Good Grief, Obama, Get Over Pfc. Manning And Treat Him Like The American Citizen He Is

P.J. Crowley, the state department spokesman, stepped down Sunday after saying publicly that treatment of Wikileaks suspect Pfc. Bradley Manning in military detention has been “ridiculous and counterproductive and stupid.”

In a statement, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wrote that she accepted his resignation with regret.

I really don't know how many of you have been following the Manning story, but I have, and thank goodness Glenn Greenwald has been holding the Obama Administration's feet to the coals on this.

America at its best, of course. It's a sign of the times, people. You have no rights. Where are your papers? It gets worse before the whole government falls. Eventually, people revolt. Turning a blind eye only works until you're the person that blind eye is turning from. When you no longer have any rights as an American, what the hell distinguishes you and this country from other dictatorships?

UPDATE: 3/14/11

As usual, the ever prolific Glenn Greenwald has a few choice words in his latest two posts on Pfc. Manning.

So, in Barack Obama's administration, it's perfectly acceptable to abuse an American citizen in detention who has been convicted of nothing by consigning him to 23-hour-a-day solitary confinement, barring him from exercising in his cell, punitively imposing "suicide watch" restrictions on him against the recommendations of brig psychiatrists, and subjecting him to prolonged, forced nudity designed to humiliate and degrade. But speaking out against that abuse is a firing offense. Good to know. [rest of post here]

When Obama was asked on Friday about Manning's treatment, he said in part: "I've actually asked the Pentagon whether or not the procedures . . . are appropriate. They assured me they are." [rest of post here]

To me, it is unfathomable that a supposed Democratic President who campaigned against this type of torture (among other campaign promises that were broken immediately upon his election) gets away with this crap. Mr. Obama, the question I have for you is -- go see Pfc. Manning and ask HIM if he's being treated fairly, you stupid asshole. Do you think for one minute astute Americans are buying your lame excuse that the military says he's not being treated badly so be it? Get off your hiney and check it out, dude. You're the Prez for damn sakes. Act like one. Or, could it be that you are actually not interested in the rights of the American public, and that even though you campaigned on the slogan of change, you really just bullshitted the American people into electing a tyrant?

Mr. President - you are despicable. You are complicit in this crime against humanity and your head in the sand approach is not becoming of one who holds the highest office in America. You, sir, do not deserve to be president of the United States. You deserve to experience the same treatment as Pfc. Manning. Then tell the world how you feel. Just once, put your feet in the doo doo that you perpetuate, you hypocrite.