Hey George
From: http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/091306J.shtml
Wednesday 13 September 2006
Hey George,
I came across the below exchange that you had with Matt Lauer on the Today Show. I would like to respond to you as an
American.
Matt Lauer: And yet you admitted that there were these CIA secret facilities. OK?
President Bush: So what? Why is that not within the law?
Matt Lauer: The head of Amnesty International says secret sites are against international law.
President Bush: Well, we just disagree with him. Plus, my job is to protect you. And most American people, if I said [to them] that we
had who we think is the mastermind of the 9/11, they would say, "Why don't you see if you can't get information without
torturing him," which is what we did.
Matt Lauer: I don't want to let this "within the law issue" slip though. I mean, if, in fact, there was water boarding used with
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, and for the viewers, that's basically when you strap someone to a board and you make them feel
as if they're going to drown by putting them underwater, if that was legal and within the law, why couldn't you do it at
Guantanamo? Why did you have to go to a secret location around the world?
President Bush: I'm not going to talk about techniques. And, I'm not going explain to the enemy what we're doing. All I'm telling you
is that you've asked me whether or not we're doing things to protect the American people, and I want the American people
to know we are doing so.
First of all, I am deeply grateful that there are news-o-tainment people like Matt Lauer and Keith Olbermann of MSNBC
that are finally taking you to task for your lies and crimes against humanity. Torture is a crime against humanity,
George, and information gained from torture is highly compromised and not even admissible in a court of law, so
basically, the information you have been cruelly gleaning from "suspected" terrorists is useless in protecting America.
Secondly, I do not want one of my brothers or sisters in humanity tortured to "protect me." I don't want you using me,
as an American, to endorse your sadistic policies. If one of my fellow human beings has to be tortured to give me a
false sense of security, then I don't want it. I would rather live my life on the edge of my seat then let you torture
anyone in my name with apparent impunity and brutal glee.
I do not want to see one more blood-splattered child in Iraq or Afghanistan screaming for their murdered family so we
can "fight them over there." Why did we let you make the babies of these countries our enemies? The adults of these
countries could not defend themselves from your insane policies, how could we allow you to demonize the Iraqi and
Afghani children in order to make Americans feel safer? I don't feel safer. I feel like you are killing my precious
babies to further your greed for power and riches.
I don't want to see one more flag-draped coffin coming home from the Middle East with the lifeless body of one of our
own children. He/she did not die to protect me, and I don't want to be safe if it means the death of one of our precious
commodities: a part of the future of our country. You are killing our children so that Coca-Cola can open a bottling
plant in Afghanistan and so that Exxon and Halliburton can achieve wealth only dreamed of by King Midas.
Before the horrible day of 9/11/2001 that scarred our country and sealed the doom of tens of thousands of innocent
people all over the world, killed by your war of terror on harmless men, women and children, you cared nothing about
keeping America safe. You were handed a daily intelligence briefing when you were on yet another vacation in Crawford,
Texas, titled "Bin Laden determined to strike in the US," and according to Ron Susskind in his book The One Percent
Solution, you told the CIA agent who delivered it to you on August 6th, 2001, in Crawford, Texas: "You've covered your
ass now." Then you went on to enjoy your vacation of riding bikes, clearing brush and playing golf in the hot August
Texas sun. The worst terrorist attack within our nation's boundaries occurred on your watch (or lack thereof) and the
day after 9/11 you ruminated about the "New Pearl Harbor" that the architects of the PNAC dreamed of to implement their
goals of Pax Americana.
I called on you almost two years ago to resign after you stole yet another election and I am calling on you to resign
again. I don't know how many more of our children and the world's children have been killed in those two years. You are
a disgrace and a danger to our country. You have not protected me or my family. In fact you have endangered my children
and my grandchildren with your skillful recruitment tactics for al-Qaeda and people who never dreamed of being my enemy
before your policies killed their families. My great-grandchildren will be paying off the black hole of a deficit that
you are creating with these unconscionable occupations.
If you won't resign, then I hope Congress wakes up and finally does the right thing by impeaching you and the rest of
the liars in your administration. The world can't wait much longer for justice. If Congress won't do the right thing,
then I hope my fellow citizens, whom you have also endangered by your callous and careless mis-leadership, wake up and
overwhelmingly fire Congress and replace them with a new Congress that will do what we hire them to do: uphold the
Constitution and protect our rights.
Signed,
Cindy Sheehan
Camp Casey Peace Institute
7440 Lone Star Parkway
Crawford, Texas 76638
PS: By the way, I am still waiting for an answer, George: What Noble Cause?
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Cindy Sheehan is a co-founder of Gold Star Families for Peace and the mother of Casey Sheehan, who was killed in Iraq.