By Dave Lindorff

Double standards when it comes to children are pretty
appalling—especially when it comes to “our” kids vs. “their” kids, but
here in America they aren’t limited to just right-wingers.

Take reaction to the US Supreme Court’s latest ruling that you
cannot execute rapists—even those who rape children—on the theory that
only killing someone justifies execution.

Politicians who make their careers by promoting state sponsored
murder have been quick to condemn this latest “liberal outrage” by
calling for more laws that would make execution the punishment for
raping a child (admittedly a monstrous crime).

Born in 1963 in Parkersburg, West Virginia, Rebecca Schneider grew up in rural western Pennsylvania in a middle class neighborhood.  Rebecca graduated from Mars High School in 1982 and Slippery Rock University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology.  During the course of attending College and working two, sometimes three jobs to pay her way, she set the course of her career when she began working in the library and currently works as a Library Supervisor for Arizona State University.

By Dave Lindorff

Is anyone surprised that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says that the Bush/Cheney administration’s authorization of torture of captives has been consistently legal and in compliance with all treaties the US has signed, including the Geneva Conventions?

After all, she was at the meetings in the White House in 2001 at which various acts of torture, ranging from waterboarding to exposure to extreme heat and cold, to enforced long periods in stress positions, and to treatments which have not been disclosed (no doubt because they are so outrageous and offensive to common decency) were dreamed up, proposed and approved for use—meetings that were manifestly criminal in nature and in violation of international and US law.

The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy played its "ace in the hole" against Obama - Rev. Jeremiah Wright - and it failed miserably, because Americans are sick and tired of Karl Rove's politics of personal destruction.

So now what are they going to do to keep the White House? It looks like we're back to "wag the dog." Cue up McCain's old Beach Boys song: "Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran."

Our friends at the American Freedom Campaign think it's long past time for Conyers to subpoena Ashcroft and Yoo over torture - and if they refuse to appear, begin impeachment hearings. We couldn't agree more. 

American Freedom Campaign Urges Chairman Conyers to Subpoena John Ashcroft and John Yoo

Call for action follows FBI Director Mueller’s testimony that Justice Department prevented investigation of CIA torture

Contact:  Steve Fox, American Freedom Campaign, 202-822-5200

FBI Director Robert Muller went before the House Judiciary Committee, and Rep. Robert Wexler challenged the FBI's failure to stop torture by the CIA and the Pentagon. Muller essentially accused the Attorney General of participating in a coverup. Of course Alberto Gonzales personally approved torture in advance, so it's no surprise he later blocked prosecution of the torturers. Isn't it time for a Special Prosecutor?

Why did it take eight full days for the NY Times to publish an editorial on Bush's shocking admission that he approved torture?

Were they trying to find the right words to express their outrage and to demand, finally, impeachment?

Quite the opposite. They were trying to find the words to avoid demanding impeachment or any other form of accountability.

At this point it seems that getting answers will have to wait, at least, for a new Congress and a new president. Ideally, there would be both truth and accountability. At the very minimum the public needs the full truth.

The absolute last thing the next President and Congress will want to deal with is holding Bush accountable. They will have a million more pressing things to do.

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No big surprise here in Greenville, SC. The media at large has been silent about the degradation of our Republic. so I am not surprised to learn that our local paper is not covering the torture confession Bush made on ABC news.

The contacy information is:

Greenville News

Anne VandenBerghe

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