By Stephen Soldz, Psyche, Science, and Society. Posted November 25, 2008.
An open letter from 200 psychologists and allies who are urging Obama not to select John Brennan to be Director of the CIA.
November 22, 2008
Dear President-Elect Obama,
We are writing to urge you not to select John Brennan as Director of the CIA. We are psychologists and allies who have long opposed the abuses of detainees under the Bush administration. We are just concluding a successful several-year struggle to remove psychologists from their roles in aiding or abetting these abuses. It has been a distressing fact that, while the Bush administration resorted to abuse and torture of those in our custody, often psychologists have been put in positions to use their psychological expertise to guide these unconscionable practices.
We look forward to your administration as an opportunity for genuine change -- in this case for our country to take a new direction in its treatment of prisoners. We applaud your commitment to closing Guantanamo and are encouraged by your clear statement from your “60 Minutes” interview last Sunday, “America doesn’t torture, and I’m gonna make sure that we don’t torture.” This fuels our hope for a decisive repudiation of the “dark side” -- the willingness to use or abet illegal and unethical coercive interrogation tactics that sometimes amount to torture and often constitute cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.
Read on...Peacenik thinks this will be another big disappointment if Obama selects Brennan for the CIA. Obama's foreign policy team and financial team are hawks, status quo. I guess the verdict is still out on his social policy team although Dean seems to be a good choice. Obama's speeches still sound great but Peacenik wants to see some follow through on those speeches. Progressives are getting nervous. Peacenik is getting nervous. Update: Score one for the progressive blogosphere and the above psychologists. Brennan has withdrawn his name from consideration for CIA director.
