Ex-CIA: "GET 'EM, BARAK!!!"

[Mr. Shaman]

"Former CIA officer Robert Baer approves of President Obama’s release of the CIA memos justifying harsh interrogation methods approved by the Bush administration, noting that there is no way that the description of practices that are already well-known can possibly compromise national security.

However, Baer — who has also argued recently that the CIA needs to get out of the coercion business and back to “classical espionage” — believes that “Obama should not stop there” and that a blue-ribbon presidential commission is needed to further investigate the entire issue of abusive interrogations.

In an opinion piece for Time magazine, Baer points out that the memos rely on the “ticking time-bomb” scenario to claim that torture saves lives, but that they do not provide any convincing evidence to back up that claim. For example, 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed told interrogators about plans for a “Second Wave” of attacks — but since those attacks never came, “without more documents declassified, it can be assumed that KSM made it up to stop the waterboarding.”http://rawstory.com/08/blog/2009/04...-hard-look-at-the-facts-behind-torture-memos/​

'Bout time we had a competent-person advising The President!!!

Then, again.....unlike The Idiot Son.....this isn't a President who needs his ego salved.

Yep.....the days of Cheney Cherry-Pickin' have (finally) ENDED!!

​

 

[BigRob]

'Bout time we had a competent-person advising The President!!!

Then, again.....unlike The Idiot Son.....this isn't a President who needs his ego salved.

Yep.....the days of Cheney Cherry-Pickin' have (finally) ENDED!!

​

I enjoyed reading Baer's books I must admit. He is a firm advocate of expanding our HUMINT capability, something that we are in dire need of doing. While he is correct, making public tactics that are well known will not change much, in his books he seems to advocate for retaining the ability to carry out renditions, which I also think are necessary.

Take it for what it is worth, his opinions are just one former CIA officer, but his books are good reads if anyone is interested, and do offer some pretty good insight into his line of thinking, and is pretty good at showing just how laughable our intelligence agencies have become. After reading his books it should be no surprise that the US missed the boat on multiple intelligence operations, a notable one being Iraq.

 

[pocketfullofshells]

I enjoyed reading Baer's books I must admit. He is a firm advocate of expanding our HUMINT capability, something that we are in dire need of doing. While he is correct, making public tactics that are well known will not change much, in his books he seems to advocate for retaining the ability to carry out renditions, which I also think are necessary.

Take it for what it is worth, his opinions are just one former CIA officer, but his books are good reads if anyone is interested, and do offer some pretty good insight into his line of thinking, and is pretty good at showing just how laughable our intelligence agencies have become. After reading his books it should be no surprise that the US missed the boat on multiple intelligence operations, a notable one being Iraq.

I may have to check his stuff out, if for some reason I don't have some and just forgot the name lol. I have enjoyed Michael Scheuer's 3 books, ( 2 listed as anon as on my early versions of them, before it was known it was him) he was the Head of the Bin Ladin Unit for the CIA.

 

[Mr. Shaman]

I enjoyed reading Baer's books I must admit. He is a firm advocate of expanding our HUMINT capability, something that we are in dire need of doing. While he is correct, making public tactics that are well known will not change much, in his books he seems to advocate for retaining the ability to carry out renditions, which I also think are necessary.

Renditions are one-thing.

Extraordinary-renditions are what Dick Cheney insisted-upon!

It's time Americans were weaned from the whole Good vs. Evil Trip.....if we expect any succes, in the Middle East!

REZA ASLAN​

 

[BigRob]

Renditions are one-thing.

Extraordinary-renditions are what Dick Cheney insisted-upon!

It's time Americans were weaned from the whole Good vs. Evil Trip.....if we expect any succes, in the Middle East!

REZA ASLAN​

Let's not kid ourselves, the renditions that the US has been involved in since the Clinton years are what would be considered (by some) to be extraordinary renditions.

 

[Mr. Shaman]

Let's not kid ourselves, the renditions that the US has been involved in since the Clinton years are what would be considered (by some) to be extraordinary renditions.

.....But, it appears The DICK; Cheney's efforts were much-more effective.

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"Former VP Dick Cheney has requested the release of additional memos showing that torture and abuse saved American lives by preventing terrorist attacks. If the Obama administration decides to release these memos, then I suggest they also release statistics from Iraq showing the number of foreign fighters that were recruited because of our policy of torture and abuse. It was tracked. I know because I saw the slides and because I heard captured foreign fighters state this day in and day out. The government can also release the statistics that show that 90% of suicide bombers in Iraq were these same foreign fighters. These foreign fighters killed hundreds, if not thousands, of American soldiers." - Matthew Alexander​