Writer Christopher Hitchens is asked by the Vanity Fair Magazine if he would submit to being waterboarded and then write about the experience. See the results in the video.
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It would be great to see a video of the Chimperor-in-Chief undergoing the procedure, since he’s such a big fan of it.
Now THAT would be a mission worth accomplishing.
Hitchens, you’re such a treasonous hack. Compared to the despicable acts the enemy practices, that was a day at the beach. How do I know? His head is still on his shoulders and never hit the bucket once. His eyes remain in their sockets and all of his limbs are still intact.
All I ask of a fair demonstration is also show what the enemy does to our people if captured, then let the people decide what is torture.
#2 – Mr Dodd
If I had my druthers, I’d rather a swift, painless death by beheading than to be tortured beyond the limits of human endurance and have to take my own life, as the prisoners at Gitmo have been. As of June 2006, 41 prisoners attempted suicide.
http://tinyurl.com/5l3mey
If the best you can say about America is that it’s we’re better than 8th-century savages, that speaks volumes.
so u saying USA should also be a terorist organisation? nice
#2
Can you call treason when it really is treason please?
While this may physically be considered less lethal, especially when compared to what enemy combatants do, it’s still an experience that (to him) was completely horrible, nightmarish, and life-changing (for the worse) in the first place. Psychological torture, is that better or worse than physical torture?
In any case, it’s semi-irrelevant. He isn’t treasonous, he isn’t a hack. He was asked to write and convey his experience and he did.
2,
Dodd,
You are either a tremendous idiot or a sycophantic disingenuous hack yourself. Your comments are so far from the reality of the situation that I can barely believe you can write that shit with a straight face.
Why are we fighting this war? If it is to export democracy, we are doing a very shitty job at it. How do you free people by torturing them? How to you win hearts and minds when you bomb residential neighborhoods?
We are supposed to be the good guys. to simply compare their actions with our is ignorant and idiotic. How much more severe than a beheading is it to be burned alive by white phosphorus? We’ve done that to innocent people and called them “collateral damage”.
How much worse than a beheading is leadiing an entire country into a sham war that drains billions of dollars from our treasury and thousands of lives of our military forces and hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians?
So wave the barbaric behavior of others in our faces all you want, their behavior is not the issue. Ours is. We’re supposed to be there as agents of change, progress, democracy, and peace. Can you explain to me how our behavior in this war does anything to further any of those things?
Strange how you side with the enemy in your augments. An enemy that will gladly provide you with a death that would not be as painless as you anticipate.
As far as being no better than 8th-century savages, what delusions have convinced you that actions necessary to win a war is a gentleman’s game?
When they removed his mask, his face was cherry red. That’s a sign of suffocation. I suspect this water boarding causes a defensive reflect to occur in the larynx, making it snap shut so you suffocate even without trying. This is horrific. Any member of congress or the senate who believes this is not torture or closer to murder should try a few minutes of water boarding.
#7 – Mr Dodd
>>As far as being no better than 8th-century savages,
>>what delusions have convinced you that actions
>>necessary to win a war is a gentleman’s game?
In case you haven’t noticed, we’re not winning this war. We’ll never win this war. This is a war that should never have started, and one that will never be won.
If you think we’re going to impose democracy and peaceful coexistance on the warring factions in Iraq, you’re even dumber than you seem.
The war in Iraq, which will accomplish nothing other than countless deaths and the near bankrupting of the American economy, will be Dumbya’s legacy.
He is directly responsible for the creation of “al Qaeda in Iraq” as a viable terrorist organization. And his trophy war has turned America into a nation perceived as torturing savages, no better than the murderers we are fighting.
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!
You know, since very few people can think past labels, maybe the better question to focus on is: “Is this procedure one that we approve our own troops be subjected to if they are captured?”
Then just follow the golden rule.
PS–of course, that question doesn’t cut it in the real world. Waterboarding can be short or long, shallow or deep, hot or cold, thick rag or thin rag==all sorts of variables.
Restated: “Are we willing to have the enemy perform the worst kind of waterboarding in order for USA to use the less extreme forms of waterboarding?”
That might capture the uneven playing field we are on, always looking for the high moral ground.
#9 Mister Mustard
Don’t you know by now that winning the war was never the objective. If it was the thing would have been over 3 or 4 years ago.
You are too close to the painting… why don’t you step back and look at the entire picture.
#11 – Mr Dodd
What is the objective then? To line the pockets of Dumbya’s war-profiteering partners in crime?
Any way you look at it, 2000 – 2008 will go down in the annals of history as one of the darkest periods in American history.
#11–Dr Dodd==what a complete poser you are. First a doctor, now some mastermind of international politics? HAW!!! Yes, I say HAW, HAW!!!
How many years into USA losing the war did you take to determining winning it wasn’t our goal?
Dolt.
#13 bobbo
“How many years into USA losing the war did you take to determining winning it wasn’t our goal?”
Let me give you a hint:
Don’t you find it odd that the greatest military the world has ever known is “not allowed” to defeat, as Mustard calls them, 8th-century savages?
#14 – Mr Dodd
Come on. Quit playing coy. Let us know what the objective is for the Iraq war.
No hints, no sly innuendo, let’s hear it.
#14–Dodd==what I find odd is you haven’t shriveled up in a blinding flash of recognition as to how shallow you are.
I find it odd you can’t tell the difference between a military engagement and a police action.
I find it odd you can’t tell the difference between “active engagement” and civil insurgency.
I find it odd you can’t tell the difference between winning the war, and winning the peace.
But neither can your ass clown bushieboy which is why we are playing out your oh so clever strategic plan. I’m with Mustard==lets hear it.
Tick-tock.
Dr Dodd said
All I ask of a fair demonstration is also show what the enemy does to our people if captured, then let the people decide what is torture.
It’s because of complete and utter morons like you, that out country is in such a mess.
Dr Dodd said
Don’t you find it odd that the greatest military the world has ever known is “not allowed” to defeat, as Mustard calls them, 8th-century savages?
.
Not at all. Especially when their main objective is to radicalize the enemy in order to create more of them. How else will they insure “perpetual war”?
You’re such a silly fool.
I love hearing all the humane and logical arguments posted here by the all-so-smarter-than-Dubya that STILL support the insane and barbaric notion that Saddam Hussein (“Don’t call me Barack!”) should STILL be in power with his unimpeded, UN-peeved, license to entertain his further genocidal whims. Ask his victims if they think waterboarding would’ve been okay to save their hundreds of thousands lives…OOPS, you can’t, they’re DEAD.
A few decades ago, these were the same “America First!” types that didn’t give a rat’s ass about the Jews being systematically murdered by the Nazis. “Its a German internal politics matter! We can’t interfere, we have our own problems like persecuting those diabolical Christians!”
Musturd: Already in line to be the 1st ChiComm collaborator when they land.
Dr.Dedd is 200% right. We got God on our side. Whatever we do is fair. Guantanamo is a 5 star hotel compared to where our boys have to fight.
The President knows best.
Time for my medication yeehaaaaaaaaaaa
Here is the Vanity Fair Interview:
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2008/08/hitchens200808
I am struck again by a “qualitative” difference between waterboarding and other forms of torture. Everyone seems to volunteer for waterboarding. Some have done it 3-4 times.
How come electrodes to the gonads don’t get such volunteers outside of San Francisco?
#19 – Terrorist MoFo
What the fuck are you talking about?
Sure, Saddam was a dick. But the situation in Iraq is unimaginablly worse now than it was when Saddy was in charge, we’ve turned into a nation of torturing thugs, thousands of American kids are dead, many times more innocent civilians are dead, “al Qaeda in Iraq” is now a force to be reckoned with, oil is approaching $150/barrel, we’ve become the paper tiger laughingstock of the world ad infinitum.
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED?
Dodd – The enemy is the Iraqi people themselves because each one is a potential terrorist. That is why the USA military can not win the fight. Unless someone wants to do a complete genecide of the Iraqi people then the battle in Iraq will continue as long as the USA military is there. Of course, may be the USA could do large scale psychological behavior modifcations on the whole country.
19,
Goodwin’s law applied. You can leave now.
> As of June 2006, 41 prisoners attempted suicide.
If all 41 succeeded then the world is a better place.
#21 – A very insightful comment, Bobbo.
Hitchens is a good actor and waterboarding is easier to fake than a quick blast of electricity to the nuts.
Poor Hitch. I feel bad for him. I hope he learned something. He’s a good guy.
Wow, the right wingnuts are out in force today. I also find myself in the odd position of supporting MM. Happy birthday America!
#19–SF==the only relevant question is: “Is the USA better off for having invaded Iraq.”
I say no for all the reasons everyone here already knows.
BTW–yes, Bush was a special type of idiot to go into Iraq unilaterally on information he trumped up himself. Wouldn’t even listen to or follow the example of his own daddy. What kind of idiot son dishonors his daddy in such a horrible way?
I take it you still think this bankrupting/crippling suicidal corporate enterprise was a good idea? Even in hindsight?
Well, you take after Bush then. He still thinks it was a good idea too. And now McCain is on board too. Whose daddy are you trying to show up?
#25 – JackAss
>>If all 41 succeeded then the world is a better place.
Did you just transfer over from al Qaeda, or what?