ThinkProgress discovered an outtake from Bill O'Reilly's stint as host of the tabloid TV news magazine Inside Edition (1989-1995). Update: The video got pulled from YouTube, but Crooks and Liars has it.
John McCain and his mother discuss the weekend Johnnie was born, lo these many years ago. His mom says the Boys at the Club bought 27 bottles of scotch to celebrate the blessed event.
Now I've got the song stuck in my head: 27 bottles of Scotch at the club, 27 bottles of Scotch, take one down, pass it around...
[HT: Sadly, No]
Brave New Films released a remarkable video of Ohio mega-church pastor and faith-healer Rod Parsley preaching about how the Founding Fathers intended America to fight the anti-Christ, demon-inspired religion of Islam. (I'm not making this up.) Interspersed with the Parsley segments is footage of Sen. John McCain effusively praising Parsley on stage at a campaign rally in Cincinatti. McCain introduces Parsley as "one of the truly great leaders in America, a moral compass, [and] a spiritual guide." The Republican presidential candidate thanks pastor Parsley for his leadership and his guidance.
And here's Pastor Parsley railing against the Supreme Court's legalization of "the perverted act of sodomy":
More words of wisdom from John McCain's moral compass Rod Parsley. (Check out the stuff about the prayer cloth and the love of money.)
Talking Points Memo brings us this clip from the Mukasey confirmation hearings, in which Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) presents the AG-to-be with the following question: Is waterboarding constitutional?
Mukasey's answer?
If waterboarding is torture, then it's not constitutional.
Okay...
Let's put this another way. Is a convincing simulation of drowning that can cause brain and lung damage torture?
I don't know about you guys, but drowning is one of the ways I'd least like to die. Anything that simulates drowning has got to be torture--especially when it involves extreme pain and potential organ damage, or even death. It's difficult to know what the complication rate is for waterboarding because it's not something that any ethical physician or research institution would ever inflict on humans...or animals for that matter.
I think it's safe to assume that Mukasey is lying when he says that he's "not familiar with the technique" of waterboarding--either that, or he's so sheltered as to disqualify himself for the job of the nation's top law enforcer.
Good for Sen. Whitehouse for telling Mukasey that his answer is "a massive hedge" and very disappointing.
Democracy Now! has a fascinating interview with a psychiatrist who interviewed suspected terrorist Jose Padilla for over 22 hours in an attempt to determine whether he was fit to stand trial after more than 3 years of solitary confinement.
In 1951, psychiatrist Joost Meerloo coined the term "menticide" to describe the kind of systematic psychological violence that the Chinese inflicted upon American POWs during the Korean War. The basic techniques haven't changed much since then. Over the years, these tactics have been embraced by a variety of cults and coercive "treatment" programs in the United States and abroad.
Today, the US government insists that mind-killing is an essential part of their endless war on terrorism. For details, see Jane Mayer's excellent New Yorker piece, The Black Sites.
Dr. Angela Hagerty concluded that Padilla was not fit to stand trial. Amongst other things, she observed that the 36-year-old American was furious at his own lawyers for making the government's job harder:
Also he had developed, actually, a third thing. He had developed really a tremendous identification with the goals and interests of the government. I really considered a diagnosis of Stockholm syndrome. For example, at one point in the proceedings, his attorneys had, you know, done well at cross-examining an FBI agent, and instead of feeling happy about it like all the other defendants I’ve seen over the years, he was actually very angry with them. He was very angry that the civil proceedings were “unfair to the commander-in-chief,” quote/unquote. And in fact, one of the things that happened that disturbed me particularly was when he saw his mother. He wanted her to contact President Bush to help him, help him out of his dilemma. He expected that the government might help him, if he was “good,” quote/unquote. [Democracy Now!]
Talk about not being fit to participate in your own defense...
Padilla was charged with conspiring to murder people overseas and providing material support to terrorists abroad. The government publicly accused Padilla of participating in a "dirty bomb" plot, but that wasn't what they charged him with. After nearly four years of "enhanced" interrogation, they still didn't have enough evidence to lay charges in the bomb plot? What does that say about the effectiveness of their methods?
By destroying Padilla, the government cheated us all out of justice. If Padilla had gotten the speedy trial that he was entitled to as an American citizen, he might have been legitimately convicted. Instead, the government tortured an American citizen and undercut the legitimacy of their prosecution.
In any event, a Florida jury has reached a verdict in Padilla's civilian trial. The contents of the verdict have not yet been made public.
Update: The AP reports that Padilla was convicted on all counts.
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