Waterboarding made easy

The official language inside a U.S. passport that no one bothers to read includes a request from the Secretary to State to “all whom it may concern” to “give all lawful aid and protection” to the passport’s holder. Turns out, that in the Bush era, the second “all” in the sentence might be a lot more narrowly defined than you thought.

In a recent debate on international law, John Bellinger, Condoleezza Rice’s legal advisor, refused to concede that waterboarding is torture, or even that it is illegal under international law. And not just when the righteous (us) do it to evildoers in our War on Terror and Other Disagreeable Nouns. Bellinger, the Secretary of State’s legal mind, refused to say waterboarding would be beyond the pale if a foreign government did it to an American citizen.

Admirably evenhanded, I suppose, unless you’re the one who’s strapped down with your head submerged. Just something to think about when planning your next foreign trip.

Tags: Condoleezza Rice, international law, John Bellinger, passport, torture, waterboarding