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“Terror”, Torture and Censorship - News from Today and Points for Departure |
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First, a bit of news:
After it was designated a “specially designed global terrorist” organization by Washington, the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (Huji) is under increased scrutiny in Bangladesh.
Asserting and affirming his authority as Chief Executive, President Bush has vetoed an effort by Congress to curb the CIA’s use of “harsh interrogation techniques”. Of the veto and the President’s willingness to “leave the door open to use torture in the future”, Senator Feinstein says the “The United States is not well served by this”. Calling upon Bush’s willingness to go against the advice of military commanders, Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, said,
“He [President Bush] has rejected the Army field manual’s recognition that such horrific tactics elicit unreliable information, put U.S. troops at risk and undermine our counterinsurgency effortsâ€Â.
Bush may be out in ten months’ time, but is torture here to stay?
After a marginal defeat on Tuesday, Obama has comeback with a win in Wyoming’s caucus today.
Second, some recommended reading:
Marc Lynch weighs in with some commentary on the public diplomacy policies being put for by the presidential candidates…and why Clinton’s missing plans for public diplomacy is a problem.
This month’s Arab Reform Bulletin, (published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace), has an interesting piece on media censorship in the Arab States in the wake of a new charter “that provides the tools to penalize broadcasters who attack leaders or air socially unacceptable content”. As Kraidy’s analysis suggests, it seems the only thing on which the states can agree is the process by which to suppress free speech.
And, along the lines of our people versus profit debate, The Economist online has a great piece on the threat of India’s “bloated civil service” and its threats to the country’s economic bottom line. At the very least, its an interesting angle from which to examine economic growth and decline.
This here’s an Open Thread, speak up below!
