December 2016 Archives

"If President X has the power to prohibit torture, it follows that President Y has the power to permit it," blogs novelist Barry Eisler. "Well, now we have President Y. This was not only predictable; it was predicted."

"Wasn't it banned already?" asked independent journalist Rupert Stone. "Laws are futile if they are not enforced. During his time in office, Obama has failed to punish former members of the Bush administration for prisoner abuse, even though Obama admitted that 'we tortured some folks'. Not only has the Justice Department declined to prosecute any Bush officials, but it has also repeatedly invoked state-secrets privilege to stop civil litigation brought by torture victims. Without the deterrent provided by possible criminal prosecution, future presidents might feel they can torture with impunity. . .

"Obama has taken important steps to end torture, but the door remains ajar. If prisoners are tortured once again, people might well ask, Why didn't he close it?"

Long-term Close Guantanamo advocate Andy Worthington expects up to 18 prisoners to be released before Donald Trump assumes office. An additional 41 lives hang in the balance. The time for attrition has run out. Mr. Trump has vowed to keep Guantanamo prison operating and "load it up with some bad dudes." We must mobilize NOW to stop him in his tracks.

U.S. Honors Torturers

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151203132251-dick-cheney-bust-december-3-2015-exlarge-169.jpgThe House of Representatives unveiled a marble bust of one of the planet's most notorious war criminals yesterday, reports Glenn Greenwald. "Obama's immunizing Bush-era torturers converted torture from a global taboo and decades-old crime into a reasonable, debatable policy question, which is why so many GOP candidates are now openly suggesting its use." 

Current Vice President Joe Biden thanked the assembled Republicans for including him in the festivites and added his accolades. "I actually like Dick Cheney," he confessed. "I can say without fear of contradiction, there's never one single time been a harsh word, not one single time in our entire relationship." 

Biden announced fresh presidential aspirations to reporters Monday: "I'm going to run in 2020. So uh, what the hell, man."

UC Berkeley Billboard

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Events & Calendars

War Criminals Watch Events



Important Reading

Physicians for Human Rights
Broken Laws, Broken Lives

NLG White Paper
ON THE LAW OF TORTURE...

The President's Executioner

Detention and torture in Guantanamo



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This page is an archive of entries from December 2016 listed from newest to oldest.

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January 2017 is the next archive.

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