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In one of his last moves in office, President Obama has commuted the 35-year prison sentence of Chelsea Manning, the Army private who leaked a massive trove of military secrets to WikiLeaks.
The former intelligence analyst's prison sentence has been shortened to expire on May 17, 2017, according to a statement from the White House.
Her lawyers at the ACLU expressed relief after the decision, saying that Manning has already served more time behind bars than any other whistleblower in U.S. history, and under difficult conditions.
Also at the BBC and the New York Times.
Previously: Chelsea Manning Reportedly on Obama's Short List for Commutation; Assange Offers Himself in Trade
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(Score: 2) by Thexalon on Wednesday January 18 2017, @07:51PM
It isn't? OK, maybe not the "institutionalized" part, as in no commander is going to be caught giving orders for it to happen, but it definitely happens a lot. Also, those are the kinds of organizations and professions that attract those who want to cause pain and injury and death to others - I mean, what career would you choose if your primary skill is pushing nerds into the lockers?
And I should point out, in your Nazi comparison, that (a) the Milgram experiments were inspired by the behavior of Adolf Eichmann, and (b) the US torturers had the full faith and backing of the US government telling them what they were doing was good or at least necessary.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Wednesday January 18 2017, @09:12PM
I'd say that you recruit from the guys that apply for law enforcement jobs and fail the psych profiles in those specific areas. There are plenty of people in this world "looking for payback," it's more or less an animal instinct response to abuse, and plenty of people are abused as children in all sorts of ways.
Still, at the end of the day, why exactly do you torture? It's not to obtain accurate or useful information, I think it's more to strike fear in the minds of the enemy.
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(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Wednesday January 18 2017, @09:26PM
I think you're probably right.
On the subject of torture it is one of the most repugnant developments of the last 20 years in the United States that people seriously discuss the efficacy of torture, as if it's a legitimate, normal practice. It's not. It's a war crime and utterly abhorrent. It is a profound disgrace and shame on a people who think they live in "the Land of the Free, the Home of the Brave," that they contemplate having anything to do with torture beyond shooting torturers dead on the spot.
Bringing the CIA and other 3-letter agencies to justice for their depravity is at the top of the list when the revolution comes.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Wednesday January 18 2017, @09:43PM
I normally don't credit our chief executive with much, but I will give W credit for this particular move. The lawyers he chose to back up his position should be taken out and shot in front of him, one by one, until he confesses that it was a bad idea to coerce them into rendering their opinion approving the operation.
🌻🌻 [google.com]