Keith Olbermann on Torture Accountability
- Posted by: andrea
- Member type: Individual
- Issue(s) addressed: Civil Liberties, Crime, Defense and Homeland Security
- Location(s) addressed: United States
- Posted: 11:18 EDT, April 17, 2009
- Views: 157
It is clear that President Obama has made a significant step in releasing the 2002 torture memos of the Bush Administration, but what now? These memos outline the types of torture the American government sanctioned as long as they did not “have the specific intent to inflict severe pain or suffering.” Making the public aware of what is going on may be the first step to putting the country in the right direction, but now that we know what happened what is to be done? If the President does not hold anyone accountable how are we to be sure that there actually has been a change? By merely letting this slide the problem will not go away. While I do not agree with Olbermann’s suggestion of prosecuting every person involved, some in fact were merely obeying orders, what about those making the actual decisions? But Olbermann does have a point, we cannot allow these mistakes to go unpunished.
I agree that Obama definitely should not release government documents as powerful as these and just let all the guilty parties go. I am glad that he has changed his stance to allow Congress and Attorney General Eric Holder to decide who should and should not be punished based on these documents, as that seems like a fair way to decide who was at the forefront of these issues and who was simply taking orders. However, I wish Obama had made this decision all along, for I do not think it looks to great for him that he said one thing one day (that no one would be prosecuted) and changed his position the next. We are in such an unstable place right now that Obama needs to show the public he is decisive and not easily swayed. We need to know that he is doing his best to make the right decisions and following through with that, rather than being unsure and second-guessing himself.
CH, Democratic Party, 19, New York, NY, U.S.A.Written 13:28 EDT, April 23, 2009 Report Abuse