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Rumsfeld to Promote Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez

Only in America, folks. Lt. General Ricardo Sanchez, who was in charge of Abu Ghraib during the height of the prisoner abuse, is in line for a promotion by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Talk about adding insult to injury.

Such a move, which has been urged by senior U.S. Army officers and civilian officials now that an Army inquiry has cleared Sanchez of wrongdoing, seems to reflect a growing confidence that the military has put the abuse scandal behind it. It is one of two changes being considered that would involve new posts for senior generals who had previously been ruled out for nominations to the commands because of the U.S. Senate's outrage over Abu Ghraib, the officials say.

What kind of message would this send to the Arab world....that not only don't we hold senior Administration officials accountable for what happens on their watch, but we reward them with promotions? [link via Huffington Post.]

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    Re: Rumsfeld to Promote Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (none / 0) (#1)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:00:15 PM EST
    You just gotta love our media for putting everything out there. How about if the media didn't report this about General Sanchez, then the Arab world wouldn't be getting upset now would they. No, I don't agree that this guy deserves a promotion for what happened in Abu Gharib, however the media is just flat out stupid. The first time Bin Laden hit the WTC back in the mid 90's(if you remember he had set off explosives in the basment parking garage), CNN came out and said oh that's not going to work, in order to take the towers down you would have to hit them from the top. Wow, thanks CNN. After the Pentagon attack(and I worked at the pentagon for 3 years), they came out with a map of the inside showing where the SECDEF's and the JCofS offices are showing how the plane had missed that side of the pentagon. HELLO!!! MCFLY!!! Our media is just as much of a threat to us sometimes as our enemies are. This is a story they should have left alone. It dosent help us as a country, dosen't help our soldiers overseas. It just dosen't do any good.

    "Such a move, which has been urged by senior U.S. Army officers and civilian officials now that an Army inquiry has cleared Sanchez of wrongdoing" TL, I agree that it probably looks bad to some, but beyond that, isn't this much the same in principle as your "double standards" thread from the other day? Your position on that thread was that not guilty = innocent. By that standard, Sanchez is innocent of any wrongdoing and should be awarded whatever promotions he's in line for. Or is your only point that this move could be bad PR?

    Re: Rumsfeld to Promote Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (none / 0) (#3)
    by jackl2400 on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:00:15 PM EST
    The message that they're trying to send is that, if you're an "insurgent", "terrorist" or "enemy combatant" who falls into our hands, you are doomed and no one, anywhere, can do the slightest thing about it. Actually, incredibly, this is the message they're **trying** to send the Arab world, hoping it will help to "break the back" of the insurgency. Most recent reports about torture and acceptable interrogation policies in fact have mentioned the need to keep the allowable methods vague and broad so that potential terrorists will not know "how far" the interrogator will go, so that counter-measures or training for insurgents can be developed. Your rhetorical question is thus really the real question. Sanchez' promotion also signals to the brass, the troops, the public and the insurgents that torture is acceptable policy and that "good guys" will still be rewarded and encouraged although human rights wimps, enemys and traitors might seek to besmirch their reputation over claims of torture and inhumane treatment. Same as Rumsfeld, Condi, Bolton, etc.

    Re: Rumsfeld to Promote Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (none / 0) (#4)
    by Che's Lounge on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:00:15 PM EST
    Rex, If the people on Sanchez's watch hadn't tortured and killed those guys at Abu Ghraib, we wouldn't have to be worried about our free speech attracting more outrage. Right trash solution: Kill the messenger.

    "Our media is just as much of a threat to us sometimes as our enemies are."
    Freedom is a threat to freedom?

    Re: Rumsfeld to Promote Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (none / 0) (#6)
    by desertswine on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:00:15 PM EST
    Sheesh... Next thing you know, they'll be giving Wolfowitz a Medal of Freedom.

    Re: Rumsfeld to Promote Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (none / 0) (#7)
    by jarober on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:00:15 PM EST
    Which part of "cleared of wrongdoing" are you having trouble with? If this is your stance, then you should be in favor of continued punishment (i.e., after the sentence has been served) for convicted felons (for instance: no voting rights). Either Sanchez is exonerated or he isn't. The military says he's exonerated. And I think their word is a whole lot more worthwhile than the one of people who think highly of Dick Durbin....

    Re: Rumsfeld to Promote Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (none / 0) (#8)
    by Jlvngstn on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:00:15 PM EST
    Nicely said Sarcastic. I have no idea what the sentiment is in the Arab world but my guess is that Sanchez got a free ride. Nonetheless, I agree with you in principle even though I think that the brass suffered no ill consequence of the activities at Abu Gharib...

    Re: Rumsfeld to Promote Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (none / 0) (#9)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:00:16 PM EST
    "Posted by James Robertson: "Which part of "cleared of wrongdoing" are you having trouble with?" The part where he is tried by an independent tribunal. That part's coming. What kind of message does this send Arabs? That racism, greed, and profitable violence is The American Way of Bush. Hate America Now! This message brought to you by racists who have seized control of America's foreign policy in order to make billiions of dollars in illegal profits.

    You just gotta love our media for putting everything out there. How about if the media didn't report this about General Sanchez, then the Arab world wouldn't be getting upset now would they.
    Or, we could all just try the sensible approach that we were taught in kindergarden......don't stick people with a history of abuse in situations where more abuse is likely to occur....big duh there. This is the same reasoning as "lets outlaw digital cameras in foreign prisons"...no, how about, lets outlaw torture and solve the problem outright. This is yet just another equivocation and rationalization of torture, blaming the media this time, instead of blaming the person who is responsible for the actions, just like blaming Macdonalds for making you fat. Pathetic.

    Re: Rumsfeld to Promote Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez (none / 0) (#11)
    by Al on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:00:16 PM EST
    Since the military have obviously tried to minimize Abu Ghraib and avoid taking responsibility for the atrocities, they have no credibility. If Sanchez is cleared of wrongdoing, nobody is going to take that very seriously, least of all in the Arab world. And in view of the arguments used to detain people in Guantanamo indefinitely, for example, nobody is going to take very seriously the argument that "you're innocent until proven guilty" coming from the military, either.