MSNBC has the full video of this politician presenting the case in favor of releasing the torture report.

“But in the end, torture’s failure to serve its intended purpose isn’t the main reason to oppose its use. I have often said, and will always maintain, that this question isn’t about our enemies; it’s about us. It’s about who we were, who we are and who we aspire to be. It’s about how we represent ourselves to the world.

This politician has gotten to the most fundamental of issues even better than what Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey have done. Those two did make excellent remarks themselves, but I had to point out that there is no need for a cost/benefit analysis on torture. It is just something we ought not to do for exactly the reasons stated in the above quote from the video.

In a way, I am glad that MSNBC has made it difficult for me to embed their video here. You will have to navigate the link ‘We need not risk our national honor to prevail in this or any war’, to see and hear the presentation and to find out who made these remarks.

CBS News has the article Top hacker-turned FBI mole gives dire warning.

This interview is interesting for its insights into the world of hacking and to the issues of internet security. It is also great for busting up some stereotypes that we might have had.

The Daily Kos has the article Dick Cheney Lied about Torture. This is commentary on the Politico article Dick Cheney Was Lying About Torture: The Senate report confirms it doesn’t work. As those of us on the inside knew..

The Daily Kos article highlights a few points from Politico and makes some comments of its own. However, it is not until you read the author’s bio on Politico that you get an inkling of the authority of the article.

Mark Fallon served as an interrogator for more than 30 years, including as a Naval Criminal Investigative Service special agent and within the Department of Homeland Security, as the assistant director for training of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.

Fallon concludes his article with the warning:

Over the coming days, you’ll be hearing numerous torture defenders claim it kept Americans safe. Don’t believe them. Many of us charged with the mission of getting information out of terrorists didn’t resort to using torture. Like many Americans, we didn’t want our government to use torture, and we hope it never does again.

So as an armchair quarterback in this situation, are you going to think you know more about what works and does not work in interrogations than a person who has been a successful negotiator for 30 years and who is making a statement that urges you to be more judicious in your thirst for anything goes style  of interrogation.  Do you think he has an ulterior motive for asking us to be less bloodthirsty than our own natures might incline us to be?  On the other hand, think of what motives Dick Cheney might have for making the claims he does.

The Daily Kos has the article President Obama hosts The Decree on ‘The Colbert Report’.

Here is the video clip that they featured.

The actual interview with Stephen Colbert followed. Here are the two clips that cover that part.