Human Rights advocates are applauding three executive orders Barack Obama's signed into Law the first day in office.
On their face, the orders seek to close down the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, end the CIA's use of interrogation techniques that many in the civilized world regard as outright torture - and ultimately - shut down a network of shadowy overseas prisons where the dirty work of the intelligence agency has been carried out since the war in Iraq began.
Many Americans may recall viewing a shocking expose about the issues on Sixty Minutes last year which established wrongdoing on the part of the CIA.
The in-depth probe established that sly government agents registered a plane to a P.O. Box under a fictitious business name - and under the guise of being a private enterprise - flew alleged terrorists overseas to allies of the U.S. who were ready able and willing to torture the suspects to extract information.
The feature film, Rendition (a thinly-veiled account of the scandal) stirred up a lot of controversy, too, when it was released in theatres nationwide and pointed an accusing finger at the wrongful (and potentially illegal) activities of the CIA.
In that feature, Meryl Streep's character - a U.S. Official - uttered a line that resonated with hundreds of thousands of filmgoers here and abroad.
"Americans do not torture people."
No, they just farm the work out, to keep their hands clean.
Post: 10/11/07
http://ijulian.blogspot.com/2007/10/renditionamericans-dont-torture-people.html
Although the executive orders ensure that the U.S. will break free from a Bush administration policy that has been highly criticized - and likewise brought a lot of scorn upon Americans - the new President has not addressed any of the particulars.
For example, no decisions have been made about what to do with the detainees when Guantanamo is shuttered for good.
In addition, sources note that in spite of the executive orders signed this week, the CIA appears to still have a bit of "wiggle room" in respect to methods used to extract highly-sensitive information from terrorists.
The surprisingly quick move on the part of Obama was based on his position that the "executive orders" reflected an understanding that dates back to the Founding Fathers.
"We are willing to observe core standards of conduct not just when it's easy, but also when it's hard."
As John Adams astutely noted:
"People and Nations are forged in the fires of adversity."
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