I shit you not.
From John Aravosis and friends
quoting The LA Times
Gulf War pilots tortured by Iraqis fight the Bush administration in trying to collect compensation
It would be ironic if it weren't so tragic.
During the 1991 Gulf War, some American soldiers -- pilots whose planes were downed -- were tortured, beaten and abused by Iraqis. It took place, of course, mainly in Abu Ghraib.
The soldiers banded together, sued Saddam Hussein's murderous regime, and were awarded nearly $1 billion. Hurrah!
But according to the LA Times, Bush is now standing in the way of those 17 victims of torture to keep them from collecting, saying that the Iraqis are now the good guys and need the money. American POWs, tortured and beaten, returning home as bona fide American Heroes, are now being told by their country that they matter less than the country that tortured them.
There's more . . .
Here's the money quote from Bush spokesperson Scott McClellan:
"No amount of money can truly compensate these brave men and women for the suffering that they went through at the hands of this very brutal regime and at the hands of Saddam Hussein," White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan told reporters when asked about the case in November 2003, according to the LA Times.
And now that's exactly what Bush insists they receive: absolutely no money.
This is, rightly, in violation of the Geneva Convention (which hasn't stopped this Administration before) AND U.S. Law (Anti-Terrorism Act of 1996). But with Alberto 'Abu' Gonzalez as the Attorney General, YOUR US Government, by way of the Department of "Justice", is urging the court to reject this reasoning.
Now, and I PROMISE you that you will be outraged, Iraqis tortured by Americans at the same Abu Ghraib 15 months later, deserve compensation (read: YOUR tax dollars) from the United States, according to Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld. "I am seeking a way to provide appropriate compensation to those detainees who suffered grievous and brutal abuse and cruelty at the hands of a few members of the U.S. military. It is the right thing to do," Rumsfeld told a Senate committee last year.
I am told the 'H' in Donald H. Rumsfeld does not stand for 'Hypocrite', although it certainly should.
If this upsets you, or even outrages you, tell your Senator.
Tell your Representative. Tell your newspaper. Tell your friends. Tell everyone.
We CAN NOT allow American War Heroes to be betrayed by their own government.