Iraq torture? It's MADE IN AMERICA!

[placton]

It will be instructive to view, over the next months and years, how the Christian right responds to the fact that the US is a nation where officially sanctioned torture & sexual and physical abuse abound. We simply exported our stateside prison practices to Iraq. Nothing about what is happening there should be any surprise at all.
Christ specifically instructed Christians to give succor to those in prison and jail, as well as to love and cherish all human life.
This country has tolerated, no encouraged, a cesspool of evil in our prisons, juvenile and adult. And thought it quite funny, and well deserved by the (as one prison doctor described them) "scum" who inhabit our pestholes.
I suspect the hypocrites (another phrase Jesus used a lot) will ignore this evil, as they have so many others.
My God, what is this nation coming to?
I suggest this information will be intructive for those who wish further information.

“Abusive conduct by guards was reported in many prisons. The threat of such abuse was particularly acute in supermax prisons. Since Corcoran State Prison in California opened in 1988, fifty inmates, most of them unarmed, were shot by prison guards and seven were killed. In February 1998, federal authorities indicted eight Corcoran officers for deliberately pitting unarmed inmates against each other in gladiator-style fights which the guards would then break up by firing on them with rifles. In July, the state announced a new investigation into at least thirty-six serious and fatal shootings of Corcoran inmates. “


Good background on US prison policies

http://hrw.org/advocacy/prisons/u-s.htm


“President Bush has asserted that the abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib "does not reflect the nature of the American people."

"That's not the way we do things in America," he added.

In terms of aspirations, Bush is certainly correct: Americans generally do not regard themselves as arrogant, abusive, violent, mean, petty and ignoble. As a matter of empirical, verifiable fact, however, the best social scientific evidence suggests that the president is simply wrong on both counts.”

http://www.november.org/stayinfo/breaking2/Shame.html

More information on the widespread abuse

http://216.239.39.104/search?q=cache:B9kPVOG9YE8J:www.xs4all.nl/~tank/spg/mumia-eu/img/torture.pdf+american+public+abuse+US+prison+inmates&hl=en

[BeFree]

1. Why drag the rest of us into this?

Yeah, prison abuse is bad. But why dredge that up now? And use it as some kind of America bashing at this time? It really does no good to cloud this isuue. Besides, I'd bet that per capita, the Iraqi prison abuse is ten times worse. Of course we don't have all the facts yet so bringing up the America bashing makes your assertions even less relevant - at this time.

[placton]

2. My friend, I beg to differ.

I think the fact we do this all the time is quite relevant. In fact, one of the articles I quoted (from the LA Times) specifically points to the ties between US and Iraqi prison abuse.

[BeFree]

4. Yeah, but you missed my point, friend

.

[seventhson]

3. It shows we lack moral authority

and are hypocrites on the issue of human rights and the rights of prisoners.

We have to look in the mirror and face the truth. We are not much better than Saddam and in fact Rummy and Saddam were chummy just a few years back and the US (right wing) supported the bastard).

[BeFree]

6. This "WE" business needs to stop.

It is GWB's fault the abuse in Iraq has happened. Now, if you mean you and GWB are the "WE" than go right ahead. But leave me and the majority of America alone, please.

[Karenina]

7. Until you accept responsibility

"WE" cannot begin to address the truth.

[Saeba]

8. So, it’s not YOUR troops who are in Iraq?

Then so much for “support the troop”…

Anyway, it’s USA that is in Iraq, it’s not a “private” war by GWB and his friends. And is USA as nation that is accountable for all atrocity committed in its name. I agree that it’s really unpleasant but it’s not very patriotic trying avoiding your responsibility as citizen.

BTW, it’s interesting to see that some are fast to blame all Muslims for a crime perpetrate by a small group of people who represent no one but themselves, but refuse to consider the president of the “first democracy” of the world is representative of his country.

[zeemike]

5. You quote Jesus

And rightly so.
But Jesus was also a prophet and said of the later days; “Because inequities abound, the love of many will wax cold”
Could it be put better or more accurate?

[corporatewhore]

9. And Israel

link