Prometheus 6

Jeanne D'Arc has the round-up. Just some stuff that leaped out at me-

From The Guardian:

US military in torture scandal
Use of private contractors in Iraqi jail interrogations highlighted by inquiry into abuse of prisoners
Julian Borger in Washington
Friday April 30, 2004
The Guardian

Graphic photographs showing the torture and sexual abuse of Iraqi prisoners in a US-run prison outside Baghdad emerged yesterday from a military inquiry which has left six soldiers facing a possible court martial and a general under investigation.
The scandal has also brought to light the growing and largely unregulated role of private contractors in the interrogation of detainees.

According to lawyers for some of the soldiers, they claimed to be acting in part under the instruction of mercenary interrogators hired by the Pentagon.

from the CBS News mailbag:

Why in God's name would you choose to air such a story at this time? This is something our country didn't need to know now. Everyone in this country is hanging on for dear life to support the troops, and you have taken all our faith in goodness away. How many more reports can we watch like this before support fades?

We are losing our fight with other countries to support us, and now you have just sealed it. ... We've just lost the goal of helping anyone over there because of this show, and God help us. You are no better then those who did these horrible acts. Your reports are bringing down this country.
--[Name Redacted because I ain't tryna hear no lawsuits]

I find it very wrong that our soldiers mistreated confined Iraqis. What I find even more destructive is that you do not find the time to report what has been accomplished with what the good soldiers have done. You have your own agenda and report as you feel fit.
--[Name Redacted because I ain't tryna hear no lawsuits]

Was I supposed to be horrified by the report of Iraqi prisoners being positioned in "pornographic" positions and humiliated by American soldiers? I was not. During your report, all I could think of was the murder, torture, maiming, burning and beheading of innocent civilians, women and children included, carried out by terrorists and supporters of Saddam Hussein. At least these men were men of war.

They had to pose for pornographic pictures? So what. We cannot imagine sitting at home on our couches the horrors our soldiers must face every day. Why not focus your attention on the unfair practices of our enemy?
--[Name Redacted because I ain't tryna hear no lawsuits]

Are you guys nuts? Do you think showing this is going to help the Americans in captivity and our other allies? I fully understand the need for an open and free press, but you have to balance that with the lives of our own people. You are just going to infuriate an already bad situation. How would you feel if your son's life was on the edge of a knife somewhere in a Baghdad hole?
--[Name Redacted because I ain't tryna hear no lawsuits]

I resent your story on the mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners held by the American soldiers in Iraq. Certainly the evidence of mistreatment of those prisoners by a small minority of soldiers is unacceptable. How dare you make an attempt to poison this country against the very military personnel who are risking their lives to protect this country -- whether or not you may agree with the politics. What you did not see were American soldiers dragging an Iraqi along the streets in Iraq being flogged by Iraqi citizens. Perhaps you should interview Iraqis guilty of such greater travesties and see how their countrymen feel. Do you really think they care?
--[Name Redacted because I ain't tryna hear no lawsuits]

At one time I would have condemned the way they were treated, but after recently seeing them burning Americans there, I say they should give those troops medals. An eye for an eye.
--[Name Redacted because I ain't tryna hear no lawsuits]

What an atrocity! Should these pictures have been shown? We were appalled when we saw people hanging from the bridges after being attacked and burned. It makes us sick to see the women and children of war and the devastation they live in; the people lying in hospitals with no medical attention or medicine. Then you show something like this.

Is it going to help our soldiers who are there? I doubt it. Those people who are fighting us with every ounce of their strength are only going to use this as fuel for their fires. No doubt it will be broadcast in Iraq and all other countries around, and the photos all over the front pages of their papers within a couple of days. Yes, I think the people involved in this should be severely punished. I don't much think that will satisfy the people in Iraq who see this.
--[Name Redacted because I ain't tryna hear no lawsuits]

While tens of thousands of U.S. men and women serve their country in the Battle of Iraq, 60 Minutes II has the audacity to violate their character by showing the disgusting actions of "several" of their comrades to foreign prisoners.

Not only do you "report" the incident, you distastefully show the pictures that only serve to brand all our loved ones in uniform. You leave little doubt, both past and present, of your liberal agenda and desire to taint this military action.
--[Name Redacted because I ain't tryna hear no lawsuits]