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Originally Posted by BigV
Why does America need Secret Prisons?
Seriously, why?
I don't see how this can be positive, or even a net positive. Why "Secret"? Ok, the "secret" is out, for the ones we know about [/cynic - realist]. The only reason I can come up with is so that the operations of such a prison are carried out beyond the easy reach of American law. What the Fuck? We have American citizens, soldiers, government officials setup for the express purpose of doing things that would be illegal in our own country. Are you kidding me?
I've thought long and hard about this. I have not been able to resolve this conflict. I see circumstances where it appears to be justifiable--we need the information they have and the only way to get that information is to use techniques that aren't legal inside the US.
But doesn't that make us less? Are we not a nation of laws? And now the newest detainee bill is designed to codify, to make legal what was not legal before. Nyah nyah, you can't sue me, the prez says so.
So somebody explain to me why we need these secret prisons in foreign lands, please. And why do we need this detainee bill protecting interrogators from legal action if this all happens outside of our legal sphere anyway? The whole tautalogical mess stinks. Either make the actions legal and move them *here*. What's to fear? Or, keep the actions *there* and remain unrestricted by the bounds of American laws.
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I feel your conflictedness, if that's a word.
If we apply American laws while we're in other countries, I wouldn't be able to go to Amsterdam and smoke weed with my hookers.
As the "good guys", we shouldn't break the Golden Rule - just goes to show you how Christian W actually is. We should LEAD the world as a role model. We should be able to respond with righteous indignation when our military personnel are mistreated. Instead, we lower ourselves and invite enemies to torture our people.
Experts in information collection have said that information gathered through torture is unreliable. I guess this administration disagrees. They seem to have their own expert opinions about so many things. Just as they were dead-on with their assessment that Iraqis would welcome us as liberators, they may be just as accurate when it comes to the information tortured out of people.
So, why secret prisons in other countries?
To hide the facts from the American people. Oops. The W administration knew that this behavior would be opposed by most Americans, and considered to be outside the law, but they wanted to do it anyway.
They have little regard for laws and the US Constitution.
If found out, they thought they would have plausible deniability. Oops. I guess they miscalculated there, too.