Letter: Why prosecute the CIA?

lynn w.
Spicer, MN     11/03/2009 8:55 PM

just another distraction while our rights are hijacked...

Report a Violation

Barb K.
Olivia, MN     11/02/2009 6:37 PM

Joe - If waterboarding is "torture" then why do we do it as a training tool to our own guys? You explained why it is NOT torture - it makes "you feel like you are drowning". Key words FEEL LIKE. No permanent damage is being done - not torture. The Geneva Convention does not apply to non-uniformed combatants. If you watch the news you'd know that very, very few detainees were waterboarded and the ones that were, were terrorist leaders.

Report a Violation

joe r.
Willmar, MN     11/02/2009 4:21 PM

Barb water boarding is torture, if you would have watched TV you would have seen the military demostrated how this procedure made you feel like you were drowning. Please Barb do some research before jumping the gun. So Barb your stating its ok to gun down, and torture people who we feel maybe a terrorist? Barb who exactly do you see as a terrorist, someone wearing a towel on their head? Barb what happened in WWII was just what I stated, and we expected for our prisoners to be treated fairly, and the enemy claimed they would, until we found out later just what was going on. We are under the Geneva convention and are required to treat prisoners fairly. Why do you think their are legal issues coming down the pipe, because we acted properly?

Report a Violation

Barb K.
Olivia, MN     11/02/2009 8:55 AM

First of all these terrorists are not uniformed military, therefore, they are not to be afforded the rights under the Geneva Convention. If you are refering to waterboarding, Joe, that is NOT "torture". Torture is something that leaves physical disfigurment or scars, or extreme mental scars. Waterboarding is done as a training exercise to our own military and CIA and we certainly wouldn't "torture" them as a way of training them. Waterboarding is a scare tactic. As far as anyone thinking our captured soldiers would be treated better if we are gentle and kind to these terrorists only have to look at what the VietCong did, what the Japanese did and what the Germans did. We abided by the Geneva convention in those cases but our enemies sure didn't. It's a real travisity to prosocute our military and CIA for doing what is best for this country.

Report a Violation

joe r.
Willmar, MN     11/01/2009 7:01 PM

I don't believe it would be a good idea to prosecute the CIA as long as our troops are in harms way because its only going to give more fuel to the Taliban. I am against torture because I feel it will not give you an acurate account, because we don't really know who the enemy actually is when they are captured and they may not tell you the truth and would lie to save themselves from pain or being mentally broke down. The Talban works by retaliation, and they will kill you or blow up your family if you help or tell the US miliatry anything. Also the Taliban does not operate exactly like a military operation, they work more as terrorists and hit and run which makes it difficult for any invading army to drive them out. When we engage in torture, or any other forms of irreglar conduct the opposing army can get a real boost and more support from their people if we lower ourselves to their standards. You can learn more from WWII where the Germans and Japanese were engaging in murder and torture and it cost them the war. We were so enraged by this conduct that we pushed on and fought harder. We should never lower ourselves to those acts of the enemy, because it never pays. Also just learn from Russia, another big country unable to conquor Afghanistan because they tortured, killed innocent civillians, and under estimated this countries will to survive.

Report a Violation

Ray J.
Willmar, MN     10/31/2009 7:27 AM

Great letter that I agree with completely. After 9-11 CIA agents were told by the Government to do whatever it takes to prevent another attack. They left their homes and families, went to a war zone and risked their lives every day to protect this country and were payed about as much as a bus driver in a metropolitan area. Years later, because he political climate had changed they returned home and found they were going to be investigated and prosecuted for doing what they were told to do. No wonder they are leaving the CIA in droves and those who remain refuse to take any risk at all, morale is dangerously low. During the Cold War when we found a spy we took him to a military base somewhere, got whatever information we could and disposed of him. The men in the Senate Intelligence Oversight Committee were serious men who lived through the Depression and one or both World Wars, they knew the world was a nasty place and they knew how to deal with it. We did a lot of dirty business off the books back then and they kept their mouths shut. We are not a serious country any more, the career politicians we have now don't care about the country as much as their own re-election. If we don't have the will to protect our own country the United States of America will soon be a memory.

Report a Violation