U.S. condemns video of captured soldier as violation of international law.
U.S. condemns video of captured soldier as violation of international law.
In a newly-released video, an American soldier who is being held captive by the Taliban in Afghanistan says he’s “scared I won’t be able to go home.” Two U.S. defense officials confirmed that the man in the video posted Saturday on the Internet is the captured soldier, but the Defense Department has not released his name. Local Taliban commanders had previously threatened to kill the soldier. Asked by his interrogators to give a message to the American people, the captive soldier said:
“To my fellow Americans who have loved ones over here, who know what it’s like to miss them, you have the power to make our government bring them home,” he said. “Please, please bring us home so that we can be back where we belong and not over here, wasting our time and our lives and our precious life that we could be using back in our own country. Please bring us home. It is America and American people who have that power.”
Watch it:
A U.S. military spokeswoman in Afghanistan, Lt. Cmdr. Christine Sidenstricker, said the Taliban was using their captive for propaganda. “They are exploiting the soldier in violation of international law,” she said. U.S. military spokesman Colonel Greg Julian added, “We condemn the use of this video and the public humiliation of prisoners. It is against international law.”
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“We condemn the use of this video and the public humiliation of prisoners. It is against international law.”
And who are we to talk about violations of international law? We refuse to hold our own accountable, Mr. President.
July 19th, 2009 at 9:33 amA violation of international law? The chickens have come home to roost. Mr. Bush: Care to offer yourself in a prisoner exchange and save this brave young man’s life?
July 19th, 2009 at 9:35 amYes, but have they shoved anything up his butt in violation of international law? Have they covered him with shit in violation of international law? Have they used dogs, freezing cold, hung him from the ceiling by his arms until he couldn’t breath?
International law isn’t all that it used to be.
Thank you George W Bush and DICK Cheney.
July 19th, 2009 at 9:45 amU.S. condemns video of captured soldier as violation of international law.
Pot, meet Kettle….
July 19th, 2009 at 9:46 amLet’s hope the Taliban doesn’t think this guy has “usable information” and decide to follow the U.S. lead with “Enhanced Interrogation Techniques” to pry it loose…
This is what ceding the high ground looks like.
Thank you for your short-sighted criminal behavior Bush/Cheney!
July 19th, 2009 at 9:49 amI in no way condone what is being done to this prisoner, and my heart goes out to him and his family.
Having said that, because of the deeds of the last administration, and the current administration’s inactivity in investigating and prosecuting those clear violations of international law, our nation is in no position to condemn the treatment of our service people, and civilians, who are captured or tortured or held without charges.
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 9:49 amGeorge Bush’s America……..hoist on its own petard. Thank you, Dubya and Darth Cheney.
July 19th, 2009 at 9:56 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
OT.Walter Cronkite coverage on Sunday Morning, now…Blessings
July 19th, 2009 at 10:02 amColonel Greg Julian has lied before. Why is he still there?
http://enduringamerica.com/tag/greg-julian/
he denied the use of white phosphorus in the face of irrifutible evidence……
he’s part of the problem.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:04 amcd says:
Two wrongs have yet to make a right and even if Bush was a SOB this young man doesn’t deserve your ill-will.
I don’t think any ill-will is meant for this young man. The point is he is about as much a victim of the Bush/Cheney policies as he is a victim of the Taliban.
We wish all the best for him and his family.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:06 amOf course this young man doesn’t deserve Anyone’s Ill Will.
He Deserves the protections of the Geneva Convention and International Law.
You know, like America USED to Stand for.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:07 amWe all have sympathy and condemn what is being done, you tool…….but this is a clear illustration of “you reap what you sow”, and maybe somehow this situation will sink into the thick, imperialist skulls of our leaders (last administration and present) that we must live our principles in order to be treated accordingly. One would hope this incident would silence those numbskulls who cheerlead for the brutal treatment performed in our name(and still going on)on detainees and prisoners captured as a reault of Bush and Cheney’s fiasco on an illegal war.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:10 am“For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” – Newton’s Third Law of Bodies in Motion
We should never again elect a President who does not understand this basic universal law.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:11 amSo the Pentagon isn’t even giving the American people his name, rank, and serial number? He’s a prisoner of war. If remotely slaughtering wedding parties with drones isn’t a violation of international law, it should be.
Whatever his rank and M.O., the Taliban are probably aware of whether or not he has valuable information, and I doubt that they would torture him for information he isn’t likely to have. That isn’t in their best interest. They defeated the Soviet military. They aren’t amateurs. They’re fighting for their homeland—not global economic hegemony and control of the world’s oil supply.
Whether or not he was coerced into saying this, I think the man’s message is spot on. I don’t understand why so many people have been thinking that it was right to invade Afghanistan. We haven’t been hearing death tolls from that country, and we haven’t been seeing film footage of what we’re doing to it.
So the Taliban televised a prisoner of war. Big deal. We destroyed their country. And we let them languish after we helped them defeat the Soviet Union, in spite of warnings from the Soviets, and the self-evident fact that they were not a nation with which to phuck.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:13 amcd says: Two wrongs have yet to make a right and even if Bush was a SOB this young man doesn’t deserve your ill-will.
If only the wingnuts had reading comprehension skills and didn’t constantly have an Old Testament mentality that everyone is evil and should be assumed to be guilty without any benefit of the doubt… If only…. Sigh…
July 19th, 2009 at 10:16 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
cd, you and your ilk have tried for years to paint Progressives as country- and troop-hating traitors.
I have read all the posts here, and see no one justifying what is being done to this serviceman or the pain his capture is causing his family and our nation.
The fact is that BushCheneyRumsfeld are the traitors and the ones responsible for what is now happening to our own citizens.
Expressions like “reap what you sow”, “chickens have come home to roost” and “pot meet kettle” are condemnations of circumstances created by your heroes, and are in no way an expression of sympathy or support for those who would do any among us harm.
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 10:23 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
This comment has been voted down. Click to read.
No, it’s poor reading comprehension on yours. Or else a deliberate attempt to cast another’s words in the worst light possible, rather than accepting the sense that most of the rest of us understand they expressed.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:27 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
That’s awfully nice of you. And out of character, given the nasty assumptions you’ve expressed about others, based on what they didn’t say. Why should spencers mom not use the same standards to judge you as you have clearly used to judge others?
July 19th, 2009 at 10:30 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
Isn’t it amazing that all we can do is pray the Taliban are more humane than the Bush administration?
They have the opportunity to take the moral high ground here and show themselves better than the U.S.
The question is, will they take it?
July 19th, 2009 at 10:32 amThanks for the heads-up.
What made you think I was under that particular misapprehension?
July 19th, 2009 at 10:33 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
This comment has been voted down. Click to read.
Having been in the military, I understood that as a soldier, I was a target, just as I was targeting others, and that was fair. In fact, I was a target for a direct nuclear hit, and I still think that dying in a first strike would have been too kind, considering the role I would have played in a nuclear war.
When did this attitude begin that soldiers in a time of war are not fair game? If one is not willing to die in the service of ones country, one should not enlist.
Why are so many more civilians being killed in our wars?
July 19th, 2009 at 10:37 amThe poor compositional skills lead one to the conclusion that this poster’s reading comprehension problems could be endemic rather than malicious.
It’s not a done deal, though.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:38 amI suspect the US policy leaders are more concerned about the bad publicity than the soldier. The video forced them to make a public statement in an under and poorly reported military action.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:39 amI’m sorry; I didn’t realize the discussion forum was the exclusive domain of you and glogrrl. Forgive me for the intrusion.
However, as one who read the posts the same as you did (well, maybe not exactly the same… you seem to have come to them with either poor reading comprehension skills, or a partisan agenda that colored your perception) I figured I has a s much a right to comment on your misreading of comments that were quite easily understood from a normal, human perspective.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:40 amNice Snark TJM..
Demagogues and Bigots have been running against Mr. Other forever.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:40 amWow. Actual news (and bad news at that) about the war. I know a few people over there so I hope this isn’t the start some strategy of torturing our service people on camera and let’s hope the soldier in the video isn’t harmed.
My only question after all the odd “two wrongs don’t make a right” debate is: is the Taliban a signatory to the Geneva Convention?
Regardless, I think the Bushies can argue the same thing they’ve been arguing: that those the Taliban and Al-Qaeda won’t follow the Geneva Convention. But the last thing Republicans/conservatives thought after 9/11 was: TWO WRONGS DON’T MAKE A RIGHT.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:42 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
cd says:
Art, Badger I’m more than willing to believe that you don’t wish him ill.
Others though have made their feelings clear.
Either you’re lying or you cannot read. No one has written anything of the kind, not here and not now.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:45 amProud says:
If not for that war hawk Obamas surge in Afghanistan, this soldier would be home right now and not in Taliban custody. But of course as long as it is Obamas war it is the right thing for us to escalate the war. Remember the lib code IRAQ war bad, Bush bad. Afghanistan war good, Obama good. And lets not forgot the liberal love of the Taliban, that soldier must really be bad for those Taliban angels to be so mean to him
You have to be in a truly pathetic position to rely on such total blatant lies, pwoud. Not only have I never heard anyone on the Left say anything positive about the Taliban, the Taliban themselves are the Right Wing of the region. It’s difficult to discern the difference between them and, well, you.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:47 amHi Proud…
July 19th, 2009 at 10:50 amProud @ #35: Proud of being an idiot? I have never seen a single “liberal” advocate for the Taliban – although I do seem to remember a certain group of neoCons (I think it was called the Reagan administration) arming Bin Laden and his people…
July 19th, 2009 at 10:51 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
hahahahaha…..America abiding by international laws…..
that’s a good one.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:00 amWe committed War Crimes and tortured/killed innocent people and now we are calling on International Law? You get what you gave out and we are in no place to call on the International Law.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:08 amThe Bush administration removed the rule of law from America. Americans are not entitled to protection under the rule of international law until Bush, Cheney and the rest of the pro-torture Republicans are prosecuted and punished.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:20 amIt’s horrible that the wingnut trolls would claim that any progressive sides with the Taliban. May they suffer the fate of being slowly tortured to death.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:22 amThe trolls that is.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:22 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
When you consider that George W. Bush and Dick Cheney tortured so many of the Taliban’s captured soldiers to death, it’s amazing that this American POW is still alive.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:25 am“We condemn the use of this video and the public humiliation of prisoners. It is against international law.”
So’s torture.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:26 amcd says:
gummble-bee-itch do you really not know chickens coming home to roost means?
I do, yes, thanks for asking. In this case, it means that US military personnel are suffering the result of US policy toward combatants, just as the Left has warned for years: if we torture, if we ignore the rules of War, we can expect that others will consider they’ve been given permission to do likewise.
No one has suggested that this is appropriate or good or wished any ill for this soldier.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:26 amUh oh, RealityCheck is off it’s meds again. The big, bad monsters under it’s bed are waging war against the myriad voices in it’s head. This can’t end well…
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 11:30 amI feel sorry for this guy……How he ended up alone outside the wire is odd. Maybe he just lost it and decide to head home. He does look dazed and confused now for sure. Now we will see if the Talibs will show compassion or Cheney style “Intelligence gathering”.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:32 amRealityCheck says:
I hope everyone of you scumbags…who have made these vile comments…rot in hell.
I finally figured out that handle. Apparently, it means “Reality Checked at the Door”.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:33 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
Reakityimpaired @ #47: why are YOU sitting at a keyboard when you and your fellow militiadicks could be mounting a rescue operation?
July 19th, 2009 at 11:35 amInstead of mounting each other…
July 19th, 2009 at 11:35 amOMG, that poor man.
My heart breaks for his family…especially now that we Americans have been proven guilty of the humiliation, torture and murder of prisoners we decry.
We haven’t one single square inch of high ground left upon which to stand.
Shame on you, President Obama. Please prosecute the war criminals of the Bush administration and give us back our honor.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:36 amMod Squad made me spit coffee shame on you….
July 19th, 2009 at 11:38 amLMAO
This comment has been voted down. Click to read.
mgparrish says:
It is neither my job nor my desire to school you about international law, but here’s a helpful hint: It starts with “T” and ends with “orture”. And it does not matter whether or not the Taliban (which isn’t a state, but I’ll overlook the ignorance on your part) is a signatory to the Geneva Convention, the United States is.
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 11:40 amSorry, POV – hate to waste good coffee…
July 19th, 2009 at 11:40 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
We knew this day would happen. A sad day, a painful day. We saw the pictures from Abu Graib and knew that having treated our prisoners so inhumanely we could now expect no better from our enemies. And of course, at the time all the reichwingers could do at the time was snivel and whine about how we hated our troops and loved the terrorists, pretty much all they can do now as well. We shouldn’t expect more. Tragedy and consequence are lost on the brain-washed and brain-dead.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:45 ami’ve read that he “walked away” from his base, also that he had “lagged behind” during a march…
…
July 19th, 2009 at 11:46 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
How does one conclude the 2 wars we are in are illegal?
As I’ve said many times before, the war in Afghanistan is illegal because going to war to capture a criminal is illegal. The Taliban were willing to extridite Bin Laden upon sufficient proof that he was behind 9/11. Instead of giving the Taliban the minimum proof necessary to extradite Bin Laden, Bush went to war.
The war in Iraq is illegal because a war of aggression for regime change is a violation of international law.
And, yes, I’ve studied international law.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:50 am“They are exploiting the soldier in violation of international law,”
“We condemn the use of this video and the public humiliation of prisoners. It is against international law.”
1. As if these people give a d*amn about international law.
2. Who are we (The Great United States of America) to dictate to anyone the violation of international laws and who are we to condemn anyone based on humiliation carried out to others? After the tortures and abuses of prisoners, the US doesn’t have the right anymore to dictate to people when it concerns such things.
Thank you George W. Bush and Dick Cheney and all the other republicans.
I can just imagine how the international community must be laughing at us when they read those statements.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:50 ammgparrish says:
It is neither my job nor my desire to school you about international law…
__________
Like you could if you wanted to…
July 19th, 2009 at 11:51 amI feel very sorry for this young man and for his family. They must be going through hell wondering about how he is being treated. We can only pray that the Taliban are treating him better than we treated their people when we captured them. If I was the parent of a captured soldier I would be terrified that whomever captured him/her would treat my child in an inhumane manner. Why shouldn’t they? We haven’t exactly set a good example there, have we.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:51 amhttp://rawstory.com/news/2008/Unredacted_documents_reveal_prisoners_tortured_to_0212.html
July 19th, 2009 at 11:53 am“They are exploiting the soldier in violation of international law,” she said. U.S. military spokesman Colonel Greg Julian added, “We condemn the use of this video and the public humiliation of prisoners. It is against international law.”
We haven’t a leg to stand on regarding violations of international law, and sadly, this young man will likely bear the consequences.
President Obama, this is the reason that we prosecute war criminals. Not for revenge or to make the Republicans “look bad,” but because a young man from Idaho is in the hands of the Taliban — and we’re stuck waving a dull sword.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:54 amI really hope the POW comes home safe. I agree with many of the commentators on here about Bush, Cheney etc being partly responsible for the circumstances that have lead to this soldier being in the predicament he now finds himself in. The wars in Afghanistan, and that in Iraq, should not have been conducted in the first place. Although the Taliban were certainly extremists in the eyes of the west, they were not in themselves responsible for 9/11. There were other ways of dealing with Al-Queda camps etc without a full blown invasion causing death amongst innocent Afghans and leading to resentment that fuels the likes of the Taliban.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:56 amLastly I have to say that although Bush etc supported by so-called progressives like Blair in the UK, created the problems, it goes back much further and includes the responses and methods used by Clinton, Bush Snr and further back still, to really understand the Blowback effect. Obama and the liberal/progressives in power are doing little to help the situation. If we want to stop the deaths of American/Nato soldiers the answer is bring the troops home now and let the Afghans work it out.
Afghanistan is a signatory to the Geneva Convention, and ratified the Convention on September 16, 1956. The Taliban, as the government of Afghanistan (now in exile, having been overthrown by outside forces) is bound by the Geneva Convention.
Nevertheless, there are certain standards in international law that have risen to the level of jus cogens. That means that whether or not a country has signed on to a particular Convention or Treaty, that international law cannot be violated. Wars of Aggression are one. Torture is another. Videotaping a prisoner does not rise to such a level of eggregious conduct so as to warrant jus cogens status.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:57 amThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
That they shaved his head is a bad sign. Muslims usually do that before executions. The wingnuts got him killed with their cheerleading torture and murder of prisoners just like we on the left have warned for years.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:00 pmmarlow says:
We knew this day would happen.
We most certainly did. The torture proponents appear not to be able to grasp the connection. Is this another example of American exceptionalism. It’s okay if the guys in the white hats do the torturing, but not okay if being done by the guys in the black hats.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:01 pm1. We were attacked in WWII 2. We were acting as part of a UN mission in Bosnia.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:01 pmmgparrish is a perfect example of why you can’t teach a pig to sing.
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 12:01 pmThe mgparrish troll is good at copying & pasting the comment he’s responding to, so at least we know who he’s talking to, and he does some nice asterisk work….but that’s about it.
*yawn*
July 19th, 2009 at 12:01 pmThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
Until the US prosecute the people responsible for the inhumane behavior in which prisoners were treated, the US will never be able to lead and be taken seriously with such issues as prevention of torture…etc. We have got to indicate how serious we are about upholding the international laws and the whole principle of the Geneva Convention. Prosecuting the top officials responsible for the violations would send a strong message that we are serious about such crimes.
Trust me, we will never be taken seriously by any country because of the crimes the United States of America committed.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:02 pmmgp, go study the history of WWII, Bosnia, and international law, then come back here to discuss things intelligently.
In the meantime, I hope you enjoy being voted down…
July 19th, 2009 at 12:04 pmMr Cobb,
I hope you’re wrong, but this is the Taliban…
July 19th, 2009 at 12:05 pmThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
The wingnuts might as well cut this troop’s head off themselves. They’re reponsible for his likely death.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:05 pmTrust me, we will never be taken seriously by any country because of the crimes the United States of America committed.
UNTIL WE HOLD THE HIGHEST OFFICIALS ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR ACTIONS.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:06 pmThese were investigated by the Pentagon and found to have occurred (and this is just a small part of the Church report). Just because we haven’t held anybody accountable doesn’t mean the allegations haven’t proven true.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:08 pmTo the Idaho troop held captive, we tried to stop the wingnuts with everything we had but we failed you. We will continue to fight them in your name. You and your family are in our thoughts.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:08 pmI hope you’re wrong, but this is the Taliban…
At least it doesn’t appear to be Al Queda so there is a slim hope.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:10 pmI am not buying it…Pumpkin Man…
July 19th, 2009 at 12:11 pmLike most wingnuts, you forget that once you write, film it, etc., it’s there for everyone to see. You definitely tried to equate the current conflict with WWII and Bosnia. Backpedal all you want, your ignorance is quite apparent. And I’m done with you, since clearly you are incapable of learning, or you just don’t want to…
July 19th, 2009 at 12:12 pmI wonder how MOST Americans will feel IF (a big IF, that is) the Taliban did this poor young American soldier EXACTLY what the Americans did to the Iraqi prisoners in Abu Ghraib that the world has seen from the pictures scattered on the Internet? Would MOST Americans be as outraged and feel humiliated as Iraqis, and would MOST understand why Iraqis were so outraged? I can’t wait to see the comments that people like Hannity, Coulter, Limbaugh, O’Reilly, Buchanan and many Republican congress persons will make about this.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:23 pm“Perhaps you have a place in your community to house those poor GITMO victims.”
No, but Hardin, Montana, does. http://thinkprogress.org/2009/05/18/hardin-montana-guantanamo/
July 19th, 2009 at 12:24 pmWWII was a crime. Hitler (in absentia) and the surviving Nazi commanders were found guilty of committing the “gravest of international crimes” by starting a preemptive war against Poland. Bush again committed the gravest of international crimes by preemptively attacking Iraq. Then he doubled down by torturing and killing prisoners. He and his crew need to be in the Hague, answering for their crimes. That Obama does not have the stones to do the right thing here is my most bitter disappointment with his presidency. This is the consequence of his weakness as well.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:33 pmThe only hope we have here is that the Taliban realize that by releasing this soldier they will stand to reap a HUGE propaganda coup in showing the world that they are more decent and humane than the supposed “Leader Of The Free World”, whose crimes against humanity at the behest of Chimpco. are clear for all to see (with the exception of our own fascist right) I’m not going to hold my breath though.
Oh yeah, we don’t have the moral authority so complain about this shit anymore…we lost that with 8 years of letting WAR CRIMINALS ruin the country.
WANTED: OBAMA for the crime of harboring known WAR CRIMINALS George “The Brian” Bush and Richard “The Dick” Cheney.
July 19th, 2009 at 12:43 pmOh yeah, we don’t have the moral authority so complain about this shit anymore…we lost that with 8 years of letting WAR CRIMINALS ruin the country.
WANTED: OBAMA for the crime of harboring known WAR CRIMINALS George “The Brian” [sic] Bush and Richard “The Dick” Cheney.
Buckie, you may be telling it like it is more than many here want to admit – but you’re right. On all points.
July 19th, 2009 at 1:05 pmMy sympathies are with the family of this soldier.
July 19th, 2009 at 1:10 pmAmericans are the world’s biggest war criminals in the 21st century, We are the biggest war criminals since our ancestors murdered millions of Vietnamese back in the 1960s and 1970s. End US imperial criminal occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq. Stop murdering Pakistanis with vile drone/missile strikes.
July 19th, 2009 at 1:54 pmmgparrish sez:How does one conclude the 2 wars we are in are illegal?
July 19th, 2009 at 1:56 pmI do believe the Constitution says only the Congress has the power to declare war, something conveniently ignored since WWII. I don’t recall our present Congress or the one prior issuing a Declaration of War. Just sayin’.
To Mr. Cobb who is predicting a dire end to his capture.
The Taliban could legitimize it’s cause in Afghanistan and throughout the world by treating him humanely. Something we never did, and claim the moral high ground.
It would go a long way towards swaying worldwide public opinion.
July 19th, 2009 at 2:23 pmWhile I think it’s important to make these videos known in order to provide an additional viewpoint and a face to our troops overseas, I think that excessive broadcasting of the video is another form of exploitation of his vulnerable state. If we really care about this soldier’s well being, we wouldn’t be so interested in using him as a means of telling the U.S. government ‘what goes around, comes around,’ and we’d be more interested in figuring out how to get him out of there.
July 19th, 2009 at 2:26 pmglassvisage says:
If we really care about this soldier’s well being, we wouldn’t be so interested in using him as a means of telling the U.S. government ‘what goes around, comes around,’ and we’d be more interested in figuring out how to get him out of there.
July 19th, 2009 at 2:26 pm
I think it’s important to do both. Thanks.
July 19th, 2009 at 2:29 pmTo clarify, I don’t think any of us are feeling pleased that this young man was taken by the Taliban, just so we can say “I told you so.” That’s sick and absurd.
My point is that if our leaders are determined not to hold the Bush administration to account for their crimes, this young man may pay the price for our lack of integrity.
July 19th, 2009 at 2:35 pmrich h – i’m reminded of a blurb i saw about the admin including the taliban in talks… i think karzai recommended…
…
i should’ve added to my comment about this soldier walking away,
if anyone has heard this, and why or what it could be about…
he doesn’t seem to have presented a threat to his ‘captors’…
…
very curious to me…
July 19th, 2009 at 2:37 pmFound this about Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdah….
http://www.adn.com/news/military/story/869478.html
Leaving base with three local troops not smart….I stand by my previous comment.
July 19th, 2009 at 2:53 pmWhen the Challenger shuttle exploded, no one blamed the engineers who warned against a freezing cold takeoff of taking pleasure in the deaths of the shuttle crew. To have done so would have been a cheap and cowardly thing. In fact, more pain was felt by those who saw the disaster coming, understood the flawed launch policy and tried to warn against it. No one here is happy this horrible thing has happened, but once again the fascist right is standing by, ready to do the cheap and cowardly thing, accusing their opponents of celebrating tragedy. These are the same people standing by with bottles of champagne, proudly and not-so-patiently waiting for the day that Obama fails and the country melts down completely.
July 19th, 2009 at 2:55 pmWill Liz Cheney be making the cable news rounds to try to rationalize this mess to make her dad look good or will she disapear like her father (like rats when the lights go on) when the heat is turned on?
July 19th, 2009 at 2:59 pmKaty,
I’m not sure if he walked away. There’s a story linked by pissedoffveteran, but I don’t believe much I read anymore – especially coming from the military. I’m sure they don’t want to take responsibility for this.
But if he did walk off, PTSD? Who knows, I won’t blame young man, something obviously happened.
I hope he makes it home safe and sound.
July 19th, 2009 at 3:11 pmAre we talking about them or us?
I see no black hoods over his head, no photos of him strapped to prison bars naked being forced to sodomize someone. I see no electrodes on his genitals. I see no feces being smeared on him.
The prisoner in this video is clothed in what appears to be clean, comfortable clothes. He is not only eating what looks like a hearty meal, he seems to be enjoying the food.
There are no signs of abuse, torture, beatings, nothing. He seems healthy and well cared for, so far. So far, it looks like this prisoner is better cared for than how we care for theirs. Of course lets hope this good care continues.
Lets hope the Taliban is smart enough to know that continuing to show video and photos of a US prisoner being well treated and well cared for will provide a stark contrast to the horrific images we provided of us abusing, humiliating, beating and torturing the prisoners we captured.
July 19th, 2009 at 3:32 pmThey are exploiting the soldier in violation of international law,”
International law ? what the heck is that,is it one of those “quaint thingies”.Hey folks if this guy is water boarded,That won’t be a crime,remember water boarding ain’t torture.It’s for this soldier goodwill & any other captures that you don’t do shit like Cheney did.YOU DON’T TORTURE(WATERBOARD ANYONE).Now they can do stuff to our guy cuz we did that shit to their guys.Logic could be a necessary evil.
July 19th, 2009 at 3:40 pmWe don’t see him lying in a pool of his own blood, under the dripping jaws of a snarling dog, either. Pray this continues. Revenge is a highly developed sensibility in many Asian cultures, but so is generosity…lies of the bushites notwithstanding.
July 19th, 2009 at 3:44 pmAs Governor of Texas George W. Bush invited his friends the Taliban to visit the US for a tour. Now it’s time to ask George W. he ask his friends to release our soldier. The US needs someone the Taliban trust and has a friendship with. Yes George W. and the Taliban had a fallen out but the friendship remains. President Obama nor Vice President Biden can’t makes deals because they don’t know the Taliban or their leaders. It’s time the White House ask George W. for help with this problem.
July 19th, 2009 at 3:45 pmThis soldier is in the same division (25th ID) that I was in while I was in the military. Although I was in the 3rd BDE combat team, while he is in the 4th. It sounds like he was probably stationed at the same base I was at in Afghanistan too. I hope he comes home safe, but in all likelihood he won’t. It’s a shame that we are even still over there. The Taliban had nothing to do with 9/11 and the fact that this war has skewed in peoples minds who was really responsible is a tragedy. People lump Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, Hezbollah, and insurgents all together under the label “terrorists” when in reality it is much more complex than that. But we have no leg to stand on trying to condemn these actions as a violation of international law. It is obvious to the world that we don’t follow it, so who are we to demand our enemies commit to a set of principles and rules that view as beneath us.
July 19th, 2009 at 3:47 pm*that we view
July 19th, 2009 at 3:48 pmAs employment in this country continues to rise lots of young people are exploring the possibility of employment in the military. As a Vietnam vet I’ve totally lost respect for the military, their personal and their policies.
July 19th, 2009 at 3:52 pmIt has been increasingly clear throughout the world and among thinking people in the united states that we have lost the high ground as far as morality is concerned. From viewing the Taliban video it appears they treat prisoners much better than we treat ours.
Until bush, cheney, rice, addington yoo, rove and others are turned over to the international court for trial the united states will remain a parasite among civilized nations and those we critisize as being uncivilized. It appears we have won the race to the bottom.
We would but we want the guy back alive.
July 19th, 2009 at 4:03 pmJackie and WAYNEBRO, I’d be willing to propose a trade – PFC Bergdahl for Bush. I’d even be willing to throw in Cheney, Addington and Rove to sweeten the deal.
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 4:07 pmThat’s right, we only condone Private Humiliation. And, no, you don’t get to see any more pictures.
God save our troops.
July 19th, 2009 at 4:09 pmDon’t forget Rumsfeld, Mom!
July 19th, 2009 at 4:21 pmYou guys are great. I always knew the actions of Bush/Cheney would come back to bite us in the butt. My daughter served in both Iraq and Afgan for 6 years and I heard horror stories from our service men/woman long before the Media had the guts to tell the truth. I heard and read many justify the criminal actions done by the White House. Now President Obama will have to release detainees we’re holding to get our soldier back. No enemy has to follow the International Law that we broke. I pray the Taliban will contact President Obama and a deal can be made. I still help our troops and email those still overseas but I knew our pass crimes would come back to smack us in the face. I expect we’ll hear of more horror we’ve done as time goes by. PEACE TO THE WORLD
July 19th, 2009 at 4:28 pmI can’t add anything to what’s been said above.
Except to add my Voice to the frey:
Go put your own house in order, Amerika, then come back with your complaints about violation of international law.
July 19th, 2009 at 4:30 pmThis comment has been voted down. Click to read.
Stop pissing your pants, Stampede. The methods of the Taliban have you cowering under your bed.
Shorter Stampede: the Taliban did it first, so that justifies everything Bush ever did! Waaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!
July 19th, 2009 at 5:18 pmThe following TP posters are enablers of the Taliban violating international law:
cd
TJM
Proud
mgparrish
RealityCheck
Stampede88
Thanks, traitors. Rot in hell.
(This short list is based only on postings to this story)
July 19th, 2009 at 5:31 pmStampede88, please point out each post that demonstrates support for the Taliban.
We’ll wait.
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 5:41 pmZooey, of course Rumsfeld! And that pasty-face pisspants Douglas Feith can go, too. And Richard Perle.
Actually, there’s quite a list of BushCheney enablers!
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 5:47 pmApparently, sarcasm is quite dead around here.
July 19th, 2009 at 5:48 pmOn what grounds do we stand on objecting to this “violation of international law?”
July 19th, 2009 at 5:50 pmSadly, I fully expect more of this – and worse – after the regime of Bush/CHeney.
cd
July 19th, 2009 at 5:54 pmThe point is not that we are disrespecting the young soldier — in fact, we are sympathetic and worried for his safety and well being. We have compassion and sympathy for his family as well.
It is the Bush/Cheney Administration, with Rumsfeld/Addington/Rice,
Wolfowitz/Perle/Natsos and all the other criminals who are at the receiving end of our ire.
We have lost any high ground – we have no grounds on which to object to the young soldier’s treatment. Bush gave that to us in his legacy.
TJM says:
Apparently, sarcasm is quite dead around here.
July 19th, 2009 at 5:48 pm
If you’re new around here, you might want to add the “/snark” tag.
Thnx
July 19th, 2009 at 6:03 pmPlease demonstrate one instance where anyone here is “ignoring” the crimes committed by the Taliban.
This thread is about a captured US prisoner and the faux outrage by US officials over his so called being “abused”.
We see no signs of that in the video and thus being honest people, we acknowledge that fact.
Some two bit low life calling that “ignoring the talibans crimes” doesn’t make it so.
July 19th, 2009 at 6:14 pmTJM, I didn’t realize you were doing parody. The sad part is that your parody mirrors the trolls at their most serious.
As Zooey said, adding the “snark” tag until people get used to your sense of humor will go a long way. Sorry, I think I was one of those who voted you down…
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 6:25 pmI see this poor soldier and all I can think about is the warrior President who made all this mess possible.
You know the guy who could not show up for reserve duty for some reason, while many of his country men were dying in Viet Nam. The same guy jumped out of the fighter in a flight suit and said “mission accomplished”.
Here is this poor guy caught up in this mess. You heart and prayers go out to his family and all families who have loved ones serving their country. Our prayers and God be with them.
July 19th, 2009 at 8:04 pmspencers mom says:
——————————————————————————–
Jackie and WAYNEBRO, I’d be willing to propose a trade – PFC Bergdahl for Bush. I’d even be willing to throw in Cheney, Addington and Rove to sweeten the deal.
PEACE
spencers mom,
July 19th, 2009 at 8:12 pmI must complain that your list is way too short. You must widen your perspective, give them more for the effort.
thanks for that link, pissedoff…
this part struck me as quite curious… i could be way off…
Before enlisting, Bergdahl worked as a barista at a coffee shop in Hailey, Zaney’s River Street Coffee House, where a sign on the counter encouraged patrons to keep Bergdahl in their thoughts and prayers.
“Join all of us at Zaney’s holding light for our friend Bowe Bergdahl. Bowe has been captured in Afghanistan,” the handwritten sign said.
A similar message posted July 8 on the coffee shop’s Facebook page suggests many in the small town have known for some time that Bergdahl was in danger.
Friends and former co-workers at the coffee shop declined to speak on the record Sunday to an AP reporter, saying they were abiding by the Bergdahl family’s wishes for privacy.
One of the directors of the Sun Valley Ballet School in Ketchum said Bergdahl performed with the group for four or five years up to about 2008.
just doesn’t sound like someone who wanted to be in a war in afghanistan…
he is being treated well for propaganda purposes, of course…
quite a contrast to the pictures of u.s. detainees…
and the alqaeda prisoners past…
i hope he is still looking so good…
the taliban is probably just as perplexed about this guy walking into their world…
just some gut feelings…
July 19th, 2009 at 8:17 pmRich H – PTSD?
i wondered that too… or some such…
July 19th, 2009 at 8:22 pmI just want to thank folks here for being so dependable by VOTING DOWN anyone who disagrees…
It sure makes it easier for me to find the comments worth reading!
Hahahahahahahahahahaha….
July 19th, 2009 at 8:53 pmI’m with easywind…..
Tim why are you worried?
July 19th, 2009 at 9:06 pmAh, Timmeh inadvertently shows it’s true colors! It doesn’t come here to read divergent views or participate in discussions, it comes here trolling for other posters who share it’s ideology and talking points, wanting nothing more than to disrupt, offend and mock while defending the indefensible.
Thanks Timmeh. Give yourself a pat on the back for having an honest moment… accidental though it may be.
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 9:38 pmTim Vacuous must be representing the poor piss-soaked trollie population, who are too scared to come here anymore.
*playing tiny violin*
July 19th, 2009 at 9:50 pmTim V. said: It sure makes it easier for me to find the comments worth reading.
For once, I agree. I don’t have to scroll through cut-and-paste, off-topic screeds or links to the Heritage Foundation in my quest for reasonable discussion.
But it’s not because you disagree that you are voted down, Tim V. It’s more of a “you’re retarded” thing…
July 19th, 2009 at 10:02 pmspencers mom,
FYI, You folks have made it abundantly clear you aren’t interested in “discussion” or “divergent views.” You aren’t interested in what I have to say so why should I waste my time any more?
You have a finely tuned echo chamber here, so now I just lurk, enjoying a good laugh when I need one.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:05 pmThe Moderate Squad,
Not true. I’ve studied the vote down thing and like I said, you folks dependably vote down EVERYONE who isn’t of your mindset. It simply doesn’t matter what we might have to say. Each and every person who posts that isn’t one of your “crowd” is voted down.
I know you people. You’re the ones who shout down guest speakers on campus, etc..
Predictable and pathetic.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:12 pmThat’s ok, Tim Vacuous. We all have a good laugh at your expense every time we think of your idiotic comments.
:-D
July 19th, 2009 at 10:13 pmTim Vaculik says:
Predictable and pathetic.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:12 pm
Yep, that’s you. Would you like some cheese with that whine?
(Since I’m responding to your comments, you will notice that I’m not voting you down.)
July 19th, 2009 at 10:15 pmZooey,
Well, you might want to go copy them for posterity before the threads are gone because I’m through providing them.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:16 pmUm, Timmy, it appears that you are still commenting.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:17 pmIs this real, or just some beautiful dream?
July 19th, 2009 at 10:22 pmMod Squad, I’d call it delusions of adequacy.
July 19th, 2009 at 10:22 pmRalph Peters also advocated for the murder of all the prisoners in Gitmo.
Whattasweetie.
July 19th, 2009 at 11:10 pmTimmeh sez:
So THAT explains why we have troll after troll after troll regurgitating the same old disproven talking points!
Uh oh, the old “you people” argument.
Nice to see some self-awareness from you, Timmeh. But don’t beat yourself up, it’s never to late to stop being the consumate assh0le.
PEACE
July 19th, 2009 at 11:13 pmI love this new “Voted Down” feature the tinkerbells have installed here. It must mean my post are hitting you right in the vagina…when you use it.
I would expect nothing less from you bunch of pu$$ies anyways! Keep up the good work dstankass and crew!
July 20th, 2009 at 12:58 amPosterity? Why preserve low quality, half-literate, mindless drivel in the information age?
July 20th, 2009 at 1:21 amRealityCheck says:
July 20th, 2009 at 12:58 am
And the trolls say we’re the filthy ones…
I’m happy we’re having an effect on you dingleberries — heightened whining. :-D
July 20th, 2009 at 2:08 amIf you watch the whole video, the soldier claims to have been lagging behind a patrol and captured. So, it is obvious that someone is lying. Since he makes up the facts behind his capture, its very possible that this is just an Anti-American propoganda film made to try to get Americans more pissed about being there.
Of course TP only takes the two minutes of the whole 28 minute video that makes your own point.
July 20th, 2009 at 8:35 amWho the hell are we to complain.
We do not follow Geneva Conventions.
We torture our Prisoners of war.
July 20th, 2009 at 9:30 amIt’s nice that the U.S. government has rediscovered international law after eight years of Bush. To our credit, we haven’t exploited detainees for propaganda. To our discredit, we have mistreated, tortured and killed people held by the U.S. military and the CIA.
July 20th, 2009 at 11:12 amThanks spencers mom.
Your post at 125 was on the money.
I don’t know what I wrote that caused Willy to declare I was an “enabler of the Taliban violating international law” but he’s way off base.
I think Bush is slime at best and the Taliban are a buch of jackbooted thugs.
and I think POW’s should be treated right.
July 20th, 2009 at 5:37 pmI hope he comes home safe, but in all likelihood he won’t. It’s a shame that we are even still over there. The Taliban had nothing to do with 9/11 and the fact that this war has skewed in peoples minds who was really responsible is a tragedy.The wars in Afghanistan, and that in Iraq, youtubeshould not have been conducted in the first place. People lump Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, Hezbollah, and insurgents all together under the label “terrorists” when in reality it is much more complex than that. From viewing the Taliban video it appears they treat prisoners much better than we treat ours. Sohbet
July 20th, 2009 at 6:57 pm