I think that this is now the second book in a row that I have read based on a recommendation by Glenn Beck. Maybe he will eventually get his own sticker like the Oprah Book Club, but I doubt it.
I had been reading some deeper books lately and was looking forward to an adventure novel. When I started reading Ghost Plane
I went through a number of emotions as I read this book. I was struck by the detailed memories of many of the suspects involved in the tortures described. I was frankly angry that the author seemed to base his entire case on the testimony of men that did not have the best interest of the United States in their minds. I took many notes as I read the book and prepared to blast the authors’ research as more left-winged propaganda.
I came close to closing the book several times, but I persisted. As I read about the torture of the men, some of whom were innocent, I again got angry about our involvement in such practices. At a minimum, we facilitated torture through our Rendition Program. The Program, started in the 1980s, is where suspects are transported to other countries for questioning. The problem is that many of these countries do not have any hesitation to use torture.
As I read further, I was struck by how sloppy our CIA was in disguising the Program. I am not advocating torture, but I am surprised and somewhat disappointed in how easily a reporter could uncover and document the actions of a Classified Program. I guess “covert” is not what it used to be.
One thing to take from this is that the treatment of the prisoners was finally exposed. That is the great thing about our country we have real freedom of the press. That is something to celebrate. Hopefully those who were wronged will get their day in court.
Interestingly enough two days after he was sworn in, President Barrack “Change” Obama decided to allow the Rendition Program to continue. It will be interesting to see if the main-stream media continues their criticism of the Program.
