Read together, the magazine articles spell out an elaborate, all-inclusive chain of command in this scandal. Bush knew about it. Rumsfeld ordered it. His undersecretary of defense for intelligence, Steven Cambone, administered it. Cambone's deputy, Lt. Gen. William Boykin, instructed Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller, who had been executing the program involving al-Qaida suspects at Guantanamo, to go do the same at Abu Ghraib. Miller told Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, who was in charge of the 800th Military Brigade, that the prison would now be dedicated to gathering intelligence. Douglas Feith, the undersecretary of defense for policy, also seems to have had a hand in this sequence, as did William Haynes, the Pentagon's general counsel. Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, learned about the improper interrogations—from the International Committee of the Red Cross, if not from anyone else—but said or did nothing about it for two months, until it was clear that photographs were coming out. Meanwhile, those involved in the interrogations included officers from military intelligence, the CIA, and private contractors, as well as the mysterious figures from the Pentagon's secret operation.
That's a lot more people than the seven low-grade soldiers and reservists currently facing courts-martial.
article
That's a lot more people than the seven low-grade soldiers and reservists currently facing courts-martial.
For all you folks who are official line gullible, I'm afraid you're going to have to fall back on your propensity to self-delusion.
And I have a feeling that now that these magazines have broken through the taboo to get a scoop, commercial competition amongst "news" sources will drive a new media frenzy. Maybe we'll actually get some information in the bargain. And, if miracles do happen, maybe the dungheap in Washington will get flushed.
Unfortunately, while it surely can't be any worse (famous last words), the no-choice alternative may not be any better.
That's a lot more people than the seven low-grade soldiers and reservists currently facing courts-martial.
So, what happens next?
So, what happens next?
Read Fred Kaplan's article at Slate.
....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.
