I guess I'm not all that bothered at all. Just more of the same. But it always strikes me as holier than thou to SELL something and then get pissed off when someone you don't like either a) mentions liking it or b) uses it in some manner.
You're the lawyer, is it breaking any copyright laws to use music in a manner that isn't making you any money? Like campaigns, or in this case? I can't recall.
I agree with a). Like the whole Muse reaction to Glenn Beck saying he liked their album... that was pointless. But this is different. Nobody's saying they like the music. They're using it in a manner they don't have a right to. You can't play a song on radio without permission. You have to license songs for commercials or major events (yes, including campaigns). They sell their music, but what you buy is limited basically to personal listening. You cannot use their music for private gain... a bar can't play tunes on a jukebox to help their liquor sales without an ascap license. Things get weird with the government, they have a lot of immunities and powers a bar doesn't. But if you're not comfortable with your music being used for such purposes, I don't think it's holier than thou to ask it to be stopped. Would you be saying the same thing if Ticketmaster started playing PJ songs in their commercials without any permission or licensing and then told the band they had no say in what happened to their music once it was sold? Of course not. It's a cornerstone of the entire concept copyrighting something... that your expression is protected from exploitation by others. Without it, there is no way any artist could ever make any money on anything.
I guess I'm not all that bothered at all. Just more of the same. But it always strikes me as holier than thou to SELL something and then get pissed off when someone you don't like either a) mentions liking it or b) uses it in some manner.
You're the lawyer, is it breaking any copyright laws to use music in a manner that isn't making you any money? Like campaigns, or in this case? I can't recall.
I agree with a). Like the whole Muse reaction to Glenn Beck saying he liked their album... that was pointless. But this is different. Nobody's saying they like the music. They're using it in a manner they don't have a right to. You can't play a song on radio without permission. You have to license songs for commercials or major events (yes, including campaigns). They sell their music, but what you buy is limited basically to personal listening. You cannot use their music for private gain... a bar can't play tunes on a jukebox to help their liquor sales without an ascap license. Things get weird with the government, they have a lot of immunities and powers a bar doesn't. But if you're not comfortable with your music being used for such purposes, I don't think it's holier than thou to ask it to be stopped. Would you be saying the same thing if Ticketmaster started playing PJ songs in their commercials without any permission or licensing and then told the band they had no say in what happened to their music once it was sold? Of course not. It's a cornerstone of the entire concept copyrighting something... that your expression is protected from exploitation by others. Without it, there is no way any artist could ever make any money on anything.
As far as Muse and Glenn Beck, that's exactly the situation I was thinking about.
Ticketmaster would be using it for a gain...ie $. The bar is using it for a gain...$. That's the difference I see and also why I would question if the artists had the right to tell them not to use their music. They aren't using them to make more $ without giving them a cut...and that's what copyright is about, isn't it? It's about the artists getting paid. Like I said, and it appears from your post, I might be wrong, but that's how I see it.
I agree with a). Like the whole Muse reaction to Glenn Beck saying he liked their album... that was pointless. But this is different. Nobody's saying they like the music. They're using it in a manner they don't have a right to. You can't play a song on radio without permission. You have to license songs for commercials or major events (yes, including campaigns). They sell their music, but what you buy is limited basically to personal listening. You cannot use their music for private gain... a bar can't play tunes on a jukebox to help their liquor sales without an ascap license. Things get weird with the government, they have a lot of immunities and powers a bar doesn't. But if you're not comfortable with your music being used for such purposes, I don't think it's holier than thou to ask it to be stopped. Would you be saying the same thing if Ticketmaster started playing PJ songs in their commercials without any permission or licensing and then told the band they had no say in what happened to their music once it was sold? Of course not. It's a cornerstone of the entire concept copyrighting something... that your expression is protected from exploitation by others. Without it, there is no way any artist could ever make any money on anything.
As far as Muse and Glenn Beck, that's exactly the situation I was thinking about.
Ticketmaster would be using it for a gain...ie $. The bar is using it for a gain...$. That's the difference I see and also why I would question if the artists had the right to tell them not to use their music. They aren't using them to make more $ without giving them a cut...and that's what copyright is about, isn't it? It's about the artists getting paid. Like I said, and it appears from your post, I might be wrong, but that's how I see it.
I'm not sure it's ever been addressed like this before. My understanding is the bar is on public performance or display of another's work without their permission, and that the $ motive is secondary. I am trying to think of the whole Heart/Palin/Barracuda thing... I believe they stopped using it upon request, but that they had also licensed it prior to using it, which would indicate to me that it's about public performance (since a campaign is not really a for-profit venture). In either case, the fact that it's unclear is plenty of reason to pursue it, especially if you have issues with the morality of what it's being used for. I'd say the same thing if a Christian rock group complained of someone using their song in a pro-choice ad without permission.
here is more on this. apparently it was not just at gitmo, but at other "black site prisons" maintained by the cia. it seems Keep America Safe, Cheney's daughter's group, is against closing gitmo. what a surprise...
Musicians crank up the volume on Guantanamo debate
AP, Oct 21, 2009 11:00 pm PDT
A coalition of mega-bands and singers outraged that music — including theirs — was cranked up to help break uncooperative detainees at Guantanamo Bay is joining retired military officers and liberal activists to rally support for President Barack Obama's push to shutter the Navy-run prison for terrorist suspects in Cuba.Pearl Jam, R.E.M., and Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails are among the musicians who have joined the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, which launched Tuesday.
On behalf of the campaign, the National Security Archive in Washington is filing a Freedom of Information Act request seeking classified records that detail the use of loud music as an interrogation device.
"At Guantanamo, the U.S. government turned a jukebox into an instrument of torture," said Thomas Blanton, executive director of the archive, an independent, nongovernmental research institute.
Based on documents that already have been made public and interviews with former detainees, the archive says the playlist featured cuts from AC/DC, Britney Spears, the Bee Gees, Marilyn Manson and many other groups. The Meow mix cat food jingle, the Barney theme song and an assortment of Sesame Street tunes also were pumped into detainee cells.
A November 2008 report by the Senate Armed Services Committee into the treatment of detainees in U.S. custody makes several references to the use of loud music as an interrogation tool.
In one case interrogators played music to "stress" Mohamedou Ould Slahi, a citizen of Mauritania who has been at Guantanamo for more than seven years, because he believed music is forbidden, the report says.
Over a 10-day period in July 2003, Slahi was questioned by an interrogator called "Mr. X" while being "exposed to variable lighting patterns" and repeated playing of a song called "Let the Bodies Hit the Floor" by the band Drowning Pool, according to the committee's report.
Maj. Diana Haynie, a spokeswoman for Joint Task Force Guantanamo, said loud music has not been used with detainees since the fall of 2003.
Jayne Huckerby, research director at New York University's Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, said high-decibel music was also used against detainees at clandestine prisons run by the CIA.
As part of an earlier FOIA request for information about these "black sites," Huckerby received a top secret CIA document dated December 2005 in which the agency explains that the use of loud music or white noise is needed "to mask sound and prevent communication among detainees."
If decibel levels are kept at 79 or lower — roughly equivalent to a garbage disposal — detainee hearing won't be damaged, the agency said.
Huckerby says that music was not used as a "benign security tool," but as a way "to humiliate, terrify, punish, disorient and deprive detainees of sleep, in violation of international law."
CIA spokesman George Little said the CIA used music only for security, "not for punitive purposes — and at levels far below a live rock band."
Founders launched National Campaign to Close Guantanamo with ads on cable television urging Congress to reject the "failed Bush-Cheney policies."
Obama pledged to close the jail by January, but logistical snags and Republican opposition on Capitol Hill have made fulfilling that promise less likely. Former Vice President Dick Cheney, who warns that closing the prison would endanger national security, has fueled the resistance.
A group opposing the closure of the prison, Keep America Safe, said in a statement Tuesday that those held at Guantanamo are dedicated to killing Americans.
"You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." - Lincoln
I agree with a). Like the whole Muse reaction to Glenn Beck saying he liked their album... that was pointless. But this is different. Nobody's saying they like the music. They're using it in a manner they don't have a right to. You can't play a song on radio without permission. You have to license songs for commercials or major events (yes, including campaigns). They sell their music, but what you buy is limited basically to personal listening. You cannot use their music for private gain... a bar can't play tunes on a jukebox to help their liquor sales without an ascap license. Things get weird with the government, they have a lot of immunities and powers a bar doesn't. But if you're not comfortable with your music being used for such purposes, I don't think it's holier than thou to ask it to be stopped. Would you be saying the same thing if Ticketmaster started playing PJ songs in their commercials without any permission or licensing and then told the band they had no say in what happened to their music once it was sold? Of course not. It's a cornerstone of the entire concept copyrighting something... that your expression is protected from exploitation by others. Without it, there is no way any artist could ever make any money on anything.
As far as Muse and Glenn Beck, that's exactly the situation I was thinking about.
Ticketmaster would be using it for a gain...ie $. The bar is using it for a gain...$. That's the difference I see and also why I would question if the artists had the right to tell them not to use their music. They aren't using them to make more $ without giving them a cut...and that's what copyright is about, isn't it? It's about the artists getting paid. Like I said, and it appears from your post, I might be wrong, but that's how I see it.
I'm not sure it's ever been addressed like this before. My understanding is the bar is on public performance or display of another's work without their permission, and that the $ motive is secondary. I am trying to think of the whole Heart/Palin/Barracuda thing... I believe they stopped using it upon request, but that they had also licensed it prior to using it, which would indicate to me that it's about public performance (since a campaign is not really a for-profit venture). In either case, the fact that it's unclear is plenty of reason to pursue it, especially if you have issues with the morality of what it's being used for. I'd say the same thing if a Christian rock group complained of someone using their song in a pro-choice ad without permission.
also, if one needs a motive for the usage, to be equivilient to profit, well....what is the purpose of torture? isn't that - the benefit - the profit of said torture? torturing prisioners using someone else's artistic/intellectual property to garner information, the possible information IS the profit in this instance. i believe the only rights we have when purchasing music is the right as individuals to listen to said music, not to rebroadcast in any way, and not to be misused. beyond all that, i agree, it is merely a means to draw more attention to the great desires to close gitmo. kudos to that.
and this:
Huckerby says that music was not used as a "benign security tool," but as a way "to humiliate, terrify, punish, disorient and deprive detainees of sleep, in violation of international law."
seems pretty good reason to bring attention to it, directly...and to also press to the broader issue of closing gitmo.
So you're both going to just be indifferent, and just pass the entire issue off. Indifference is the essence of inhumanity. Yeah, I posted that before and I'll post it again, because obviously there's too many of you that simply just don't want to talk (let alone think) about the shit going down there.
I'm not so sure it's indifference as much as it is the realization that if this place that is so obviously wrong hasn't been shut down yet, there must be reasons for it. I won't even pretend to know what those reasons could be, but lets not be naive - I have no love for politicans, but if Obama can't fix it something tells me that Michael Stipe won't either.
So you're both going to just be indifferent, and just pass the entire issue off. Indifference is the essence of inhumanity. Yeah, I posted that before and I'll post it again, because obviously there's too many of you that simply just don't want to talk (let alone think) about the shit going down there.
I'm not so sure it's indifference as much as it is the realization that if this place that is so obviously wrong hasn't been shut down yet, there must be reasons for it. I won't even pretend to know what those reasons could be, but lets not be naive - I have no love for politicans, but if Obama can't fix it something tells me that Michael Stipe won't either.
Do you really think it's as easy as that? That if the place had bad practices it would automatically shut down? That's naive thinking. We have plenty of corrupt governments in this world, including our own, using inhumane practices for punishment. To rely on our corrupt leaders to make sane and humane decisions, because it's the right thing to do, is incredibly naive also. If we don't speak up, if musicians and arists don't speak up, if everyone keeps silent, no one wins. No one but those operating and keeping the facility up and running win. Silence IS the enemy.
So you're both going to just be indifferent, and just pass the entire issue off. Indifference is the essence of inhumanity. Yeah, I posted that before and I'll post it again, because obviously there's too many of you that simply just don't want to talk (let alone think) about the shit going down there.
I'm not so sure it's indifference as much as it is the realization that if this place that is so obviously wrong hasn't been shut down yet, there must be reasons for it. I won't even pretend to know what those reasons could be, but lets not be naive - I have no love for politicans, but if Obama can't fix it something tells me that Michael Stipe won't either.
Do you really think it's as easy as that? That if the place had bad practices it would automatically shut down? That's naive thinking. We have plenty of corrupt governments in this world, including our own, using inhumane practices for punishment. To rely on our corrupt leaders to make sane and humane decisions, because it's the right thing to do, is incredibly naive also. If we don't speak up, if musicians and arists don't speak up, if everyone keeps silent, no one wins. No one but those operating and keeping the facility up and running win. Silence IS the enemy.
"'cause silence is violence in women and poor people
if more people were screaming then i could relax
but a good brain ain't diddley if you don't have the facts"
don't compete; coexist
what are you but my reflection? who am i to judge or strike you down?
"I will promise you this, that if we have not gotten our troops out by the time I am president, it is the first thing I will do. I will get our troops home. We will bring an end to this war. You can take that to the bank." - Barack Obama
when you told me 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em'
i was thinkin 'death before dishonor'
A November 2008 report by the Senate Armed Services Committee into the treatment of detainees in U.S. custody makes several references to the use of loud music as an interrogation tool.
In one case interrogators played music to "stress" Mohamedou Ould Slahi, a citizen of Mauritania who has been at Guantanamo for more than seven years, because he believed music is forbidden, the report says. Over a 10-day period in July 2003, Slahi was questioned by an interrogator called "Mr. X" while being "exposed to variable lighting patterns" and repeated playing of a song called "Let the Bodies Hit the Floor" by the band Drowning Pool, according to the committee's report.
Jeez. :shock: I'd probably confess to anything after ten days of that.
"What happens when so many people agree on something? Can we take this beyond the parking lot when we leave tonight?" -EV, Iconoclasts
gitmo is like a auschwitz with better doctors. its just as shitty but they can keep you alive longer to torture you even more.
please. that's an insult to everyone who died in the holocaust. gitmo is a bad place...but c'mon man
does it matter what kind of torture it is?
torture is torture, which is what i was referring to in the analogy. it had nothing to do with the millions of people killed. that was horrible, but irrelevant here.
A November 2008 report by the Senate Armed Services Committee into the treatment of detainees in U.S. custody makes several references to the use of loud music as an interrogation tool.
In one case interrogators played music to "stress" Mohamedou Ould Slahi, a citizen of Mauritania who has been at Guantanamo for more than seven years, because he believed music is forbidden, the report says. Over a 10-day period in July 2003, Slahi was questioned by an interrogator called "Mr. X" while being "exposed to variable lighting patterns" and repeated playing of a song called "Let the Bodies Hit the Floor" by the band Drowning Pool, according to the committee's report.
:
Jeez. :shock: I'd probably confess to anything after ten days of that.
Do you guys think War is fair? From what I heard they did did get life threating information from some of the prisoners (AND IT HAS BEEN DEBATED). Could it be American lives were save because they played the music to loud or to long? Maybe the musicians should be proud that there music may have saved American lives. You know like Americans working in a high rise just trying to feed there kids. They may have saved your mom.
“We the people are the rightful masters of bothCongress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution.” Abraham Lincoln
Do you guys think War is fair? From what I heard they did did get life threating information from some of the prisoners (AND IT HAS BEEN DEBATED). Could it be American lives were save because they played the music to loud or to long? Maybe the musicians should be proud that there music may have saved American lives. You know like Americans working in a high rise just trying to feed there kids. They may have saved your mom.
what life threatening information did they get from the prisoners? can you back that up? even if you can, it's still a bullshit excuse to condone torture.
and fair? don't talk to me about fair. when I see the fundamental values of this nation being assaulted and when I see our moral authority slipping away, i refuse to stay silent.
The list includes Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine, R.E.M., Pearl Jam, Jackson Browne, Rise Against, Rosanne Cash, Billy Bragg and the Roots, all of whom are joining the broader National Campaign to Close Guantanamo which was launched earlier in the week.
didn't those people vote for nobel PEACE prize winner, president barak obama? :?
Do you guys think War is fair? From what I heard they did did get life threating information from some of the prisoners (AND IT HAS BEEN DEBATED). Could it be American lives were save because they played the music to loud or to long? Maybe the musicians should be proud that there music may have saved American lives. You know like Americans working in a high rise just trying to feed there kids. They may have saved your mom.
what life threatening information did they get from the prisoners? can you back that up? even if you can, it's still a bullshit excuse to condone torture.
and fair? don't talk to me about fair. when I see the fundamental values of this nation being assaulted and when I see our moral authority slipping away, i refuse to stay silent.
an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.
Do you understand WAR? Would you be willing to go over and solve everything for us. PLease?
“We the people are the rightful masters of bothCongress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution.” Abraham Lincoln
Do you guys think War is fair? From what I heard they did did get life threating information from some of the prisoners (AND IT HAS BEEN DEBATED). Could it be American lives were save because they played the music to loud or to long? Maybe the musicians should be proud that there music may have saved American lives. You know like Americans working in a high rise just trying to feed there kids. They may have saved your mom.
what life threatening information did they get from the prisoners? can you back that up? even if you can, it's still a bullshit excuse to condone torture.
and fair? don't talk to me about fair. when I see the fundamental values of this nation being assaulted and when I see our moral authority slipping away, i refuse to stay silent.
an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.
Do you understand WAR? Would you be willing to go over and solve everything for us. PLease?
i am sure that she understands war. the question is do you understand reality?
aerial it seems you are trying to justify torture and say that is saved american lives. there is no proof that this torture yielded any useful info from these inmates. this is not "24" and jack bauer does not exist. the days of government sponsored, anything goes, and violate human rights as a means to an end US foreign policy are over. policy is changing whether you, or hannity, or beck, or oreilly likes it or not. the war on terror as we have known it for the last 8 years, with black prisons, extraordinary rendition, and torture is coming to an end. i am sure that triumphantangel would be more than willing to "go over there and solve everything for us", but you know that that is what diplomats are for.
"You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." - Lincoln
Do you guys think War is fair? From what I heard they did did get life threating information from some of the prisoners (AND IT HAS BEEN DEBATED). Could it be American lives were save because they played the music to loud or to long? Maybe the musicians should be proud that there music may have saved American lives. You know like Americans working in a high rise just trying to feed there kids. They may have saved your mom.
what life threatening information did they get from the prisoners? can you back that up? even if you can, it's still a bullshit excuse to condone torture.
and fair? don't talk to me about fair. when I see the fundamental values of this nation being assaulted and when I see our moral authority slipping away, i refuse to stay silent.
an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.
Do you understand WAR? Would you be willing to go over and solve everything for us. PLease?
can you refresh my memory, what problems are these wars solving?
Do you guys think War is fair? From what I heard they did did get life threating information from some of the prisoners (AND IT HAS BEEN DEBATED). Could it be American lives were save because they played the music to loud or to long? Maybe the musicians should be proud that there music may have saved American lives. You know like Americans working in a high rise just trying to feed there kids. They may have saved your mom.
what life threatening information did they get from the prisoners? can you back that up? even if you can, it's still a bullshit excuse to condone torture.
and fair? don't talk to me about fair. when I see the fundamental values of this nation being assaulted and when I see our moral authority slipping away, i refuse to stay silent.
an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.
Do you understand WAR? Would you be willing to go over and solve everything for us. PLease?
and exactly what problems are being solved aerial?
there's always a war.
war on terrorism
war on cummunism
war on drugs
the stated objectives seem to change but the outcome rarely does.
war is the scum of the earth getting paid for with tax dollars. people who work for companies like haliburton and blackwater, they get paid. people die. a country is destroyed. its resources stolen, and they call it progess, thats' what i know about war.
wars will only stop when citizens wake up and realize we're being manipulated.
On another note....I wonder if any of the Arab dudes in Gitmo are now Pearl Jam fans? :P
...
Does this mean they will be joining the Ten/VHC and bitching about the people in the front rows not 'Rocking out enough' or 'Going apeshit'?
If so, that would be torture to us.
Allen Fieldhouse, home of the 2008 NCAA men's Basketball Champions! Go Jayhawks!
Hail, Hail!!!
an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.[/quote]
Do you understand WAR? Would you be willing to go over and solve everything for us. PLease?[/quote]
i am sure that she understands war. the question is do you understand reality?
aerial it seems you are trying to justify torture and say that is saved american lives. there is no proof that this torture yielded any useful info from these inmates. this is not "24" and jack bauer does not exist. the days of government sponsored, anything goes, and violate human rights as a means to an end US foreign policy are over. policy is changing whether you, or hannity, or beck, or oreilly likes it or not. the war on terror as we have known it for the last 8 years, with black prisons, extraordinary rendition, and torture is coming to an end. i am sure that triumphantangel would be more than willing to "go over there and solve everything for us", but you know that that is what diplomats are for.[/quote]
It was said that they did get life saving information and yes if torture (Play loud music to long..water drops on there head OMG) is going to save American lives
I am all for it. Because of people like you Americans will be the only ones tortured....you think terroist are going to fight by any type of guidelines...Come on get REAL....they don't even have the guts to wear a uniform.....they are cowards....and people want to give them rights.....Now thats stupid!
“We the people are the rightful masters of bothCongress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution.” Abraham Lincoln
It was said that they did get life saving information and yes if torture (Play loud music to long..water drops on there head OMG) is going to save American lives
I am all for it. Because of people like you Americans will be the only ones tortured....you think terroist are going to fight by any type of guidelines...Come on get REAL....they don't even have the guts to wear a uniform.....they are cowards....and people want to give them rights.....Now thats stupid!
That's why it's so important that we don't use torture. We shouldn't sink to their level. The unwillingness to do things like that is what is supposed to separate us from them.
It was said that they did get life saving information and yes if torture (Play loud music to long..water drops on there head OMG) is going to save American lives
I am all for it. Because of people like you Americans will be the only ones tortured....you think terroist are going to fight by any type of guidelines...Come on get REAL....they don't even have the guts to wear a uniform.....they are cowards....and people want to give them rights.....Now thats stupid!
That's why it's so important that we don't use torture. We shouldn't sink to their level. The unwillingness to do things like that is what is supposed to separate us from them.
Totally agree. What we do says something about us, not about the 'other side'.
R.i.p. Rigoberto Alpizar.
R.i.p. My Dad - May 28, 2007
R.i.p. Black Tail (cat) - Sept. 20, 2008
Obviously Gitmo is a complex issue. If was as easy as getting a few musicians to generate headlines to close it, it would've been gone the day after Obama took office. Regardless of intentions this just comes off looking like some kind of publicity stunt with little credibility.
Exactly: Obama turned out to be a huge publicity stunt with no credibility!
Do the Musicians know Americans are tortured also. Where is the outrage!
Frontpage Interview’s guest today is Dave Gaubatz, the first U.S. civilian (1811) Federal Agent deployed to Iraq in 2003. He is currently the Director of the Mapping Sharia Project and the Owner of DG Counter-terrorism Publishing (dgaubatz.blogspot.com). He can be contacted at <!-- e --><a href="mailto:davegaubatz@gmail.com">davegaubatz@gmail.com</a><!-- e -->.
FP: Dave Gaubatz, welcome to Frontpage Interview.
There has been an enormous amount of talk about torture of Islamic terrorists who have been captured, specifically since the war in Iraq (2003); what are your thoughts?
Gaubatz: I believe it is time intelligence officers and other agents who were involved in obtaining evidence from terrorists on the ground in Iraq at the start of the war (2003) begin helping one another out and telling it like it was.
In April – July 2003, while in Nasiriyah, Iraq, I had the opportunity to talk with the Director of Saddam’s Nasiriyah Hospital, several doctors, and nurses who actually attended to Private Jessica Lynch when she was a POW. In addition another agent and I had the opportunity to 'interrogate' the Director of the 'Red Crescent' who was located across the road from the hospital. This Director was responsible for the torture and death of American soldiers from the 507th Maintenance Company, Fort Bliss, TX, and many other service members throughout Iraq.
FP: What guidance were you and your team of counter-terrorism officers provided for conducting interviews or interrogations?
Gaubatz: Jamie, it is important to note many of the interrogations our team conducted were not within the safe confines of a ‘friendly’ base or inside a prison. The vast majority of our interrogations were in the field. The only guidance other agents and I had received was the enemy we were fighting were specifically Islamic terrorists (Saddam civilian Fedeyeen and supporters of Al Qaeda); neither who wore military uniforms.
When I was deployed to Iraq, I was an 1811 U.S. Federal Agent. I had been briefed by our government that since I was a civilian, but would have identification indicating I was a Major, be carrying an M16, a 9mm, and other weapons. If the enemy captured me I would be considered a spy under the ‘Geneva Convention’ and would likely be executed. Our government leaders advised me during briefings they would have no legal authority to prevent this. I acknowledged I understood these rights and was willing to take the risks for our country.
These were essentially our rules of engagement in the field as well. If the enemy had no uniform they were not soldiers and were considered terrorists. They had no rights. This did not mean we abused captured enemies, but it does mean we thought we had the support of our government to obtain all and any information that would protect our ‘troops’ and our country. And we did collect an enormous amount of intelligence.
FP: Can you name politicians who were aware of intelligence that was being obtained during interrogations?
Gaubatz: It would be easier to name the ones who were not concerned. In early 2003, Americans fighting in Iraq felt we had the support of all politicians, regardless of political affiliation. We had inquires from politicians of all levels about the intelligence we were collecting. These politicians had constituents who wanted answers on the war and I believe deserved answers. Our teams wrote hundreds of intelligence reports and we briefed many through other electronic means. One such person at the time was then Senator Joe Biden (now VP Biden). I still have my war notes taken from the field, and his name was written in my book on 7 June 2003.
Biden was aware of intelligence we were obtaining from the field, and never did anyone question our methods of obtaining the intelligence. We were professionals and collected intelligence using the best method one could when surrounded by enemies sometimes 6 to our 2.
FP: Can you provide some specific intelligence you were able to obtain during filed interviews and interrogations?
Gaubatz: Yes, it is time American intelligence officers begin bringing forth the truth of the realities of how our brave troops were treated during Operation Iraqi Freedom by the same people who are now being protected and soon to be released by President Obama and with the support VP Biden, who knew the truth about our soldiers being tortured.
Why will he not speak about it? Did Biden know Iranians were entering Iraq and providing sophisticated weapons to Islamic terrorists to kill our brave troops? I am not trying to single out Biden who knew what was going on, but to let the American people understand both Republicans and Democratic leaders were aware of the situation in Iraq.
We were being encouraged by both parties to obtain intelligence to protect our troops and country.
When we went to war in 2003, we were facing an enemy we were not prepared for, and still aren’t. The enemy was not simply the Army of Saddam, but the Islamic terrorists who were residing in Iraq well before 2003. Once we entered Iraq, the Iranians began entering southern Iraq and were paying Islamic suicide bombers to kill Americans. VP Biden and all key government leaders were provided reports of these acts.
Now I watch television daily and hear our liberal leaders whining about Islamic terrorists who may have been ‘slapped’, or put into a box with a caterpillar. None of these liberals were standing up for civilian intelligence officers in 2003 that were being deployed to Iraq with misleading identification and weapons.
When we went to war in 2003, we were facing an enemy we were not prepared for, and still aren’t. The enemy was not simply the Army of Saddam, but the Islamic terrorists who were residing in Iraq well before 2003. Once we entered Iraq, the Iranians began entering southern Iraq and were paying Islamic suicide bombers to kill Americans.
I mentioned in my first question, I had interrogated ‘Enemy Prisoners of War’ (EPWs) in the field during the war. One was the Director of the Red Crescent in Nasiriyah, Iraq.
Below is the reality of what our troops faced and the tortures they endured. We obtained intelligence during interrogations. We subsequently saved lives.
Below is a sampling of the results of the interrogations agents and I obtained: I have the documents, photographs, and contact information of Iraqis and U.S. personnel who were also aware. Anything I write or speak about can be verified. Simply ask VP Biden and our President to release the complete intelligence reports my team and I wrote in 2003.
1. When the members of the 507th were ambushed in Nasiriyah, Iraq, Private Jessica Lynch was initially taken to an Iraqi military base hospital in the Nasiriyah area (not the civilian hospital). Some of the other 507th were killed during the ambush, and others were captured and then murdered.
2. I visited the military hospital Private Lynch was held and it can be best described as 'filth'. Jessica suffered physically and psychologically at this military facility.
3. When our brave troops began bombing this Iraqi base, the Iraqis decided to move Private Lynch to the Nasiriyah civilian hospital. The leaders of the Baath Party were using the basement of the hospital and its many tunnels as sanctuary.
4. Jessica Lynch was drugged, tied up, and placed under the stretcher in a Red Crescent vehicle. The Director of the Red Crescent was a senior member of the Baath Party and was allowing the use of ambulances to transport weapons and Saddam supporters (military and Saddam's civilian Fedeyeen forces) throughout Iraq. Our U.S. military on the ground had been informed the 'Rules of Engagement' did not allow searching mosques, schools, or Red Crescent ambulances. U.S. military personnel died as a result of this.
5. A few days before Private Lynch was rescued, she was placed in Saddam’s civilian hospital.
6. The doctor of Jessica Lynch and a brave Iraqi lady was 'Hameeda'. She is the sister-in-law of my good friend Mohammed Odeh Al Rehaief. Mohammed is the Iraqi lawyer who had provided intelligence to U.S. forces which enabled Jessica to be rescued.
7. Jessica Lynch's hospital bed was located near a window overlooking a soccer field near the grounds of the hospital. She had been forced to watch as some of her team members were tortured, beheaded and buried.
8. One agent and I had interviewed the Saddam Hospital staff and determined the location of the dead Americans who had been killed during the 507th ambush.
9. The Director took us to a position on the soccer field and said the 507th members had been buried in front of the soccer goal posts, so the children would run over their graves while playing soccer. This was to dishonor our ‘troops’.
10. The Director informed us the 507th members had been beheaded and many had been dragged through the streets of Nasiriayh.
11. The night before Jessica Lynch was rescued; the Fedeyeen had threatened to take Jessica Lynch from her hospital bed, use a ‘Red Crescent vehicle, and go into the desert area outside of Nasiriyah. The Fedeyeen were going to bury Jessica alive in the vehicle. The doctor of Jessica was able to talk the Fedeyeen out of removing her this night. The next day our troops rescued her.
12. I wrote numerous intelligence reports pertaining to these tragedies and others. Senator Biden and many others were aware of the tortures our troops underwent, and the ‘interrogation results I and others had conducted on Enemy of Prisoners of War (EPW), and the results.
FP: Can you mention any other intelligence you were able to obtain during interrogations?
Gaubatz: I have hundreds of pages of personal notes, photographs, names, dates, locations, and yes, VP Biden was aware of intelligence we were obtaining from EPWs. He nor any politician ever asked how we were obtaining.
EPWs informed our teams of hidden weapons, the locations of Fedeyeeen forces, the locations and methods of ‘suicide bombers, and the Iranians who were entering southern Iraq to provide specialized weapons to insurgents, and paying Iraqis to conduct ‘suicide bombings against our troops’.
I still have the listing of insurgents, their locations, and the type weapons they had to use against our troops. These notes were written in Arabic, translated into English and then forwarded to all levels of our government.
Our troops knew in 2003 we were facing an ‘evil ideology’ of Islamic terrorists, many died, and many more will likely sacrifice their lives because we have politicians who care more for their careers than they do the security of our nation.
I am releasing several never before seen documents and photographs I obtained while working counter-intelligence/counter-intelligence in 2003. Why? Because the intelligence gathering abilities of our brave officers is being hampered, this translates into our country facing a national security threat from Islamic terrorists. This means our children will become their targets.
I believe it disturbs many Americans and the intelligence officers that now we have liberal Democrats in office who know the truth about the sufferings of our troops, and now stand up for the rights of Islamic terrorists who may have to be pushed around to save our troops. I will not be one responsible for their deaths and the sufferings their parents will go through simply because a politician wants to placate the liberals who care more for Islamic terrorists than they do for their neighbor’s son or daughter fighting for our country.
FP: Final words?
Gaubatz: I have never written or said anything I can’t substantiate under oath when required to do so. Will VP Biden, Pelosi or others do the same under oath? I believe it is time the American public demand they begin answering our questions; with their right hand raised, using a Bible, not the Quran. Thank you.
Jamie Glazov is Frontpage Magazine's editor. He holds a Ph.D. in History with a specialty in Russian, U.S. and Canadian foreign policy. He is the author of Canadian Policy Toward Khrushchev’s Soviet Union and is the co-editor (with David Horowitz) of The Hate America Left. He edited and wrote the introduction to David Horowitz’s Left Illusions. His new book is United in Hate: The Left's Romance with Tyranny and Terror. To see his previous symposiums, interviews and articles Click Here. Email him at <!-- e --><a href="mailto:jglazov@rogers.com">jglazov@rogers.com</a><!-- e -->.
“We the people are the rightful masters of bothCongress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution.” Abraham Lincoln
US troops are not being tortured with these artists music, could be one reason there is no outrage by the artists. why should they speak out against something they cannot possibly hope to influence anyway? it would be pointless to speak out against the torture you're talking about. a militant group doesn't have to concern itself with public opinion, a state does.
the interview is a lame attempt to excuse torture, and makes very little sense in the over all scheme of things.
the best way to keep your troops out of harms way is by not putting them in it in the first place.
US troops are not being tortured with these artists music, could be one reason there is no outrage by the artists. why should they speak out against something they cannot possibly hope to influence anyway? it would be pointless to speak out against the torture you're talking about. a militant group doesn't have to concern itself with public opinion, a state does.
the interview is a lame attempt to excuse torture, and makes very little sense in the over all scheme of things.
the best way to keep your troops out of harms way is by not putting them in it in the first place.
I see take up for the enemy but not your fellow Americans....just beacuse they played there music?
“We the people are the rightful masters of bothCongress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution.” Abraham Lincoln
US troops are not being tortured with these artists music, could be one reason there is no outrage by the artists. why should they speak out against something they cannot possibly hope to influence anyway? it would be pointless to speak out against the torture you're talking about. a militant group doesn't have to concern itself with public opinion, a state does.
the interview is a lame attempt to excuse torture, and makes very little sense in the over all scheme of things.
the best way to keep your troops out of harms way is by not putting them in it in the first place.
I see take up for the enemy but not your fellow Americans....just beacuse they played there music?
do you not see that you are missing the point of what commy said? he is not taking up for the enemy. he is just saying that the interview you posted is only relevent to the topic because we put our soldiers in harm's way, and the music, which was the topic of this thread, was not used on our guys. those musicians are most likely not in favor of torture on our people, they are against ALL TORTURE!
"You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." - Lincoln
Do you understand WAR? Would you be willing to go over and solve everything for us. PLease?
can you refresh my memory, what problems are these wars solving?
...
That is the 780 Billion Dollar question... what do we get by 'Winning' Afghanistan?
A lifetime of an American military presence there where our soldiers get killed one an two at a time by people who don't want us there... except for the Afghani 'Leaders' who will get billions of taxpayer dollars in a half-hearted, half-assed attempt to prolong a 'War On Terror'?
If someone else has an answer... please, tell me what it is to ease my mind and get behind this fiasco.
Allen Fieldhouse, home of the 2008 NCAA men's Basketball Champions! Go Jayhawks!
Hail, Hail!!!
Comments
I agree with a). Like the whole Muse reaction to Glenn Beck saying he liked their album... that was pointless. But this is different. Nobody's saying they like the music. They're using it in a manner they don't have a right to. You can't play a song on radio without permission. You have to license songs for commercials or major events (yes, including campaigns). They sell their music, but what you buy is limited basically to personal listening. You cannot use their music for private gain... a bar can't play tunes on a jukebox to help their liquor sales without an ascap license. Things get weird with the government, they have a lot of immunities and powers a bar doesn't. But if you're not comfortable with your music being used for such purposes, I don't think it's holier than thou to ask it to be stopped. Would you be saying the same thing if Ticketmaster started playing PJ songs in their commercials without any permission or licensing and then told the band they had no say in what happened to their music once it was sold? Of course not. It's a cornerstone of the entire concept copyrighting something... that your expression is protected from exploitation by others. Without it, there is no way any artist could ever make any money on anything.
As far as Muse and Glenn Beck, that's exactly the situation I was thinking about.
Ticketmaster would be using it for a gain...ie $. The bar is using it for a gain...$. That's the difference I see and also why I would question if the artists had the right to tell them not to use their music. They aren't using them to make more $ without giving them a cut...and that's what copyright is about, isn't it? It's about the artists getting paid. Like I said, and it appears from your post, I might be wrong, but that's how I see it.
I'm not sure it's ever been addressed like this before. My understanding is the bar is on public performance or display of another's work without their permission, and that the $ motive is secondary. I am trying to think of the whole Heart/Palin/Barracuda thing... I believe they stopped using it upon request, but that they had also licensed it prior to using it, which would indicate to me that it's about public performance (since a campaign is not really a for-profit venture). In either case, the fact that it's unclear is plenty of reason to pursue it, especially if you have issues with the morality of what it's being used for. I'd say the same thing if a Christian rock group complained of someone using their song in a pro-choice ad without permission.
http://new.music.yahoo.com/various-arti ... --61995482
Musicians crank up the volume on Guantanamo debate
AP, Oct 21, 2009 11:00 pm PDT
A coalition of mega-bands and singers outraged that music — including theirs — was cranked up to help break uncooperative detainees at Guantanamo Bay is joining retired military officers and liberal activists to rally support for President Barack Obama's push to shutter the Navy-run prison for terrorist suspects in Cuba.Pearl Jam, R.E.M., and Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails are among the musicians who have joined the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, which launched Tuesday.
On behalf of the campaign, the National Security Archive in Washington is filing a Freedom of Information Act request seeking classified records that detail the use of loud music as an interrogation device.
"At Guantanamo, the U.S. government turned a jukebox into an instrument of torture," said Thomas Blanton, executive director of the archive, an independent, nongovernmental research institute.
Based on documents that already have been made public and interviews with former detainees, the archive says the playlist featured cuts from AC/DC, Britney Spears, the Bee Gees, Marilyn Manson and many other groups. The Meow mix cat food jingle, the Barney theme song and an assortment of Sesame Street tunes also were pumped into detainee cells.
A November 2008 report by the Senate Armed Services Committee into the treatment of detainees in U.S. custody makes several references to the use of loud music as an interrogation tool.
In one case interrogators played music to "stress" Mohamedou Ould Slahi, a citizen of Mauritania who has been at Guantanamo for more than seven years, because he believed music is forbidden, the report says.
Over a 10-day period in July 2003, Slahi was questioned by an interrogator called "Mr. X" while being "exposed to variable lighting patterns" and repeated playing of a song called "Let the Bodies Hit the Floor" by the band Drowning Pool, according to the committee's report.
Maj. Diana Haynie, a spokeswoman for Joint Task Force Guantanamo, said loud music has not been used with detainees since the fall of 2003.
Jayne Huckerby, research director at New York University's Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, said high-decibel music was also used against detainees at clandestine prisons run by the CIA.
As part of an earlier FOIA request for information about these "black sites," Huckerby received a top secret CIA document dated December 2005 in which the agency explains that the use of loud music or white noise is needed "to mask sound and prevent communication among detainees."
If decibel levels are kept at 79 or lower — roughly equivalent to a garbage disposal — detainee hearing won't be damaged, the agency said.
Huckerby says that music was not used as a "benign security tool," but as a way "to humiliate, terrify, punish, disorient and deprive detainees of sleep, in violation of international law."
CIA spokesman George Little said the CIA used music only for security, "not for punitive purposes — and at levels far below a live rock band."
Founders launched National Campaign to Close Guantanamo with ads on cable television urging Congress to reject the "failed Bush-Cheney policies."
Obama pledged to close the jail by January, but logistical snags and Republican opposition on Capitol Hill have made fulfilling that promise less likely. Former Vice President Dick Cheney, who warns that closing the prison would endanger national security, has fueled the resistance.
A group opposing the closure of the prison, Keep America Safe, said in a statement Tuesday that those held at Guantanamo are dedicated to killing Americans.
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
also, if one needs a motive for the usage, to be equivilient to profit, well....what is the purpose of torture? isn't that - the benefit - the profit of said torture? torturing prisioners using someone else's artistic/intellectual property to garner information, the possible information IS the profit in this instance. i believe the only rights we have when purchasing music is the right as individuals to listen to said music, not to rebroadcast in any way, and not to be misused. beyond all that, i agree, it is merely a means to draw more attention to the great desires to close gitmo. kudos to that.
and this:
Huckerby says that music was not used as a "benign security tool," but as a way "to humiliate, terrify, punish, disorient and deprive detainees of sleep, in violation of international law."
seems pretty good reason to bring attention to it, directly...and to also press to the broader issue of closing gitmo.
Let's just breathe...
I am myself like you somehow
"'cause silence is violence in women and poor people
if more people were screaming then i could relax
but a good brain ain't diddley if you don't have the facts"
what are you but my reflection? who am i to judge or strike you down?
"I will promise you this, that if we have not gotten our troops out by the time I am president, it is the first thing I will do. I will get our troops home. We will bring an end to this war. You can take that to the bank." - Barack Obama
when you told me 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em'
i was thinkin 'death before dishonor'
Jeez. :shock: I'd probably confess to anything after ten days of that.
torture is torture, which is what i was referring to in the analogy. it had nothing to do with the millions of people killed. that was horrible, but irrelevant here.
Do you guys think War is fair? From what I heard they did did get life threating information from some of the prisoners (AND IT HAS BEEN DEBATED). Could it be American lives were save because they played the music to loud or to long? Maybe the musicians should be proud that there music may have saved American lives. You know like Americans working in a high rise just trying to feed there kids. They may have saved your mom.
and fair? don't talk to me about fair. when I see the fundamental values of this nation being assaulted and when I see our moral authority slipping away, i refuse to stay silent.
an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.
Hail Hail HIPPIEMOM
Wishlist Foundation-
http://www.wishlistfoundation.org
info@wishlistfoundation.org
didn't those people vote for nobel PEACE prize winner, president barak obama? :?
aerial it seems you are trying to justify torture and say that is saved american lives. there is no proof that this torture yielded any useful info from these inmates. this is not "24" and jack bauer does not exist. the days of government sponsored, anything goes, and violate human rights as a means to an end US foreign policy are over. policy is changing whether you, or hannity, or beck, or oreilly likes it or not. the war on terror as we have known it for the last 8 years, with black prisons, extraordinary rendition, and torture is coming to an end. i am sure that triumphantangel would be more than willing to "go over there and solve everything for us", but you know that that is what diplomats are for.
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
yeah, also, what problems is this torture solving, other than denying muslims, guilty or otherwise, their human rights?
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
there's always a war.
war on terrorism
war on cummunism
war on drugs
the stated objectives seem to change but the outcome rarely does.
war is the scum of the earth getting paid for with tax dollars. people who work for companies like haliburton and blackwater, they get paid. people die. a country is destroyed. its resources stolen, and they call it progess, thats' what i know about war.
wars will only stop when citizens wake up and realize we're being manipulated.
Does this mean they will be joining the Ten/VHC and bitching about the people in the front rows not 'Rocking out enough' or 'Going apeshit'?
If so, that would be torture to us.
Hail, Hail!!!
an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.[/quote]
Do you understand WAR? Would you be willing to go over and solve everything for us. PLease?[/quote]
i am sure that she understands war. the question is do you understand reality?
aerial it seems you are trying to justify torture and say that is saved american lives. there is no proof that this torture yielded any useful info from these inmates. this is not "24" and jack bauer does not exist. the days of government sponsored, anything goes, and violate human rights as a means to an end US foreign policy are over. policy is changing whether you, or hannity, or beck, or oreilly likes it or not. the war on terror as we have known it for the last 8 years, with black prisons, extraordinary rendition, and torture is coming to an end. i am sure that triumphantangel would be more than willing to "go over there and solve everything for us", but you know that that is what diplomats are for.[/quote]
It was said that they did get life saving information and yes if torture (Play loud music to long..water drops on there head OMG) is going to save American lives
I am all for it. Because of people like you Americans will be the only ones tortured....you think terroist are going to fight by any type of guidelines...Come on get REAL....they don't even have the guts to wear a uniform.....they are cowards....and people want to give them rights.....Now thats stupid!
That's why it's so important that we don't use torture. We shouldn't sink to their level. The unwillingness to do things like that is what is supposed to separate us from them.
Totally agree. What we do says something about us, not about the 'other side'.
R.i.p. My Dad - May 28, 2007
R.i.p. Black Tail (cat) - Sept. 20, 2008
Exactly: Obama turned out to be a huge publicity stunt with no credibility!
Frontpage Interview’s guest today is Dave Gaubatz, the first U.S. civilian (1811) Federal Agent deployed to Iraq in 2003. He is currently the Director of the Mapping Sharia Project and the Owner of DG Counter-terrorism Publishing (dgaubatz.blogspot.com). He can be contacted at <!-- e --><a href="mailto:davegaubatz@gmail.com">davegaubatz@gmail.com</a><!-- e -->.
FP: Dave Gaubatz, welcome to Frontpage Interview.
There has been an enormous amount of talk about torture of Islamic terrorists who have been captured, specifically since the war in Iraq (2003); what are your thoughts?
Gaubatz: I believe it is time intelligence officers and other agents who were involved in obtaining evidence from terrorists on the ground in Iraq at the start of the war (2003) begin helping one another out and telling it like it was.
In April – July 2003, while in Nasiriyah, Iraq, I had the opportunity to talk with the Director of Saddam’s Nasiriyah Hospital, several doctors, and nurses who actually attended to Private Jessica Lynch when she was a POW. In addition another agent and I had the opportunity to 'interrogate' the Director of the 'Red Crescent' who was located across the road from the hospital. This Director was responsible for the torture and death of American soldiers from the 507th Maintenance Company, Fort Bliss, TX, and many other service members throughout Iraq.
FP: What guidance were you and your team of counter-terrorism officers provided for conducting interviews or interrogations?
Gaubatz: Jamie, it is important to note many of the interrogations our team conducted were not within the safe confines of a ‘friendly’ base or inside a prison. The vast majority of our interrogations were in the field. The only guidance other agents and I had received was the enemy we were fighting were specifically Islamic terrorists (Saddam civilian Fedeyeen and supporters of Al Qaeda); neither who wore military uniforms.
When I was deployed to Iraq, I was an 1811 U.S. Federal Agent. I had been briefed by our government that since I was a civilian, but would have identification indicating I was a Major, be carrying an M16, a 9mm, and other weapons. If the enemy captured me I would be considered a spy under the ‘Geneva Convention’ and would likely be executed. Our government leaders advised me during briefings they would have no legal authority to prevent this. I acknowledged I understood these rights and was willing to take the risks for our country.
These were essentially our rules of engagement in the field as well. If the enemy had no uniform they were not soldiers and were considered terrorists. They had no rights. This did not mean we abused captured enemies, but it does mean we thought we had the support of our government to obtain all and any information that would protect our ‘troops’ and our country. And we did collect an enormous amount of intelligence.
FP: Can you name politicians who were aware of intelligence that was being obtained during interrogations?
Gaubatz: It would be easier to name the ones who were not concerned. In early 2003, Americans fighting in Iraq felt we had the support of all politicians, regardless of political affiliation. We had inquires from politicians of all levels about the intelligence we were collecting. These politicians had constituents who wanted answers on the war and I believe deserved answers. Our teams wrote hundreds of intelligence reports and we briefed many through other electronic means. One such person at the time was then Senator Joe Biden (now VP Biden). I still have my war notes taken from the field, and his name was written in my book on 7 June 2003.
Biden was aware of intelligence we were obtaining from the field, and never did anyone question our methods of obtaining the intelligence. We were professionals and collected intelligence using the best method one could when surrounded by enemies sometimes 6 to our 2.
FP: Can you provide some specific intelligence you were able to obtain during filed interviews and interrogations?
Gaubatz: Yes, it is time American intelligence officers begin bringing forth the truth of the realities of how our brave troops were treated during Operation Iraqi Freedom by the same people who are now being protected and soon to be released by President Obama and with the support VP Biden, who knew the truth about our soldiers being tortured.
Why will he not speak about it? Did Biden know Iranians were entering Iraq and providing sophisticated weapons to Islamic terrorists to kill our brave troops? I am not trying to single out Biden who knew what was going on, but to let the American people understand both Republicans and Democratic leaders were aware of the situation in Iraq.
We were being encouraged by both parties to obtain intelligence to protect our troops and country.
When we went to war in 2003, we were facing an enemy we were not prepared for, and still aren’t. The enemy was not simply the Army of Saddam, but the Islamic terrorists who were residing in Iraq well before 2003. Once we entered Iraq, the Iranians began entering southern Iraq and were paying Islamic suicide bombers to kill Americans. VP Biden and all key government leaders were provided reports of these acts.
Now I watch television daily and hear our liberal leaders whining about Islamic terrorists who may have been ‘slapped’, or put into a box with a caterpillar. None of these liberals were standing up for civilian intelligence officers in 2003 that were being deployed to Iraq with misleading identification and weapons.
When we went to war in 2003, we were facing an enemy we were not prepared for, and still aren’t. The enemy was not simply the Army of Saddam, but the Islamic terrorists who were residing in Iraq well before 2003. Once we entered Iraq, the Iranians began entering southern Iraq and were paying Islamic suicide bombers to kill Americans.
I mentioned in my first question, I had interrogated ‘Enemy Prisoners of War’ (EPWs) in the field during the war. One was the Director of the Red Crescent in Nasiriyah, Iraq.
Below is the reality of what our troops faced and the tortures they endured. We obtained intelligence during interrogations. We subsequently saved lives.
Below is a sampling of the results of the interrogations agents and I obtained: I have the documents, photographs, and contact information of Iraqis and U.S. personnel who were also aware. Anything I write or speak about can be verified. Simply ask VP Biden and our President to release the complete intelligence reports my team and I wrote in 2003.
1. When the members of the 507th were ambushed in Nasiriyah, Iraq, Private Jessica Lynch was initially taken to an Iraqi military base hospital in the Nasiriyah area (not the civilian hospital). Some of the other 507th were killed during the ambush, and others were captured and then murdered.
2. I visited the military hospital Private Lynch was held and it can be best described as 'filth'. Jessica suffered physically and psychologically at this military facility.
3. When our brave troops began bombing this Iraqi base, the Iraqis decided to move Private Lynch to the Nasiriyah civilian hospital. The leaders of the Baath Party were using the basement of the hospital and its many tunnels as sanctuary.
4. Jessica Lynch was drugged, tied up, and placed under the stretcher in a Red Crescent vehicle. The Director of the Red Crescent was a senior member of the Baath Party and was allowing the use of ambulances to transport weapons and Saddam supporters (military and Saddam's civilian Fedeyeen forces) throughout Iraq. Our U.S. military on the ground had been informed the 'Rules of Engagement' did not allow searching mosques, schools, or Red Crescent ambulances. U.S. military personnel died as a result of this.
5. A few days before Private Lynch was rescued, she was placed in Saddam’s civilian hospital.
6. The doctor of Jessica Lynch and a brave Iraqi lady was 'Hameeda'. She is the sister-in-law of my good friend Mohammed Odeh Al Rehaief. Mohammed is the Iraqi lawyer who had provided intelligence to U.S. forces which enabled Jessica to be rescued.
7. Jessica Lynch's hospital bed was located near a window overlooking a soccer field near the grounds of the hospital. She had been forced to watch as some of her team members were tortured, beheaded and buried.
8. One agent and I had interviewed the Saddam Hospital staff and determined the location of the dead Americans who had been killed during the 507th ambush.
9. The Director took us to a position on the soccer field and said the 507th members had been buried in front of the soccer goal posts, so the children would run over their graves while playing soccer. This was to dishonor our ‘troops’.
10. The Director informed us the 507th members had been beheaded and many had been dragged through the streets of Nasiriayh.
11. The night before Jessica Lynch was rescued; the Fedeyeen had threatened to take Jessica Lynch from her hospital bed, use a ‘Red Crescent vehicle, and go into the desert area outside of Nasiriyah. The Fedeyeen were going to bury Jessica alive in the vehicle. The doctor of Jessica was able to talk the Fedeyeen out of removing her this night. The next day our troops rescued her.
12. I wrote numerous intelligence reports pertaining to these tragedies and others. Senator Biden and many others were aware of the tortures our troops underwent, and the ‘interrogation results I and others had conducted on Enemy of Prisoners of War (EPW), and the results.
FP: Can you mention any other intelligence you were able to obtain during interrogations?
Gaubatz: I have hundreds of pages of personal notes, photographs, names, dates, locations, and yes, VP Biden was aware of intelligence we were obtaining from EPWs. He nor any politician ever asked how we were obtaining.
EPWs informed our teams of hidden weapons, the locations of Fedeyeeen forces, the locations and methods of ‘suicide bombers, and the Iranians who were entering southern Iraq to provide specialized weapons to insurgents, and paying Iraqis to conduct ‘suicide bombings against our troops’.
I still have the listing of insurgents, their locations, and the type weapons they had to use against our troops. These notes were written in Arabic, translated into English and then forwarded to all levels of our government.
Our troops knew in 2003 we were facing an ‘evil ideology’ of Islamic terrorists, many died, and many more will likely sacrifice their lives because we have politicians who care more for their careers than they do the security of our nation.
I am releasing several never before seen documents and photographs I obtained while working counter-intelligence/counter-intelligence in 2003. Why? Because the intelligence gathering abilities of our brave officers is being hampered, this translates into our country facing a national security threat from Islamic terrorists. This means our children will become their targets.
I believe it disturbs many Americans and the intelligence officers that now we have liberal Democrats in office who know the truth about the sufferings of our troops, and now stand up for the rights of Islamic terrorists who may have to be pushed around to save our troops. I will not be one responsible for their deaths and the sufferings their parents will go through simply because a politician wants to placate the liberals who care more for Islamic terrorists than they do for their neighbor’s son or daughter fighting for our country.
FP: Final words?
Gaubatz: I have never written or said anything I can’t substantiate under oath when required to do so. Will VP Biden, Pelosi or others do the same under oath? I believe it is time the American public demand they begin answering our questions; with their right hand raised, using a Bible, not the Quran. Thank you.
Jamie Glazov is Frontpage Magazine's editor. He holds a Ph.D. in History with a specialty in Russian, U.S. and Canadian foreign policy. He is the author of Canadian Policy Toward Khrushchev’s Soviet Union and is the co-editor (with David Horowitz) of The Hate America Left. He edited and wrote the introduction to David Horowitz’s Left Illusions. His new book is United in Hate: The Left's Romance with Tyranny and Terror. To see his previous symposiums, interviews and articles Click Here. Email him at <!-- e --><a href="mailto:jglazov@rogers.com">jglazov@rogers.com</a><!-- e -->.
the interview is a lame attempt to excuse torture, and makes very little sense in the over all scheme of things.
the best way to keep your troops out of harms way is by not putting them in it in the first place.
I see take up for the enemy but not your fellow Americans....just beacuse they played there music?
do you not see that you are missing the point of what commy said? he is not taking up for the enemy. he is just saying that the interview you posted is only relevent to the topic because we put our soldiers in harm's way, and the music, which was the topic of this thread, was not used on our guys. those musicians are most likely not in favor of torture on our people, they are against ALL TORTURE!
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."
That is the 780 Billion Dollar question... what do we get by 'Winning' Afghanistan?
A lifetime of an American military presence there where our soldiers get killed one an two at a time by people who don't want us there... except for the Afghani 'Leaders' who will get billions of taxpayer dollars in a half-hearted, half-assed attempt to prolong a 'War On Terror'?
If someone else has an answer... please, tell me what it is to ease my mind and get behind this fiasco.
Hail, Hail!!!