Suppose the Iranian government arrested & beat Katie Couric (NYT)

[kpete]

February 14, 2008
Op-Ed Columnist
When We Torture
By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF

The most famous journalist you may never have heard of is Sami al-Hajj, an Al Jazeera cameraman who is on a hunger strike to protest abuse during more than six years in a Kafkaesque prison system.

Mr. Hajj’s fortitude has turned him into a household name in the Arab world, and his story is sowing anger at the authorities holding him without trial.

That’s us. Mr. Hajj is one of our forgotten prisoners in Guantánamo Bay.

..............

Suppose the Iranian government arrested and beat Katie Couric, held her virtually incommunicado for six years and promised to release her only if she would spy for Iran. In such circumstances, Iranian investments in public diplomacy toward the United States wouldn’t get very far, either.

After Mr. Hajj was arrested in Afghanistan in December 2001, he was beaten, starved, frozen and subjected to anal searches in public to humiliate him, his lawyers say. The U.S. government initially seems to have confused him with another cameraman, and then offered vague accusations that he had been a financial courier and otherwise assisted extremist groups.

more at:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/14/opinion/14kristof.html?_r=1&hp=&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin

[Jacobin]

1. oh my. don't go there

no comment

[acmavm]

4. No kidding. I was gonna say 'one could only hope'. But that

would be mean.

[AlertLurker]

2. How about Limpballs, or BillO, instead?

No outrage, here.

Just fantasizing, tho...

[atreides1]

5. Because No One Would Care

I think I would have a "Keep Bill O'Reily" party.

[mwb970]

3. We have sick, barbarian traitors running this country.

If I had any disgust left, this would disgust me. But I don't.