Trying Very Hard Not to Sound Like a Haranguer Upon a Soapbo

Andy and I were following our usual Monday night TV routine (Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives) and found that the second episode of DD&D was a rerun. In flipping around the channels, we came upon a TNG episode we'd both seen before, but that I didn't remember as well as Andy.

It's a storyline that (I am guessing) builds upon the concept of Closet Land, a movie my friend Jeremy and I were passionate about from high school on.

It's episode #137 (this is Star Trek: The Next Generation for you non-sci-fi-geeks), and the name is Chain of Command II. Some of you undoubtedly already know which one I'm talking about.

Anyway... it's about torture and the tactics a Cardassian uses upon Picard in an attempt to get classified information from him. But it also explores the psychological impact of torture and the possible reasons torturers are able to inflict such pain and suffering.

Flash forward to today... I am listening to NPR this morning and hear a snippet on the trial of Hamdan (bin Laden's driver), which includes discussion of the Geneva Conventions, Guantanamo Bay, and matters of habeas corpus - none of which I am an expert on.

What struck me is the mention of waterboarding and other techniques allegedly used on Hamdan, which led to a search with regard to torture and U.S. involvement in questionable techniques used upon detainees who are being held indefinitely (in some cases) and without access to counsel.

Here is where I get confused: They are declared by the administration to be enemy combatants, and are not considered POWs. But we did declare war. And the military tribunals seem to be a no-no, which has been ruled upon by various bodies, including our U.S. Supreme Court... but we are now trying people for war crimes. Without following the Geneva Conventions. And multiple people (including FBI folks and former employees at certain facilities) have said sexual misconduct, psychological and physical violence, neglect, and severe circumstances of abusive and inhumane treatment have been used upon detainees during the last seven years of the United States' "War on Terror."

So I did some more poking around. Apparently, the U.S. admitted to using torture on prisoners in Guantanamo Bay, Afghanistan, Iraq (this was in June). But I remember several months ago watching oodles of coverage of people arguing over whether or not waterboarding even constitutes torture... rather than discussing what happens once we've admitted that we, as a nation, are guilty of such acts.

In looking around even more... I found very little help in identifying resources to help advocate for the humane treatment of anyone being held by the United States. The one thing I did come across was this, which includes a section where you can Take Action to speak out against human rights violations.

I do not want this to be an emotional diatribe, and I have waited all day to write so that I could be at least a bit more calm. I am sure there is more information out there than the little bit I found, but I remain entirely confused as to why we are still moving ahead with the current agenda of holding people indefinitely, subjecting detainees to trials when such action has been ruled unconstitutional, and refusing to address the admitted torture tactics employed by the U.S., which directly contradicts the very ideals upon which this country was founded.

(Soapbox is done.)