I can't believe we are still debating this:
The UN special rapporteur on torture has formally accused the US government of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment towards Bradley Manning, the US soldier who was held in solitary confinement for almost a year on suspicion of being the WikiLeaks source.
Juan Mendez has completed a 14-month investigation into the treatment of Manning since the soldier's arrest at a US military base in May 2010. He concludes that the US military was at least culpable of cruel and inhumane treatment in keeping Manning locked up alone for 23 hours a day over an 11-month period in conditions that he also found might have constituted torture.
"The special rapporteur concludes that imposing seriously punitive conditions of detention on someone who has not been found guilty of any crime is a violation of his right to physical and psychological integrity as well as of his presumption of innocence," Mendez writes.
Hell, almost no one even questions whether or not it was abuse anymore, it so clearly was. At best, even from the most soulless, we'll get "He should have known better to do that while in the military" or from the mindless Obama defenders we'll hear "If they didn't keep him naked and he hurt himself, then they'd blame Obama."But no one seriously claims what they did was appropriate, humane, or non-abusive. They broke all of their policies, rejected advice from doctors, and went ahead and did whatever they wanted to him.
Why? Because he embarrassed them, and they wanted some payback.
Because they wanted to pressure him to turn on others (mainly Assange).
Because he wasn't your typical soldier, and clearly had some issues.
And finally, like all sadists, they did it because they could.
###
When the first few advertisers dropped Limbaugh's show, he was petulantly defiant, basically saying "good riddance!" to folks who have not only paid his bills but made him a very rich man over the last 25 years or so. McClatchy even reported last week that Sleep Train offered to resume advertising but the host rebuffed them. He compared the advertisers who had bailed on him to "losing a couple of french fries out of your value meal at the drive-thru window."
Putting aside the fact that I don't think Rush has let too many fries get away over the years, he might be rethinking his whole "Who needs ya, ya bum! Get out and don't let the door hit ya!" pugnacity, given the fact that the tide hasn't been turned and more and more advertisers are either dropping him outright, or informing Premier Radio Network that they do not want ads that are pre-bought in bundles aired on Limbaugh -- or any other right-wing extremist show. The number of companies that have consigned him and his ilk to parriah status was, at last count, up to 141. Some of the organizations that sponsor unpaid public service announcements don't want their spots running on Limbaugh's show. As a result, the show has been broken up by chunks of dead air where the commercials should be.
The list of companies that are no longer willing to be associated with right-wing hate and misogyny is starting to include some really big names...Walgreens, Rite Aid, Outback Steak House, Wells Fargo, Hallmark, General Motors, Ford -- even favorites of right-wingers like Dominos Pizza, Wal-Mart and the U.S. Army have decided their money is better spent elsewhere. That last one gives me hope that refusing to advertise on his airwaves is the first step, and the last one will be dropping his hatefest from Armed Forces Radio.
Here's some perspective for you -- even BP, spoiler of entire ecosystems, poisoner of the planet -- finds him too toxic to continue the association, and he's too much of an asshole for Preparation H.
'Nuff said.
###
A new Rasmussen poll shows that just 29 percent of likely voters believe Limbaugh's apology was sincere, while 53 percent don't think it was.
###
"Congress remains deeply unpopular with the American public, but Democrats continue to fare better than Republicans," according to the Post/ABC poll. The poll found a particularly wide gap among women, 39 percent of whom approve of Democrats, compared to 26 percent for Republicans.
###
Obama administration officials are discussing reducing American forces in Afghanistan faster than previously planned in light of increasingly strained relations, believing that the mission has "reached the point of diminishing returns." Obama warned against "a rush for the exits" yesterday, but the administration is nonetheless considering a reduction of "at least an additional 20,000 troops by 2013."
###
War criminal Dick Cheney canceled a visit to Canada because the country is too dangerous. Cheney and his daughter, Elizabeth, were slated to speak in Toronto about American politics, but canceled over fear of protests, deciding, "it was better for their personal safety they stay out of Canada," the event promoter said.
###
Criticizing President Obama for his use of a teleprompter is a favorite pastime for many Republicans, but GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum elevated the issue to a whole new level over the weekend by calling for outlawing their use by presidential candidates:
"See, I always believed that when you run for president of the United States, it should be illegal to read off a teleprompter," Santorum said at a Gulfport restaurant. "Because all you're doing is reading someone else's words to people."
###
Poll shocker: Mississippi, Alabama voters not very brightll-shocker-mississippi-alabama-voters-not-very-brightPoll+Shocker%3A+Mississippi%2C+Alabama+Voters+Not+Very+Bright2012-03-12+18%3A31%3A38Kirsten+Boyd+Johnsonhttp%3A%2F%2Fwonkette.com%2F%3Fp%3D466647
"Evolution is hogwash" will be the winner of Tuesday's Mississippi Republican primary, followed by "Barack Obama is so a secret Muslim" according to this exciting new PPP survey. Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum will all run a pathetic third through fifth place with only around 30% of the voters' nods each. But try to feel a little understanding for these voters, really now. When was the last time anyone spotted even a tiny shred of evolution lurking anywhere in Mississippi? READ MORE »
No comments:
Post a Comment