Friday, December 7, 2007

The Image Of Torture

Like everyone with a conscience still intact after seven years of assaults on our basic conception of constitutional rights (to say nothing about human morals and dignity), I'm shocked, outraged and angered by the CIA's brazen hubris in destroying evidence of illegal acts of torture. Had we caught an enemy in such an attempt to erase the historical record of their crimes, we would be rightfully indignant. Those responsible should be prosecuted to the full extent the law allows.

On the other hand, I can't say that I regret that the videos themselves were actually destroyed. Because we already know the crimes have been committed, and my sense of optimism leads me to be confident that the guilty parties will be brought to justice. But the actual footage itself would almost certainly have become the latest viral video, similar to the footage of Saddam Hussein's hanging, or the images from Abu Ghraib. Shock and horror would quickly give way to prurient curiosity, and the unthinkable -- American torturers -- would become not only mundane and trivialized, but reduced to the individuals on the screen.

In the same way that Abu Ghraib should not have been reduced to Lynndie England holding prisoners on a leash, but rather pursued up the chain of command, the American government's use of torture should not be reduced to several individuals caught on film. This is an American tragedy that should haunt us in the deepest reaches of our consciences in a way that concrete images can't.

Posted by Judah in:  Human Rights   

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