring Obama weak for abolishing it.
I agree with Lanny on this one. I’m fully in favor of whatever prosecutions the dems deem necessary.
I just wonder who’s going to be left after all the dust settles. Nancy Pelosi and her liberal colleagues were complicit in the so-called torture so it could get ugly.
To borrow a line from the 43rd president, bring it on.
Audio: Hypocrite Schumer Said Back 2004 That Torture Can’t Be Ruled Out
Here’s yet another example of extreme hypocrisy from democrats.
Take a listen to Sen. Charles Schumer endorsing actual torture depending on the situation…
Come on democrats, let’s get those show trials underway. What are you waiting for?
Cheney Officially Asks For Release Of Two Classified Documents
It looks like the Obama administrations attempt to smear the Bush administration by releasing the “torture” memos has taken on a life its own.
After telling Sean Hannity that he intends to push for declassification of documents showing what was gained from enhanced interrogation — has done just that.
Dick Cheney personally filled out forms in his own hand and submitted it the National Archives’ Presidential Libraries requesting that two specific documents be declassified.
The forms have since been forwarded to the CIA for processing.
This is starting to get good.
Video: Undercover Liberal Shepard Smith Drops F-Bomb During Rant About “Torture”
Shepard Smith has a habit of dropping little tiny stink bomb every once in a while to let people know he’s a liberal. Take a look at Shepard’s latest left-wing rant, which is his most animated to date and comes complete with full throated F-bomb.
Even though I find Shep’s occasional left-wing diatribes mildly annoying, he’s one of the fairest reporters on TV and deserves credit for that.
(Hat tip Gateway Pundit)
Shocker: NY Times Buries Story About Success Of Enhanced Interrogations
The NY Times gleefully trumpeted the release of the so-called “torture memos” ringing every last drop of ink and pixel out of the story as it could, while quietly burying the story about the success of enhanced interrogations. One would think acknowledgment by Obama’s own intelligence director that “High value information came from interrogations in which those methods were used and provided a deeper understanding of the al Qa’ida organization that was attacking this country” would be news. However, the NY Times chose to put that part of the story online only.
Their excuse for this is simply that the paper ran out of room. Yeah, sure it did. The NY Times has relentlessly flogged the “torture” narrative for years and written 100+ front page stories on it. So it’s mighty convenient that The Times would run out of room in their paper on the very day an Obama official confirms what the Bush administration has been saying for years — that the enhanced interrogation program was a big success.
-Chris Jones
Obama Flirts With Show Trials For Former Bush Lawyers
I really wish this whole thing would just go away. Not because I think anyone is going to be prosecuted, but because of the absurdity of it all.
The newly released CIA memos did exactly what Obama intended them to do, inflame his kooky left-wing base.
Obama has said all along his intention is to “look forward” rather than get caught up in phony manufactured issues from the Bush era.
He gave reassurance to the CIA that no one at the agency will be prosecuted for keeping us safe for the last seven years.
However, he left the door open for his Attorney General to prosecute former Bush lawyers for their advice that led to enhanced interrogation.
It’s hysterically funny to imagine the Justice Department prosecuting members of the previous Justice Department for giving the president legal advice.
Obama is too much of a committed a liberal to allow his socialist agenda to go down the shitter for a couple of show trials. The opportunity to turn America into France may never come again.
They have no leg to stand on legally anyway, and it would set a horrible precedent that republicans would be sure to get even with once back in power.
Secondly, the opinions issued by the Bush era lawyers regarding interrogation were completely legitimate.
Moreover, democrats will have to put Nancy Pelosi and other top democrats on trial as well since we know they were fully briefed on interrogations including waterboarding as far back as 2002.
At the end of the day, all the newly released memos did was confirm what most clear thinking Americans already knew anyway — that there was no torture.
As someone who’s pro-torture, I was somewhat disappointed by what I read.
The techniques described in the memos were highly effective enhanced interrogation techniques and nothing more.
Only big pinko pussies would call anything described in those memos as “torture.”
Obama is just keeping this thing hanging out there as a bone for the kooks in his party to gnaw on while he works on getting his agenda passed.
When it comes to prosecuting Bush officials, allow me to borrow a line from the former president and say, bring it on.
-Chris Jones
Hey WaPo, STFU About Torture
How many times are the liberal newspaper columnists in this country going to keep dipping into the “torture” well? The story has been written about ad nauseam for years.
The angry columns demanding that someone be “held accountable” for the unbearably loud music detainees were subjected to or the 3 cases of waterboarding are way beyond tedious at this point. We’ve heard it all before and most people still don’t care.
Yet for some reason, The Washington Post is treating us to yet another torture screed — this time courtesy of Anne Applebaum.
I could give a sweet rat’s ass if we tortured and in fact I hope we did — and still are. None of the techniques described thus far in the thousands of columns around the country sound like torture to me. The only thing I’ve seen any evidence of is enhanced interrogation which was used very successfully against a number of difficult terrorists.
The economy is in the shitter and I’ve got bills to pay. Whether or not Akmed or Mohammad were kept up nights with underwear on their head is so far from anything I care about it’s actually funny.
I realize liberals always need to either play the victim or be an advocate for one, but your sympathy (as usual) is sorely misplaced.
If this country were really serious about fighting and winning the war on terror, Gitmo would be empty. Not because we let people go or sent them home, but because after their (vigorous) interrogations (very vigorous) they would be shot in the head.
The only issue I have with the CIA “black sites” that Anne Applebaum is so outraged about is that we know about CIA “black sites.” We should find the asshole who leaked the information about the black sites and put his ass in one of them.
Yemeni Man Says He Was Imprisoned At CIA Black Sites
Read my latest column in BlogCritic Magazine. It’s in response to an article on The Huffington Post by a Yemeni man who says he was kidnapped by the CIA and held without trial. He was released after 19 months and is now being represented by all the usual human rights groups. He wants the people responsible for his detainment to be identified and prosecuted. Obviously, I don’t share that sentiment.
-Chris Jones
Cheney: Waterboarding ‘Remarkably Successful’
Here’s a little news snack that’s sure to have lefty bloggers and pinkos seeing red:
We were fortunate as a country to have a hardliner like Cheney around after 9/11. Rather than bow to the ACLU he did what was necessary to protect this country. The loony left doesn’t care about keeping this country safe. They’re more interested in the comfort and well being of our enemies.
Ashcroft Says Waterboarding Not Torture, Democrats Cry
Another dog and pony show took place today on Capital Hill as John Ashcroft was brought before the House Judiciary Committee to answer questions about detainee treatment. The purpose of these hearings is not about finding out information, but rather to provide a forum for Democrats to grandstand during an election year, and hopefully cause the Bush Administration some embarrassment.
I pretty well lost count on the number of hearings that have been held to discuss waterboarding. Even though waterboarding was only used on 3 occasions in the last seven years, Democrats have felt the need to hold hundreds of hours of hearings.
John Ashcroft was unshakable as he explained to the committee that enhanced interrogation techniques were incredibly valuable and that, “…the value of that information exceeded the value of information that was received from all other sources.”
Resorting to the usual “straw man” argument, Rep. Maxine Waters brought treatment of U.S. soldiers into the debate.
Waters asked Ashcroft whether such techniques would be regarded as “totally unacceptable and even criminal” if they were used on American soldiers.
To which Ashcroft swiftly responded:
“Well, my subscription to these memos, and my belief that the law provides the basis for these memos persisted even in the presence of my son serving two tours of duty overseas in the Gulf area as a member of our armed forces,” Ashcroft said.
Ouch, that’s gonna leave a mark.
The fact that Democrats want the CIA to strictly adhere to the Army field manual is not only completely absurd, but extraordinarily dangerous. Our intelligence operatives are supposed to work in the shadows and have the latitude necessary to get information and keep America safe. Democrats don’t know the first thing about keeping America safe, and are either too stupid or too weak to do what’s necessary to win this war.
-Chris Jones
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