'The torture pictures were for BLACKMAIL" (Seymour Hersh) video link

[diamond14]

In a talk given September 19, 2004, Hersh predicts the Bush "victory" and warns what a second administration will entail. The talk was sponsored by the Washington bookstore Politics and Prose.

This is an amazing speech...covers the 'inside' of the bush* mis-administration....the Iraq WAR and those who pushed bush* (Israel and Iran)...a very good insight into the FANATICISM of bush*, who feels that anything he says becomes the TRUTH just because he said it.....Hersh gives LOTS of people and examples to back up his claims....and is HARD-HITTING on condi rice, who knew full well of the torture and encouraged it in many ways....talks about the upcoming draft.....near the end of the question-and-answer time, hersh becomes emotional as he puts the torture into context: the photos were NOT about 8 or 9 low level military gone bad....they were ORDERED to take the photos, the photos were for BLACKMAIL (men in Arab world do not show their fronts naked, and those military were ORDERED to torment POWs sexually & photograph)..... this video is well worth your time....


48 minutes
opens in RealPlayer
http://www.archive.org/stream/SeymourHersh/SeymourHersh91904.rm

[Nite Owl]

1. Thanks

I really like Hersh. Got it up to watch later tonight.

[NVMojo]

2. thank you for posting this, we must not forget what this administration

has done and this is one of those things.

[GreenPoet64]

3. Excellent! Well worth watching the full 48 minutes n/t

[two gun sid]

4. Great Post!

I cannot understand why more Americans are not outraged at what went on and continues at Abu Gharib and Gitmo. I am former military and I can tell you that it sickens me to know what went on with prisoners.

[diamond14]

5. welcome to DU, two gun sid....we're glad you joined us here!

:bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

:toast: :toast: :toast:

:hi: :hi: :hi: :hi: :hi:


my whole family is military...my nephew is currently in the Marines in Iraq....my uncle was a POW in WWII...my Dad flew a bomber with the WWII U.S. Army Air Corp, another uncle served TWO tours in Korea....my cousin was KILLED in Vietnam, HM3 Navy medic, silver star, purple heart DEAD.....


the military SHOULD be particularly upset that Commander-in-Chief bush* didn't get up and take a firm stand against torture as soon as he found out about it...FIRM STAND....like take action against those high level perps who made up these policies, and who failed to take action when the policies careened out of control....

instead, we have bush* nominating the 'torture memos AUTHOR" Gonzales to be Attorney General...and rummy continues to perpetrate these policies....it sends a clear signal to anyone capturing ONE OF OUR MILITARY TROOPS....torture is fine...

[mrdmk]

18. Remember that Mr. Bush got rid of anybody that did not agree

with him or his minions. This group disposed of a good military personnel. End of story!

[omulcol]

7. Were the abuse photographs

a deliberately orchestrated event designed to inflame more anger and hatred against the occupying forces?

The exposure of American guards abusing and raping male inmates must have been absolutely appalling to Iraqi men - especially as virtually all women prisoners claim NOT to have been sexually abused. ( Another subject altogether ! )

To my knowledge no such photo's have emerged from Guantanamo Bay, even though torture is widely acknowledged as common practice.

The Abu Graib soldiers arrested claim they were only acting on orders, and mostly they could be telling the truth. It wouldn't take much to encourage others to, " Have a bit of fun" with the prisoners and a Pentax camera !
Oh ...( and on that subject .... this makes interesting reading too with regard to the Nick Berg beheading . )

http://prisonplanet.tv/articles/may2004/052504digitalwatermarks.htm

I digress ........

In quite usual circumstances I'm sure the news and the photographs would be suppressed by the military - but this seems to have been waived in preference to widespread publicity , and we have to ask why .
Why were these stories released and given so much coverage throughout the world - where that of Iraqi genocide is ruthlessly repressed ?

[bpilgrim]

8. ah... NO.

they were to INTIMIDATE the resistance and supposedly taught to us by the Israelis.

these pictures have been SUPPRESSED in the US and MOST americans don't even know about the torture, even HIGHLY EDUCATED folks AND even a few DU members.

Do you know we were TORTURING CHILDREN in front of their MOTHERS?

you are just picking up on the natural consequences of some of these photos getting into the public domain mainly by proud us service members passing them around as TROPHY SHOTS.

peace

[two gun sid]

12. I understand what you're saying

but, the military isn't that monolithic, homogeneous or smart. There are going to be military people, even general officers who would be disgusted by these acts. They would feel no loyalty to Rummy and his dummies and would turn information over to Sy Hirsh. Not to put the forces in more danger but to:
1. Stop what they view as an immoral and vile action.
2. To distance themselves from war crimes.
As for Guantanamo Bay: the only way to get there is through the military. One way on, one way off. The military could have a lot of control over what left there. I don't remember but I don't think Gen. Taguba's report dealt much with Gitmo.(Only as background to the prisons in Iraq). I may be wrong.
On Iraqi genocide: I agree it is not talked about much. It was disgusting and immoral. That still doesn't let the Bush Admin off the hook for Abu Gharib. I prefer to live in a country that respects and champions human rights. I do not feel we do.

[bpilgrim]

9. the media doesn't cover it

they correctly feel it will not help the war effort so they try to down play it or ignore it.

i know in my heart that once americans learn the truth they will say STOP!

welcome to DU :toast:

peace

[alfredo]

11. I don't have that much faith in the

American people anymore. Half of the US population seem to have hearts as black as bush's. The other half is too scared or too lazy to stand up against a tyrant.

[Tinoire]

13. WELCOME to DU Two gun sid !

:toast: Oh boy do we need people like you. Plenty of veterans here trying to explain to people that criticizing the military is NOT being anti-military or a military hater. Welcome!

Another outraged former military (Army)

[mrdmk]

6. Everything that many here have feared

The interesting point is the reason the main stream media is fearing they would not be kept in the White House and embedded in the Iraq war. How pathetic at best.

[bobthedrummer]

10. Kick.

:dem::kick:

[Tinoire]

14. Thanks for posting this- Seymour Hersch better watch how he travels! n/t

[lovuian]

15. He asks How did these NeoCons take over this country

I like how he asks How did they do it

1. The placed Bush & Jeb in two of the largest States in the South that had many electoral votes and took over the election offices within 8 years...

Placed all over the US in key high Electoral states with their army

Win the Presidential Election ... Stole it

And Democrats didn't fight it and let Bush take the country over

then taking all over the government CIA FBI and then the Pentagon and put us in WAR

What it shows is America was ripe for a take over they wanted to do

the blessing of America was the Clinton years and it must have killed them to have to wait for 8 years!!!

[Disturbed]

16. 911 Attack was the Pearl Harbor....

that the Neo Fascists were praying for. It excuses everything.

[SharonAnn]

17. They could hide it because they kept everyone focused on the

Clinton "scandals" during that time.

It was hard to get anything else on the news.

[mrdmk]

19. I nominated this story for the home page

:kick:

[Paradise]

20. Thanks. Bookmarked for later. n/t