Thursday, September 22, 2011

"There is no longer any doubt as to whether the [Bush] administration has committed war crimes."

"...The only question is whether those who ordered the use of torture will be held to account."

~ Major General Antonio Taguba, who led the official Army investigation into Abu Ghraib


From Welcome to Boston, Mr. Rumsfeld. You Are Under Arrest by Ralph Lopez, Global Research

Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has been stripped of legal immunity for acts of torture against US citizens authorized while he was in office.

The 7th Circuit made the ruling in the case of two American contractors who were tortured by the US military in Iraq after uncovering a smuggling ring within an Iraqi security company. The company was under contract to the Department of Defense. The company was assisting Iraqi insurgent groups in the “mass acquisition” of American weapons. The ruling comes as Rumsfeld begins his book tour with a visit to Boston on Monday, September 26, and as new, uncensored photos of Abu Ghraib spark fresh outrage across Internet. Awareness is growing that Bush-era crimes went far beyond mere waterboarding.

Torture Room, Abu Ghraib



Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told reporters in 2004 of photos withheld by the Defense Department from Abu Ghraib, “The American public needs to understand, we’re talking about rape and murder here… We’re not just talking about giving people a humiliating experience. We’re talking about rape and murder and some very serious charges.” And journalist Seymour Hersh says: “boys were sodomized with the cameras rolling. And the worst above all of that is the soundtrack of the boys shrieking that your government has.”

Rumsfeld resigned days before a criminal complaint was filed in Germany in which the American general who commanded the military police battalion at Abu Ghraib had promised to testify. General Janis Karpinski in an interview with Salon.com was asked: “Do you feel like Rumsfeld is at the heart of all of this and should be held completely accountable for what happened [at Abu Ghraib]?”
Karpinski answered: “Yes, absolutely.” In the criminal complaint filed in Germany against Rumsfeld, Karpinski submitted 17 pages of testimony and offered to appear before the German prosecutor as a witness. Congressman Kendrick Meek of Florida, who participated in the hearings on Abu Ghraib, said of Rumsfeld: “There was no way Rumsfeld didn’t know what was going on. He’s a guy who wants to know everything.”

[ ... ]

The 7th Circuit ruling is the latest in a growing number of legal actions involving hundreds of former prisoners and torture victims filed in courts around the world. Criminal complaints have been filed against Rumsfeld and other Bush administration officials in Germany, France, and Spain. Former President Bush recently curbed travel to Switzerland due to fear of arrest following criminal complaints lodged in Geneva. “He’s avoiding the handcuffs,” Reed Brody, counsel for Human Rights Watch, told Reuters.

And the Mayor of London threatened Bush with arrest for war crimes earlier this year should he ever set foot in his city, saying that were he to land in London to “flog his memoirs,” that “the real trouble — from the Bush point of view — is that he might never see Texas again.”

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell’s Chief-of-Staff Col. Lawrence Wilkerson surmised on MSNBC earlier this year that soon, Saudi Arabia and Israel will be “the only two countries Cheney, Rumsfeld and the rest will travel to.”

~ more... ~


~ See also:
Because They Can: The Logic of the Torture State ~

Germany's Pirate Party Celebrates Historic Victory

From Der Spiegel:
Once the Greens were Germany's political rebels. But on Sunday they lost their title to the Pirate Party, which won seats in a regional government for the first time. The success of their data-driven message took even the party itself by surprise.


Pirate Party takes seats in Berlin Parliament

http://www.nma.tv

The Pirate Party first began in Sweden. However, soon the international pirate party movement took off.

The German Pirate Party won 8.5% of the vote in Sunday's Berlin state elections, winning its first seats in the state legislature.

The SDP and German Green party did well and will probably form a coalition, but the Pirate Party will add a new voice to German politics.

The party's platform calls for the decriminalization of downloading, free internet in cities and the legalization of marijuana.

It's not the first wacky party to make a splash in Europe. Jon Gnarr became Mayor of Reykjavic on promises of open corruption and a polar bear.

~ ~ ~

Meanwhile,...

Pirate Party Launches ‘Facebook’ For Movies
In what will be seen as an escalation of their ‘Linking is Not a Crime’ campaign, the Czech arm of the Pirate Party is backing another file-sharing related startup. The project, described as a ‘Facebook’ for movies, is the fourth sharing site launched by Pirates in less than two months. Along with the launch comes an open invitation, should it ever be needed, for The Pirate Bay to take refuge in the country.

J. G. Ballard's 'Crash' - a tribute

CRASH! (1971) from sdicht on Vimeo.


CRASH! (1971)

Director: Harley Cokliss
Writer: J.G. Ballard
Starring: J.G. Ballard & Gabrielle Drake


VA - Crash, A Tribute to J.G. Ballard (Elfish, 1993) upload by etsihahtan:









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image from http://www.spitting-image.net

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