Court-Martialed Expert Witness-Shares Disturbing New Photos From Abu Ghraib (Wired Magazine)

[kpete]

Given Senator John McCain's recent vote, it would be appropriate to show these photos to him and ask him why he, voted in favor of torture.


Disturbing New Photos From Abu Ghraib
By Wired.com Staff
02.28.08 | 12:00 AM

NSFW: VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. As an expert witness in the defense of an Abu Ghraib guard who was court-martialed, psychologist Philip Zimbardo had access to many of the images of abuse that were taken by the guards themselves. For a presentation at the TED conference in Monterey, California, Zimbardo assembled some of these pictures into a short video. Wired.com obtained the video from Zimbardo's talk, and is publishing some of the stills from that video here http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2008/02/ted_zimbardo. Many of the images are explicit and gruesome, depicting nudity, degradation, simulated sex acts and guards posing with decaying corpses. Viewer discretion is advised.

more:
http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/multimedia/2008/02/gallery_abu_ghraib

[SpiralHawk]

1. "Do unto others as you would have them do to you." - Jesus Christ

Just a reminder to the republicon homelander torture party, which imagines itself to be 'Christian.'

[Swagman]

2. JC would have been rendered and in Gitmo today if he came back

[casus belli]

3. Or....

Discredited by RW religious zealots as too much of a pacifist. I'm sure they'd call him "too liberal", claim he's on the wrong side of history. That he just doesn't understand the nature of the evil we face when he tells us to turn the other cheek.

[malaise]

4. I think Jesus Christ plagiarized a few people

Some other forms of this rule stretching back to ancient times:

"Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.”
Udana-Varga, 5:18 (African)

“Wish not for others what ye wish not for yourselves”
Kitab-I-Aqdas (African)

“In five ways should a clansman minister to his friends and familiars, by treating them as he treats himself.”
Sigalovada Sutta v.31 (Buddhist)

“Do not do to others what you would not like yourself. Then there will be no resentment against you, either in the family or in the state.”
Analects 12:2 (Confucian)

"One word which sums up the basis for all good conduct…loving kindness. Do not do unto others what you would not want done to yourself.”
Analects of Confucius 15:23

http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/462820

[mmonk]

5. One cannot be a good country or a moral people

and engage in sadism on captives. It is and always has been history's mark of barbarism and darkness.

[Echo In Light]

6. Clearly the deeds of a "few bad apples" who take orders well and enjoy their work

[davidthegnome]

7. A few bad apples?....

I really hope that's the case. Unfortunately, I fear that it's more than that. Recently I spoke with a friend who has returned home from Iraq, he spoke at great length of his military training. How it was repeatedly, and viciously drilled into his head how evil the enemy was, how when he got there, his entire unit was all hyped up and eager to kill. How after they started seeing action, they were no longer eager, but disgusted.

I believe what is happening has religious and political goals behind it. Dehumanize the enemy - put their faith to shame, do all you can to discredit it. Take their dignity, take their pride, torture those who are too loud or too radical. Bring them down, by any means necessary - de-stabilize the middle east so that we may control oil exports. This gives excuse to continue to build the power and the funding of the military, along with the convenient excuse of terrorism to invade.

Our people are not stupid, but many are ignorant. Many have been "brain-washed" as my friend Mike put it, particularly within the military. Fight for your Country, they are told... when in reality, they are fighting for financial gain for the few, for the political ambitions of greedy, vicious bastards.

Yet, the constant propaganda campaign being kept up against islam (radical or otherwise) has largely made our "enemies" in Iraq and elsewhere appear inhuman, barbaric, evil. Thus they attempt to justify any actions against them, no matter how terrible. The ends, they will say, justify the means - for the sake of the greater good.

It's sad, and terrible to see my own people doing this to prisoners of war. God, I am so ashamed that we have allowed this. Angry and sad at once. Just sick, we cannot allow it to continue... even if it means revolution.

[sinkingfeeling]

8. God forgive America.

[ThomWV]

9. They Knee-capped this guy