In 2005, the CIA destroyed 92 tapes that documented the treatment of two terror suspects while they were imprisoned by U.S. forces in Thailand. The destruction is old news; the number of tapes is new.
???Not that the number really changes the reality of the situation. There is plenty of evidence that the U.S. has practiced torture on terror suspects since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. So the question is - what was on these tapes that was so damning?
???In the past few months, we have seen the unveiling of information that was once classified during the Bush administration.
???For example, there were the memos released Monday that detail which presidential powers Bush sought to expand while in office. They include the domestic wire-tapping program among others.
???Bush made it legal for the U.S. military to conduct in-country operations against terror suspects, a direct violation of the Posse Comitatus Act, which restricts the military from operating as law enforcement officers.
???This was deftly side-stepped by the clarification that raids on terror cells constitute protection of national security, not law enforcement, which still meant Bush was capable of ordering military operations on U.S. residents.
???The administration was allowed to ignore any foreign treaties that got in the way of its agenda, as well as any Congressional acts that did the same.
???Another memo states that the First Amendment, which we of the news hold dear, may be 'subordinated' in the government's pursuit of justice. The language was left open as well, hinting that the powers might be expanded as the Iraq War progressed.
???It was this memo that gave Bush the power to order that detainees be transferred to other countries and therefore outside U.S. jurisdiction, in spite of congressional decry that allowed for the above-mentioned 'interrogation' sessions in Thailand, which brings us full circle.
???It is President Barack Obama's administration that has committed to transparency, which has shown us much of this information and will probably show us more as time goes on.
???We must remember two things: this transparency is important no matter how bad it makes us look. The only way to redeem America is to take responsibility for what we've done. We must remember how easily we were taken advantage of in a time when we were scared.
???It is easy to compromise our beliefs when we fear for our lives, but the people that we remember as heroes are the ones who, when scared, did not sacrifice who they were and triumphed anyway.
???We are America. If we want to be a shining light to the world, then we have to earn it.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
