This may be shocking news for Americans, but the rest of the world knew abhorrent torture was going on at Guantanamo Bay, Abu Graib war prisons on Cuban soil in Afghanistan and in Iraq, as well as prisoner of war ships anchored in foreign nations.
Dear Ones,
President G.W. Bush proclaimed "Mission Accomplished" staged on the USS Abraham Lincoln anchored in San Diego Bay dressed in a USA paratroopers uniform–strange since he never sacrificed his life in any war, let alone wore any armed forces uniform. This happened in May 2003, only a few months after the illegal Iraq attack. Just what did he accomplish at that time? At the time I was a Republican but now I'm a recovering one, a present member of the Democratic Party.
Secretary of Defense Colin Powell warned about attacking Iraq, "If we break it, we've bought it." Well, one thing we do know is Iraq and Afghanistan are still broken. And the present government is still struggling to clean up the contaminated mess after over four thousands US soldiers died, with veterans and combatants alike committing 22 suicides every day over the trauma and stress. Over 1,200 Iraq citizens died, and untold numbers of their soldiers. Or is it 1000,000 thousands deaths as reported by another source. Total cost to US tax payers–$6 trillion dollars, according to the Huffington Post.
Meanwhile the world knew the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Bush administration was torturing illegally during those years. Once those in power attack another nation, it's almost impossible to stop the constant revenge. It is critical that we all recognize this fact.
This torture includes physically and mentally violations against inherent human rights through sexual abuse, rape, sodomy and murder. The Torture Memo at that time was reputed to be authorized by Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of Defense. Even the Red Cross disclosed that these crimes were factual.
So why are Americans shocked over this fact of men not charged with a crime being tortured and chained to walls behind closed doors. Yet the former administration said, "We don't torture."
Everyone witnessed abhorrent, blatant images of prisoners of war–euphemized as "detainees"–in total disrespect piled naked in despair on top of one another and photographed by their captors, along with them periodically being led–hoods over their heads–back to cells after undergoing excruciating torture–the news viewed worldwide.
The US government also used torture to sterilize American Indians every time they were admitted to a hospital for what ever reason. Not being permitted to bear children is a torturous crime beyond magnitude. In the 1970s Indian doctors and Senator James Abourezk exposed this genocide, a previous torturous atrocity. An Indian woman wrote to me after this happened to her, along with other disclosure of Bureau of Indian Affair (BIA) corruption–the most inept unelected regulatory agency in the government, as stated after Congressional investigations.
Indian nations report that President George H. W. Bush, Sr., once ambassador to the United Nations, authorized eugenic genocide–using government funds for the Indian Health Services, originally under the BIA, to coerce sterilization of 25-50 percent of indigenous women. American Indians and Latinos also were included. Is this torture another device against dark complexioned human beings? Is all this true?
"Those who do not remember their history remain children all their lives."–Cicero
Mame,
helenesmith1.blogspot.com senior author (with Mickey Old Coyote) of Apsaalooka, The Crow Nation Then and Now, The Second Century of Dishonor written 100 years after Helen Hunt Jackson's book The First Century of Dishonor exposed the BIA. Both books were presented to all members of Congress following a ceremony on Capitol Hill. A Washington Post reporter promised to cover this story, but he left for vacation and never told me.
