Sunday, November 04, 2007
Waterboarding: Empathic Interrogation
(1)
We begin tonight with the Blog Readability Test. This test apparently samples your blog looking for 'big words,' then rates your blog accordingly. Daily Scratchpad earned a 'reading level' of 'Elementary School.' Whew. Could have been worse.
Post-Islamism seems to be the future. Modern communication will bring about that desirable state. Maybe.
The Attorney General is supposed to know when a crime is being committed. We were therefore fascinated by Michael Mukasey's ignorance before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week. Mukasey, a former judge, appeared to be in the dark concerning the subject of 'waterboarding,' unable to say whether that practice was or was not a crime, 'torture' being a crime. I think we can all agree that a serious candidate for the currently vacant position would have suggested to the committee that, 'I don't know, but I am ready to experience the procedure for the purpose of making a decision in that regard.' A less heroic but acceptable reply would have been something to the effect that he was willing to 'look it up' (do some research) and report back to the committee. No Joy. Mukasey insisted that maybe it was and maybe it was not a crime, which is to say that maybe it was and maybe it was not torture. 'Who knows?' said Mukasey, who asked the committee for authorative definitions of the words, 'crime,' and 'torture' before answering in the noncommitive case. Two Democrat Senators on the committee (Schumer and Feinstein), satisfied with Mukasey's performance, indicated to media that they would vote to confirm based Mukasey's outstanding performance before the committee. The remaining senators indicated that they would vote thumbs down. It should be noted that Schumer, a Democrat, actually nominated Mukasey to the Bush Administration! It should furthermore be noted that both Schumer and Feinstein are Jews, as is Mukasey. I humbly suggest that perhaps what we have here is a case of Jewish Tribalism which crosses party lines, not to mention moral lines. I am considering whether to classify both senators along with Lieberman as, 'senators from Israel.'
Meanwhile, Daniel Levin answered the question for himself by undergoing 'the procedure.' His definitive judgement: 'Yes, it is torture.' Levin has yet to be called before the committee, leaving the committee in the dark on that question.
My own research suggests that 'waterboarding' is actually 'drowning:' The lungs fill with water and the subject actually dies unless rescued at the last minute by empathic interrogators.
We begin tonight with the Blog Readability Test. This test apparently samples your blog looking for 'big words,' then rates your blog accordingly. Daily Scratchpad earned a 'reading level' of 'Elementary School.' Whew. Could have been worse.
Post-Islamism seems to be the future. Modern communication will bring about that desirable state. Maybe.
The Attorney General is supposed to know when a crime is being committed. We were therefore fascinated by Michael Mukasey's ignorance before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week. Mukasey, a former judge, appeared to be in the dark concerning the subject of 'waterboarding,' unable to say whether that practice was or was not a crime, 'torture' being a crime. I think we can all agree that a serious candidate for the currently vacant position would have suggested to the committee that, 'I don't know, but I am ready to experience the procedure for the purpose of making a decision in that regard.' A less heroic but acceptable reply would have been something to the effect that he was willing to 'look it up' (do some research) and report back to the committee. No Joy. Mukasey insisted that maybe it was and maybe it was not a crime, which is to say that maybe it was and maybe it was not torture. 'Who knows?' said Mukasey, who asked the committee for authorative definitions of the words, 'crime,' and 'torture' before answering in the noncommitive case. Two Democrat Senators on the committee (Schumer and Feinstein), satisfied with Mukasey's performance, indicated to media that they would vote to confirm based Mukasey's outstanding performance before the committee. The remaining senators indicated that they would vote thumbs down. It should be noted that Schumer, a Democrat, actually nominated Mukasey to the Bush Administration! It should furthermore be noted that both Schumer and Feinstein are Jews, as is Mukasey. I humbly suggest that perhaps what we have here is a case of Jewish Tribalism which crosses party lines, not to mention moral lines. I am considering whether to classify both senators along with Lieberman as, 'senators from Israel.'
Meanwhile, Daniel Levin answered the question for himself by undergoing 'the procedure.' His definitive judgement: 'Yes, it is torture.' Levin has yet to be called before the committee, leaving the committee in the dark on that question.
My own research suggests that 'waterboarding' is actually 'drowning:' The lungs fill with water and the subject actually dies unless rescued at the last minute by empathic interrogators.
