Saturday, February 10, 2007
Blog Reactions to Eric Fair
The Eric Fair article is one of the most linked-to pieces this weekend, but it has surprisingly been missed by most of the right-wing blogosphere. Why is that, I wonder? Is The Corner too busy to bother with such an inconsequential story? Jonah? JPod? K-Lo? Don't any of you have an opinion on this? Apparently not. An example of the "he's just a whining pansy" meme is over at Jules Crittenden's blog. I hope he's proud of himself. But it's been mostly silent on the right, as seen in the lack of coverage at the Jawa Report, TCS and Pajamas Media, who managed to post just one tiny little article, garnering a typically brutish response.
But not nearly as brutish as the left-wing Brendan Skwire of Brendancalling, who wrote an Open Letter to Eric T. Fair, in which he tells Eric:
Brendancalling doesn't represent the vast majority of the lefty blogs, though. Many have credited him for his courage in speaking the truth to power. Some of the better ones I've seen were at Firedog Lake, Atrios, Welcome to Pottersville, and Catzmaw's Commentary.
America's North Shore Journal (not a lefty) helpfully pointed to a mention of previous articles by Fair, discussing Fair's evolution:
But not nearly as brutish as the left-wing Brendan Skwire of Brendancalling, who wrote an Open Letter to Eric T. Fair, in which he tells Eric:
Your words are empty and hollow. I do not accept a single one of them. But let me offer you a suggestion if you want to do the honorable thing: kill yourself. Leave a note. Name names.He is joined by his amen chorus of commenters in what I can only think of as a despicable example of the left being anything but liberal. Note that Skwire wants to have his cake and eat it too: Fair should "name names," but only in his suicide note; the suicide being what Skwire focuses his hopes and dreams on. Personally, I'd be horrified if Fair killed himself, but I'd love to see more names come out, particularly the names of those who ordered this abuse. But that's just me. I guess I'm a softy.
Brendancalling doesn't represent the vast majority of the lefty blogs, though. Many have credited him for his courage in speaking the truth to power. Some of the better ones I've seen were at Firedog Lake, Atrios, Welcome to Pottersville, and Catzmaw's Commentary.
America's North Shore Journal (not a lefty) helpfully pointed to a mention of previous articles by Fair, discussing Fair's evolution:
What had happened to Fair since last November? He doesn’t mention his earlier writing today, but this probably explains it: “While I was appalled by the conduct of my friends and colleagues [in Iraq] , I lacked the courage to challenge the status quo. That was a failure of character and in many ways made me complicit in what went on. I'm ashamed of that failure, but as time passes, and as the memories of what I saw in Iraq continue to infect my every thought, I'm becoming more ashamed of my silence.”Pardon My Paradox found an article by a survivor of Soviet torture, Vladimir Bukovsky, which is worth quoting at length:
In fact, today’s step seems to have been a long time coming: A Web search turns up a rough draft of that earlier column posted in January 2006 at a veterans group's site.
Investigation is a subtle process, requiring patience and fine analytical ability, as well as a skill in cultivating one’s sources. When torture is condoned, these rare talented people leave the service, having been outstripped by less gifted colleagues with their quick-fix methods, and the service itself degenerates into a playground for sadists.Thus, in its heyday, Joseph Stalin’s notorious NKVD (the Soviet secret police) became nothing more than an army of butchers terrorizing the whole country but incapable of solving the simplest of crimes. And once the NKVD went into high gear, not even Stalin could stop it at will. He finally succeeded only by turning the fury of the NKVD against itself; he ordered his chief NKVD henchman, Nikolai Yezhov (Beria’s predecessor), to be arrested together with his closest aides.
Which points to the worst part about this whole ordeal: the human cost to everyone involved. Eric Fair has shown us that to descend into the dark hole of torture has long-lasting effects for those who go there. Unless they're sociopaths. Digby may have said it best:
I'm sure there are those who have no such self-awareness, or who truly believe that such sadistic treatment was warrented and correct. But it will blow back on them too, in some way, somewhere. Because it is a simple truth that when you treat human beings like animals, you become one yourself. And on some level, there is a part of every person that howls in protest against such debasement whether they are the perpetrator or the victim.
This man knows what he did and is speaking out as a way to redeem himself. Others will likely use far less positive means to exorcize themselves of this pain and degradation. And everyone will pay the price.
Labels: GWOT, interrogation, torture
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[quote] Note that Skwire wants to have his cake and eat it too: Fair should "name names," but only in his suicide note; the suicide being what Skwire focuses his hopes and dreams on. [/quote]
How is this kind of reaction going to encourage others to come forward?
How is this kind of reaction going to encourage others to come forward?
The obvious answer is: it won't.
Skwire's just a jerk with an axe to grind and a penchant for saying outrageous things for attention. Like Marilyn Manson or Johnny Knoxville.
I probably shouldn't have linked to him at all.
Skwire's just a jerk with an axe to grind and a penchant for saying outrageous things for attention. Like Marilyn Manson or Johnny Knoxville.
I probably shouldn't have linked to him at all.
thanks for the link, but I think you misunderstand my point.
It is not that i think Mr. fair's story is unimportant, nor is it that i wish for his suicide. It is the way he uses this "poor me, I did these horrible things and now I am tormented" gibberish, as if he's some kind of victim. You'll have to pardon me if I reserve my sympathy for the tortured, not the torturer, but hey that's just me being outrageous.
Mr. Fair was a civilian interrogator when he CHOSE to participate in torture. He was not a member of the US armed services, and thus not subject to court martial, dishonorable discharge, etc. He was not under duress. Fair could have said NO anytime he wanted to and walked away. How much money do civilian contracters make in Iraq? Well, this federal jobs site says $129,702.00 to $160,804.00
As the old joke about chutzpah goes, "Yes your honor, I admit that I brutally murdered my own parents in cold blood. But please have mercy on me: I am, after all, an orphan."
Perhaps I would be more sympathetic to Mr. Fair, but he waited 3 years after his stint in iraq to step forward.
Also, I never claimed "only in a suicide note": those are your words not mine. He should have named some names in his original article: but not a one is mentioned, not even the company he worked for.
Fair wants absolution without consequence, and I object very strongly to that.
Again, thanks for the visit, even if we don't agree.
It is not that i think Mr. fair's story is unimportant, nor is it that i wish for his suicide. It is the way he uses this "poor me, I did these horrible things and now I am tormented" gibberish, as if he's some kind of victim. You'll have to pardon me if I reserve my sympathy for the tortured, not the torturer, but hey that's just me being outrageous.
Mr. Fair was a civilian interrogator when he CHOSE to participate in torture. He was not a member of the US armed services, and thus not subject to court martial, dishonorable discharge, etc. He was not under duress. Fair could have said NO anytime he wanted to and walked away. How much money do civilian contracters make in Iraq? Well, this federal jobs site says $129,702.00 to $160,804.00
As the old joke about chutzpah goes, "Yes your honor, I admit that I brutally murdered my own parents in cold blood. But please have mercy on me: I am, after all, an orphan."
Perhaps I would be more sympathetic to Mr. Fair, but he waited 3 years after his stint in iraq to step forward.
Also, I never claimed "only in a suicide note": those are your words not mine. He should have named some names in his original article: but not a one is mentioned, not even the company he worked for.
Fair wants absolution without consequence, and I object very strongly to that.
Again, thanks for the visit, even if we don't agree.
Well if you don't want him to kill himself, maybe you shouldn't print it.
As for his ability to say "no," it's true in an absolute sense. But every civilian interrogator is under the direct command of the military. Civilians take their orders from the OIC, and can lose their jobs depending on their commanding officer's whim. And given the money involved, there's an added incentive to keep your mouth shut. (Just so you know, he must have worked for CACI or one of their subcontractors, because that was the only interrogation contract in Iraq at the time.)
To speak up when he was involved in the abuse would have been courageous and dangerous--remember that the original whistleblower from the Abu Ghraib scandal slept for a time with a cocked & loaded pistol under his pillow, and has since entered the witness protection program. The major difference there being that civilian interrogators on the CACI contract weren't authorized to have weapons, so the option of protecting himself from retribution from well-armed and angry people wouldn't have been available to him anyway.
Having said all that, I don't have less sympathy for the guys he abused; of course I don't. But I do have enough sympathy, as someone who was fortunate enough to have never had to make that choice, to recognize that living with the knowledge that you've done something wrong is not easy. I also recognize that more people like him need to come out and talk about what happened, and that won't happen if the hammer falls every time someone speaks up.
As for his ability to say "no," it's true in an absolute sense. But every civilian interrogator is under the direct command of the military. Civilians take their orders from the OIC, and can lose their jobs depending on their commanding officer's whim. And given the money involved, there's an added incentive to keep your mouth shut. (Just so you know, he must have worked for CACI or one of their subcontractors, because that was the only interrogation contract in Iraq at the time.)
To speak up when he was involved in the abuse would have been courageous and dangerous--remember that the original whistleblower from the Abu Ghraib scandal slept for a time with a cocked & loaded pistol under his pillow, and has since entered the witness protection program. The major difference there being that civilian interrogators on the CACI contract weren't authorized to have weapons, so the option of protecting himself from retribution from well-armed and angry people wouldn't have been available to him anyway.
Having said all that, I don't have less sympathy for the guys he abused; of course I don't. But I do have enough sympathy, as someone who was fortunate enough to have never had to make that choice, to recognize that living with the knowledge that you've done something wrong is not easy. I also recognize that more people like him need to come out and talk about what happened, and that won't happen if the hammer falls every time someone speaks up.
"Well if you don't want him to kill himself, maybe you shouldn't print it. "
Ahh, come on: as you yourself note, I'm known for hyperbole.
"But every civilian interrogator is under the direct command of the military. Civilians take their orders from the OIC, and can lose their jobs depending on their commanding officer's whim. And given the money involved, there's an added incentive to keep your mouth shut."
That's where we differ: to me "the money was too good" rationale makes matters worse! if he was in the military and faced all the consequences of insubordination or disobeying a superior: but he wasn't and his actions are (to me) the more troubling.
"I also recognize that more people like him need to come out and talk about what happened, and that won't happen if the hammer falls every time someone speaks up."
In that, you are 100% correct, and my response to Fair's letter wasn't constructive. As I've said consistently, his whole "poor suffering me" tone was what made me so angry, not the fact that he's owning up to his actions.
I DO appreciate that Fair's trying to make things right, and when he begins to name names, companies, superiors I will almost certainly support Mr. Fair's efforts.
Ahh, come on: as you yourself note, I'm known for hyperbole.
"But every civilian interrogator is under the direct command of the military. Civilians take their orders from the OIC, and can lose their jobs depending on their commanding officer's whim. And given the money involved, there's an added incentive to keep your mouth shut."
That's where we differ: to me "the money was too good" rationale makes matters worse! if he was in the military and faced all the consequences of insubordination or disobeying a superior: but he wasn't and his actions are (to me) the more troubling.
"I also recognize that more people like him need to come out and talk about what happened, and that won't happen if the hammer falls every time someone speaks up."
In that, you are 100% correct, and my response to Fair's letter wasn't constructive. As I've said consistently, his whole "poor suffering me" tone was what made me so angry, not the fact that he's owning up to his actions.
I DO appreciate that Fair's trying to make things right, and when he begins to name names, companies, superiors I will almost certainly support Mr. Fair's efforts.
I wasn't trying to say that the gobs of money somehow made his complicity more moral--obviously not. I was merely suggesting that the prospect of deciding to blow a whistle on a situation in which everybody you're diming out is better armed than you is made less appealing by the thought that it's going to also cost you a LOT of money in lost wages.
If I were him I wouldn't name names at this point. There's still too much potential for it to backfire on him. Until someone a lot less "touchable" starts making waves, Fair won't have much of an impact. He's too small a fish and too easily marginalized. (Note that Tony Lagouranis hass nothad much effect either, and he's been talking about this publicly for more than a year.)
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If I were him I wouldn't name names at this point. There's still too much potential for it to backfire on him. Until someone a lot less "touchable" starts making waves, Fair won't have much of an impact. He's too small a fish and too easily marginalized. (Note that Tony Lagouranis hass nothad much effect either, and he's been talking about this publicly for more than a year.)
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