Sick and tired, but mostly sick

I am not a Constitutional scholar or even considered to be a bright attorney by many of the elite attorneys, mostly because I did not go to the right law school or work for the right law firm, but I do know this much. I have spent the past six years practicing immigration law and arguing over what is torture verses mere persecution. That distinction becomes important in asylum cases based on the facts of any given case. After years of doing this I am sick to my soul over what our government has become. I do not recognize it as the same place as when I was going up. It is yet another example to me why I think “they” have won.

I, like the current nominee for attorney general, do know the intimate specifics of how the U.S. Government has used “waterboarding”, I only know that clients have told me about their experiences at the hands of others and what I have researched over the years about torture and United States law.

The U.S. Constitution is the highest law of the land with exceptions, but I will get to that in a second. Amendment VIII of the Constitution states Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

Seems pretty clear that cruel and unusual punishments are not allowed.

The Exception I mentioned is found at Article VI, second paragraph, “This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every state shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding. “ (Emphasis added)

Now this means any treaty the U.S. Enters into and is ratified by Congress shall be the law of the land.

On April 18, 1988 the United States adopted and became bound by the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment of Punishment. (Cat) This is pretty important because Article I of the CAT reads:

1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "torture" means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind, when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity. It does not include pain or suffering arising only from, inherent in or incidental to lawful sanctions.

Now waterboarding is described as:

Waterboarding is a torture technique that simulates drowning in a controlled environment. It consists of immobilizing an individual on his or her back, with the head inclined downward, and pouring water over the face to force the inhalation of water into the lungs. Waterboarding has been used to obtain information, coerce confessions, punish, and intimidate. In contrast to merely submerging the head, waterboarding elicits the gag reflex, and can make the subject believe death is imminent. Waterboarding's use as a method of torture or means to support interrogation is based on its ability to cause extreme mental distress while possibly creating no lasting physical damage to the subject. The psychological effects on victims of waterboarding can last long after the procedure. Although waterboarding in cases can leave no lasting physical damage, it carries the real risks of extreme pain, damage to the lungs, brain damage caused by oxygen deprivation, injuries as a result of struggling against restraints (including broken bones), and even death.
Numerous experts have described this technique as torture. Some nations have also criminally prosecuted individuals for performing waterboarding, including the United States. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterboarding)

In 1947, the United States charged a Japanese officer, Yukio Asano, with war crimes for carrying out another form of waterboarding on a U.S. civilian. The subject was strapped on a stretcher that was tilted so that his feet were in the air and head near the floor, and small amounts of water were poured over his face, leaving him gasping for air until he agreed to talk.
"Asano was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor," Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) told his colleagues last Thursday during the debate on military commissions legislation. "We punished people with 15 years of hard labor when waterboarding was used against Americans in World War II," he said. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/04/AR2006100402005.html)

Now, again I am not a super smart person, but it seems to me that waterboarding is torture. But then again I am not likely to ever be attorney general.

Your thoughts are welcome