Elegantly stated though roundly ignored I see.

As an aside I would hate living in that thing. Especially at night!

I read the report and I do understand this is simply political hay at others expense, namely at the expense of an entire agency and country. It's the hypocrisy that on one hand they publically blame an entire agency for the misdeeds of a few. Then turn right around launch a drone against 'suspected' terrorist targets killing them and their wives and children as well. And have the audacity to tell me it was their solemn duty to so.

The report didn't have jack-squat to do with the good of the nation, it wasn't for justice, or for better regulations. It is just simply good ol' fashioned divisiveness.

One would hope that the glass is tintable... :hmmm: :yep:

Sky, you assume that humans are rational and ego centric.

I don't talk about Russia because there is nothing to talk about, it is not a part of our ideology to prosecute other states for human rights violations.

Oh please. Like the next president won't when it suits his fancy. Get real.

I assume that humans are motivated and driven by egoist motives, yes. The whole model of the free market bases on that assumption as well, btw. It makes egoists interacting and cooperating for fulfilling their egoist motives. It'S kind of a super-complex coordination mechanism.

But being rational humans need to learn, it is an exercise in self-discipline, else human egoism meets emotions and sentiments, genetically rooted drives, also some ratio: but as well a good load of irrationality, short-termed instinct and last but not least: reflexes.

That man is born to be a rational being only is true in so far as one would claim that egoism always matches the understanding of being a rational motive. But even when being egoist, the chosen methods to fulfill that egoism can be irrational. Rational only is to want to be egoist. In the end, the ultimate egoism is the drive to survive and even kill othe rlife ion order to secure one's own survival, may it be a fight man against man to fight off a robber or murderer, or man slaughtering an animal to eat it.

And as a former psychologist you will not convince me from man being all-rational by birth anyway. Rationality is just part of the whole package. And a relatively small one. ;)
So does China and a couple of other dictatorships as well. Many states practicing something suppressive do not attack other states over being suppressive themselves, not wanting to draw attention to their own misdoing that way. Western states however love to lecture others about how superior Western corrupted (!) politics are, the corrupted state of things usually gets completely ignored and faded out. Especially the US, regarding the spreading of the American model, and Germany, regarding the general moral good-doing.

Politics, n. An unclean and sordid business. Etymology: from Ancient Greek poly-, “many,” plus ticks, n. pl., “small bloodsucking arthropods.”) :rotfl2:

For those who are interested in a delightful Christmas gift, the Senate CIA report will be available from publisher Melville House in bound book form this holiday season.

http://cdn.mhpbooks.com/uploads/2014...re-320x487.jpg

Should look smart up on the shelf somewhere between The Pentagon Papers and the Tower Commission Report.

In the end...
 

Leave it to the comedians to state the truth of it.

Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere and applying all the wrong remedies
"Groucho Marx"

Colbert and Stewart have been having a blast going after this latest governmental faux pas. Those guys get a constant feed of material from people I consider total idiots. Good for a laugh though. :haha:

For comedians, politics is the gift that keeps on giving. :yep:

@Skybird

And this is where our points of view differ, as I assume that:
- not all humans are rational.
- not all humans are egoistical.
- a perfectly rational human would not only act on his best interests, but on the over all community's best interests (well Economics and Game Theory advanced beyond the Adam Smith).

Back to the topic - as not all humans are rational, then torture (and such interrogation techniques) may be highly ineffective - ie what if the suspect happens to be a fanatic and doesn't value his own survival?

If I wanted to go crazy I would do it in Washington because it would not be noticed - Irwin S. Cobb

Just that it will be easier to get along with a Republican President that has a Republican Senate majority and House of Representatives.

Abraham Lincoln

You really don't see a difference between the hand wringing Western states do over comparatively minor transgressions and the anonymous bullet to the back of the head that enemies of the Eastern states usually recieve?

He is just softrolling:haha: