President Obama Says CIA Tortured Al Queda Detainees ?

Our President used the term torture and not anything else because he is so enamored with the sound of his own voice that he seems to not realize we are at war with international terrorists. People who were captured right after 9/11 and may have had information critical to preventing more violence being planed or carried out were probably exposed to "enhanced interrogation techniques" and rightly so, but when you have no experience with war or combat you tend to react as if everyone is a signature to the Geneva Convention.

In fact, none of the Al Qaeda or other terrorists have ever signed on or believe in the tenants of the Convention. Beheading members of the US Military and other opposition forces on video seems to surpass torture. But let us not offend the sensibilities of anyone by using any types of waterboarding or other enhanced interrogation methods, that do not really approach torture.

Yes, all of us have a responsibility to prevent torture, not just officers. The President is intent on sending everyone in the Military to the War Crimes tribunal, we are all guilty in his eyes of not supporting him and all of his desires. Some of us even supported prior Presidents (and Miss them).

How do you feel about Putin's denials of involvement in the Ukraine? Are his denials convincing? Do they improve his credibility? What does denying something that the entire world knows is true really buy you?

The CIA admitted in 2007 that they used Water Boarding in 2002-2003. Please stop using the term "enhanced interrogation" to circumvent saying torture. The terms are completely synonymous (let me help you: we defined Water Boarding as an "enhanced interrogation technique" the United Nations and other international authorities define Water Boarding specifically as torture, therefore we have already admitted to torture; renaming it won't stand up in international court for even a minute).

The only new thing in this speech is that we dropped the euphemism that no one outside of the US was fooled by anyway. The ramifications for our well known actions have already played out, and there is a preponderance of evidence that our own actions aided in recruitment for terrorist organizations. I wouldn't anticipate anything new based on this speech. I don't feel we are any more exposed to the possibility of a war crimes tribunal than we already were. We have released enough people that have told consistent stories of questionable tactics and enough operators have written "tell all" books that I feel there is enough existing data to form a prosecutorial case if an entity was so motivated.

Personally, I am glad we are dropping the fakery. It's embarrassing. We're way better than that.

If anything the previous administration will have a few allegations to account for. The photos at Abu Ghraib proved it was done and thoes members were prosecuted...

""Senator John McCain (R-AZ), who was tortured during his time as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, has proposed an amendment outlawing all forms of “cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment” for U.S.-held detainees. The amendment, attached to a defense-spending bill, passed the Senate by ninety votes to nine, but faces a veto by the White House over objections the bill may hinder the CIA’s ability to gather intelligence from detainees. When asked about the torture amendment during his recent visit to Latin America, President George Bush replied, “We do not torture,” but added that “our government has the obligation to protect the American people.” Supporters of the amendment say laws prohibiting torture mirror those already found in the U.S. Army’s field manuals. Opponents, including Vice President Dick Cheney, say the amendment should not apply to detainees held by CIA agents who might have invaluable information about an imminent terrorist attack.""

http://www.cfr.org/terrorism-and-the-law/torture-united-states-laws-war/p9209