Torture without Walls is covert harm and harassment done to citizens by their own country, to Americans by our own government. Torture without Walls is the secret use of psychological and physical torture techniques against apparently free citizens. The American government uses Torture without Walls to punish and silence dissent and to cover up dishonorable government activity. These immoral perversions of government service violate both our own Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and should be universally unacceptable.
I speak from my own experience.
The purpose of this diary is to bring these immoral, unprincipled and secret abuses of US citizens by their own government to light and to develop a public understanding of them that will help end them.
Glen Greewald is the preeminent analyst of the US surveillance state. He spoke at the Socialism 2012 conference. He says:
I really don’t think there’s one any more important front, or battle, if there are any, than combating the Surveillance State.
Greenwald talks about the most important impact of the surveillance state. As it did to the East Germans, it crushes the sense of social freedom necessary to free culture. It creates a culture of fear, that becomes pervasive, and poisons the whole of society.