A Dark Day In American History

When historians write their passages about this period in American history, it will be remembered as the time in which the Republican party along with some Democrats stripped away the legal rights of detainees captured during the so-called war on terror, allowed their president - not the Geneva Conventions - to define torture, protected CIA torturers from prosecution and expanded the definition of unlawful combatant in such a way that more people, including Americans, are now at risk of being detained indefinitely at the whim of George W Bush. It will be remembered also as a time when congress decided that the safety of its troops and intelligence officers was dismissed by the approval of a bill that signaled to the rest of the world that torture of anyone was now seen as acceptable to Americans.

SusanG at Daily Kos wrote today:

Stalwart, bloodthirsty Republican operatives would expand the ranks of the traitorous by rhetorically damning those who lack courage or will to see this endless War on Terror through. They'd claim the American public doesn't have the stomach for what's needed to be a winner in the game of empire.

And they would be right: The American public does not have the stomach for the reality of what's being authorized here. There is at least a small satisfaction in that, because I do believe the facts will drip their way into the American consciousness eventually, and what's being legalized today will result in a great virulent revulsion against the party that debased this country's underlying principles.

I'm not so sure about that.

If Americans are not experiencing that 'great virulent revulsion' right now, at the time this is all happening in their midst by their government, I see no hope that they will somehow have a sudden awakening sometime in the future when it will have been to late to redress the damage done to their reputations and their lives. But, of course, this is about more than their reputations.

This is a moment in time when Americans, for whatever reason, overwhelmingly stand silent against a tyrannical government that has decided to accept that the most vile treatment of their fellow human beings actually bolsters their security and is a brave expression of civility and human rights.

It is a moment in time in which Americans are failing on a massive scale to protect themselves and their rights - not just those of suspected terrorists. It is a moment in time when Americans are collectively displaying exactly what their enemies have accused them of: a lack of morality and conscience that is indefensible. And, it is a moment in time in which people all over the world watch in shock and horror as the United States violates its own laws and the spirit of its Constitution all in the name of fear.

There are many parallel times in history in which governance by fear led whole countries and peoples astray. Times in which 'the other', so identified by race, religion, nationality, sex and other characteristics, were also persecuted, tortured and killed in the most horrendous ways while the public cheered on such actions out of ignorance. This modern society often prides itself in having risen above such cruelty when it truly has not. Can it? That's the question that future generations will have to answer since it's so painfully obvious that the generations of today have shown that they are unable or unwilling to advance the cause of human rights to the point where madness and revenge become traits of the past.

Gandhi said:

“You can chain me, you can torture me, you can even destroy this body, but you will never imprison my mind.”

It's time for all Americans to say:

You can't chain me or others, you can't torture me or others, you can't destroy this body or others, and you will never imprison our minds.

This is truly a dark, dark day and from now on this is what America stands for. (caution: disturbing images/not safe for work)

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(You can watch the US senate debate on this bill live online today at C-SPAN's site.)

Update:

For an quick explanation of the issues covered by this bill, see Rushing Off a Cliff.

Senate Nears Final Vote on Detainee Bill

WASHINGTON, Sept. 28 — The Senate today rejected an amendment to a bill creating a new system for interrogating and trying terror suspects that would have guaranteed such suspects access to the courts to challenge their imprisonment.

The vote was 51 to 48 against the amendment, which was offered by the Republican and Democratic leaders of the Judiciary Committee...
[...]
The bill’s ultimate passage was assured on Wednesday when Democrats agreed to forgo a filibuster in return for consideration of the amendment. Any changes in the Senate bill, however, would have made it impossible for Republican leaders to meet their goal of sending the bill to the White House before adjourning on Friday to hit the campaign trail.

Underscoring the political stakes involved, White House spokesman Tony Snow said today that President Bush will emphasize Democratic opposition to the bill in campaign appearances.

“He’ll be citing some of the comments that members of the Democratic leadership have made in recent days about what they think is necessary for winning the war on terror,” Mr. Snow told reporters en route to a fundraiser in Alabama, according to a transcript provided by the White House.

Update: 4:40 pm ET The senate is now voting on 3 amendments (doomed to fail) presented by the Democrats. You can find the roll call results of these votes here . Following those votes, the final vote on the bill is due and I'll post those results when they're available.


Final Vote: Yeas - 65; Nays - 34

The Democrats who voted with the Republicans to pass this bill were Lautenberg, Salazar, Lieberman, Menendez, Pryor, Nelson (NE) and Rockefeller. In addition (I thought just these few jumped ship, but there were more): Carper, Johnson, Landrieu, Stabenow and the other Nelson (FL).