Friday, February 25, 2005

Europe Welcomes A Torturer

Victoria Brittain asks some very pertinent questions in the February 24th edition of The Guardian, in a short column called "Why are we welcoming this torturer?".

Here's an excerpt:

"How can it be that not one mainstream public figure in Europe has denounced these appalling practices and declared that, in view of all we now know of cells, cages, underground bunkers, solitary confinement, sodomy and threatened sodomy, beatings, sleep deprivation, sexual humiliation, mock executions and kidnapping, President Bush and his officials are not welcome? Perhaps it's not surprising given the British army's own dismal record in southern Iraq. Why has no public figure had the honesty to admit that the democracy and freedom promised for the Middle East are fake and mask US plans to leave Washington dominant in the area? And why does no one say publicly that what is really happening in the "war on terror" is a war on Muslims that is creating a far more dangerous world for all?"

In my view, the answer to all her questions is simple. It's a crazy little thing called "fear".

You can read the entire article here. And when you do, please notice this passage:
Lawyer Michael Ratner of the New York Centre for Constitutional Rights, which represents over 100 prisoners, said it reminded him of "a pornographic website - it's like the fantasy of these S and M clubs".

The resemblance may be quite intentional. If Wayne Madsen has it right, the torture is all part of something much bigger; impossibly sick and horribly sickening. His most recent article asks Did White House S&M ring order special videos from Abu Ghraib?. And his main point appears in this short paragraph:

The presence of cameras in prison facilities had many Washington insiders wondering if the gay S&M prostitution ring centered in the White House had access to pornographic videos from torture centers such as Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay.

How could European leaders NOT be afraid of these monsters? But on the other hand, is that any reason to welcome them? One would think that modern European leaders would know all about the dangers of appeasement. How could they possibly have forgotten? One senses that they will be reminded, sooner rather than later.