I live in suburban Georgia. My Senators are Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson and my Congressman is Nathan Deal. They are very, very Republican. This is not their problem, it is mine.
Their problem is trying to justify their bullshit to me.
I wrote a letter and email to both Senators some time ago noting my contempt for the treatment of American-held prisoners following the Koran "incidents" in Guantanamo Bay.
I received a response from Senator Chambliss and have included it below, along with some commentary, and my response.
July 28, 2005
Mr. Xxxxxx
Address
City, Georgia zip
Dear Mr. Xxxxxx:
Thank you for contacting me regarding the military's treatment of prisoners of the Global War on Terror.
I guess he didn't get the memo yet that it's a Global Struggle. War on Terror is sooo passe. Tsk tsk.
It is good to hear from you.
The work being performed by the Joint Task Force at Camp Delta in Guantanamo Bay is essential to our efforts to fighting and winning the global war on terrorism.
Having recently returned from my third visit to Camp Delta, I can attest to this firsthand and I am pleased with the professional work being performed by General Jay Hood, the Commander of the Joint Task Force, and our military men and women stationed there.
The mission at Camp Delta is a difficult, but important one: keep the meanest and nastiest terrorists off the streets so that they cannot further kill and harm Americans and collect information from those with known ties to Al-Qaeda and other terrorist networks. For example, through interrogations, we are able to gather information about terrorists financial networks and information about their operational structures, which plan, order and execute atrocities against innocent citizens from around the world, such as those carried out in Madrid last year and this summer in London.
It is important to note that the primary purpose of holding detainees at Camp Delta is to keep known belligerents off the battlefield and learn what they know about terrorist operations.
This pisses me off. The only people they have at Guantanamo are the "meanest and nastiest terrorists" and are "known belligerents" from the "battlefield", huh? Oh, you mean like Dilawar and Habibullah? We only murdered those poor, innocent bastards. I'm sure they were the only ones though, right?
Some of the detainees will ultimately be tried for war crimes, most likely by military commissions.
Note the use of the word "ultimately." Feel free to substitute the phrase "whenever the fuck we feel like it, if ever" if you prefer a more honest approach. And further note that the good Senator isn't planning on letting a civilian lawyer anywhere near his "detainees".
However, that is a secondary objective. In holding these enemy combatants until the end of hostilities, the United States is in keeping with decades of precedents from other wars in which the United States held enemy combatants to keep them from returning to the battlefield to fight against us. This is critical, because not only is there a precedent for doing this, but many military officials, including Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, have stated that several previously released detainees have shown up on the battlefield with the intentions of doing harm.
Sigh. Geneva Conventions anyone? And I love that we are going to hold these individuals, without benefit of legal counsel or access to their families, until "the end of hostilities". If you continue to fruitlessly wish for truth or realism, replace the word "hostilities" with the word "time".
Perhaps one of the biggest differences that I noticed on this recent trip was that the overall operations at Guantanamo Bay have come a long way since the first prisoners arrived in January 2002, when I first visited there. First of all, the images still being shown on a daily basis by the news media are outdated and from an earlier facility. The media frequently shows pictures of prisoners wearing orange jumpsuits in an area surrounded by cyclone fencing, as if the pictures were taken yesterday. That particular facility, which was known as Camp X-Ray, was closed in April 2002 and no longer in use. In fact, it's rapidly growing weeds.
The newer facility, known as Camp Delta, is a much more modern military detention facility. It includes an outdoor area where detainees can exercise and different levels of security to reward those detainees who chose to cooperate while in custody.
Despite what's reported in the news media, the prisoners are being held under very decent circumstances by highly professional and well trained soldiers, sailors and Marines. Detainees receive meals customized to their specific cultures 3 times a day, standard living materials, and toiletries. Overall, their accommodations are good, and they are being provided with access to high quality dental and health care - all of which I witnessed firsthand.
The food is good, so all is well, right? Ignore the bruisings, beatings, psychological humiliation, and those bodies in the corner.
Not only did I witness acceptable accommodations, the interrogation methods used to gather and collect valuable information about Al-Qaeda and other terrorist networks around the world were humane and conducted by highly professional individuals.
So the next time you see news report about the on-going operations at Camp Delta in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba remember this: the work being performed there is absolutely critical in helping us fight and win the war against terrorism. And the information being gathered from the detainees helps us better understand terrorist cells throughout the world and ultimately reduces the possibility of further terrorists attacks.
It's the media's fault.
Anyway, now we're getting to the part that I am most concerned about and which will comprise the gist of my response.
The Iraqi prisoner abuse is a different situation than Guantanamo Bay, and should be treated in a different light. The abuses had nothing to do with interrogations, but were actions inflicted by soldiers acting without authorization. The public disclosure of pictures showing American soldiers mistreating and humiliating Iraqi prisoners is an extremely unfortunate episode. I am appalled by the actions of a few American soldiers and the adverse affect this will have on our brave men and women serving in the United States Armed Forces and any American civilians overseas. These disturbing actions and the deliberate humiliation only work against our efforts to win the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people as we seek to establish a peaceful and stable democratic Iraq.
It's a "few" bad apples acting "without authorization". Please, please, pretty please don't blame Rumsfeld and the Administration and whatever you do, sweet merciful Jesus, do NOT mention the Gonzalez Torture Justification Memo.
These actions are morally wrong, legally wrong, and run counter to American values, and those who have perpetuated these abuses will be brought to justice.
Uh-oh. I think I found a quote for future reference. Methinks Senator Chambliss just took a rather unequivocal stance. Noted. More follows.
I want to emphasize my disappointment in the actions of those involved in the prisoner abuse in Iraq. However, I strongly believe these actions are a very inaccurate and misleading representation of our American forces and their efforts to bring peace and security to Iraq and throughout the world.
Rest assured that as your United States Senator, I will ensure that the Department of Defense holds accountable those who are responsible for any acts that are inhumane, and that they are prosecuted appropriately.
Of course, that very much depends on your definition of "inhumane" and by saying they will be "prosecuted appropriately", the Senator of course means that, if they are high enough up the GOP Food Chain, they will be given the Medal of Freedom
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me. As always, I appreciate hearing from you. Additionally, if you would like to receive timely e-mail alerts regarding the latest congressional actions and my weekly e-newsletter, please sign up via my web site at: www.chambliss.senate.gov.
Sincerely,
Saxby Chambliss
United States Senate
My response:
Sent to saxby_chambliss@chambliss.senate.gov and Bradford_Swann@isakson.senate.gov (a senior staffer for Senator Isakson):
Senator Chambliss,
Thank you VERY much for your response to my earlier question. I note with great pride and enthusiasm that you believe that the horrors of Abu Ghraib (and elsewhere in Iraq) "are morally wrong, legally wrong, and run counter to American values."
I too am "appalled" by the "disturbing actions and the deliberate humiliation" of these American-held prisoners and share your passion to "ensure that the Department of Defense holds accountable those who are responsible for any acts that are inhumane, and that they are prosecuted appropriately."
Consequently, I would think that you would also be deeply disturbed by the deliberate refusal of this administration to mandate proper treatment of these prisoners and investigation into any wrongdoing by denying Republican Senators McCain's and Graham's amendments to the Defense funding bill. However, YOUR cloture VOTE on this bill does NOT show the Support for our Troops and proper American Values that you allege in your email below.
As a veteran, I am disgusted by this administration's continuing refusal to Support the Troops in DEED while falsely invoking the phrase in word. The President even went so far as to threaten using his first ever veto if these REPUBLICAN-sponsored amendments were added to the bill. For heaven's sakes, if Trent Lott can find the courage to break with Party ranks, put the Troops before partisan ideology, and speak up on the side of morality and TRUE American values, perhaps you and Senator Isakson could do so as well.
While I am heartened by your WORDS, I am a voter that responds to ACTS.
Please ADD YOUR SUPPORT to the McCain and Graham amendments and do your part in truly supporting Georgia's, and the nation's, active duty servicemen and veterans.
Thank you
Name
Address
"Who you are speaks so loudly, I can't hear what you say." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson