Would this guy call the enemy "EVIL"? Or is that too harsh a term for terrorists?
Abu Ghraib prison turned soldiers evil by design: researcher
by Glenn Chapman Thu Feb 28, 9:14 PM ET
Here are the 'lowlights' from the article you can read all of if you click on the link above.
MONTEREY, California (AFP) - The very design of Abu Ghraib in Iraq turned good soldiers into evil tormentors that humiliated and brutalized prisoners, a famed social psychologist said Thursday.
Stanford University professor Philip Zimbardo described a "Lucifer effect" as he flashed shocking images of Abu Ghraib horrors for those at an elite Technology, Entertainment and Design conference in California.
"If you give people power without oversight it is a formula for abuse," Zimbardo said to a stunned audience the included famous actors, entrepreneurs and politicians.
"Abu Ghraib abuses went on for three months ... Who was watching the store? Nobody, and it was on purpose."
Zimbardo, wearing a black T-shirt with a picture of a devil flanked by two angels, paced the stage as images of horrors flashed on large screens. He lays out his conclusions in a recently released book titled "The Lucifer Effect."
"There is an infinite capacity to make us behave kind or cruel, or make some of us heroes," Zimbardo said, convinced that environment dictates the outcome far more than people's characters or personalities.
Photos showed naked and hooded prisoners beaten bloody and being made to commit humiliating acts such as human pyramids or simulating homosexual sex. Soldiers posed proudly with battered corpses and nude, injured prisoners.
A "hero" at Abu Ghraib turned out to be a lowly private that called for abuses there to be stopped, according to the professor.
"Heroism is the antidote to evil," Zimbardo said. "Let's focus on justice and peace, which sadly our administration has not been doing."
Z: You know, nobody should be "posing proudly with battered corpses and nude, injured prisoners", but I'm thinking that the "justice and peace" Zimbardo hopes for might not be accorded to our soldiers as they're beheaded, not 'humiliated'. Do we stand a chance when people look at US as the monsters?
7 comments:
how humiliating would it be to have your genitals cut off and shoved down your throat before cutting your head off?
that's what they've done to our soldiers
there's no comparison
"If you give people power without oversight it is a formula for abuse"
Let's hope people will remember THAT lesson come November when they select a new leadership... and I also hope they reject on principle the notion of turning large segments of the domestic economy (like the health segment) over to the federal government... for as the old saw goes...Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?
What was great about the Roman Republic (pre-Caesar) was that they always had TWO leaders (except when directly threatened by invasion). The Spartans had TWO kings. Children have a mother and a father. And Athenian archons served limited terms, rotating responsibilities (among the ten demes/tribes) and separated powers.
In wartime we are seldom afforded the same luxuries as peacetime and so we deliberately establish a single/unified command structure for the sake of expediency. Abu Ghraib was an organizational "mistake" that we must ensure gets and remains corrected. But at the same time, we must never feel constrained to not make exceptions to our own humane policy if we ever expect to convince our enemies that it would be in their best interests to enact a policy of reciprocal humane treatment.
FJ, so what do we do if and when Obama wins in November? Dem Pres, Dem Congress (almost a sure thing...I believe they have 12 seats up for grabs, we have 24...and you can see the climate going lefter and lefter, so to speak...as a 'man of letters' "lefter" must rankle you..sorry~!!) We NEED TWO, you're right.
Elbro..right...NO comparison.
I wish I knew the answer to that question Z...
It's never to early to start planning for that possibility. Unfortunately, an inordinate number of Republican Representatives seem to have already done so and have thought "retirement" the better plan of action...
Unfortunately, we will not have that luxury. I don't think you can retire from citizenship.
What EB said.
These leftist MSMers have no grasp on reality.
Fj...I thought the same thing when I heard some were retiring. Wouldn't you think they'd stick it out through maybe the most important four years America's facing? But, heck, they're LOADED now, great insurance, etc...I'd have hoped they'd put country first.
I believe we are, you're right.
Elbro, Brooke........how do we teach 'em? man
you don't teach them...like any other enemy you must defeat them
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