I wouldn/’t call it a “torture” tape. I don/’t think cutting someone/’s head off is torture, just to be precise.
Donald Rumsfeld, October 2003
Some other stunningly insensitive remarks about torture from the SECDEF:
We don/’t torture people. To suggest that anyone would be engaged in torture or conduct inconsistent with the Geneva Conventions, it seems to me, is not on the mark at all.
Donald Rusmsfeld, December 2003The — there are so many charges that it/’s hard to categorize them, but I/’ve seen in headlines and articles words like “torture” and one thing and another, which is just utter nonsense. The policies of the United States government are humane, and the way the prisoners — the detainees are being treated is humane. So regardless of whether one wants to look at it from one perspective or another, in any case, there are no instances of where detainees have been treated in anything other than a humane way.
Donald Rumsfeld, January 2002Then of course when the military commissions came up, the immediate response was, I think it was something like “oh summary executions, torture!” I can/’t imagine who would say something like that.
Donald Rumsfeld, November 2002The newspaper headlines that yelled, “Torture! What/’s next? Electrodes?” and all of this rubbish was so inexcusable that it does make one wonder, as I said to Jamie, why we put out any photographs, if that/’s the way they/’re going to be treated, so irresponsibly.
Donald Rumsfeld, February 2002
UPDATE: Regarding electrodes, here is one of the allegations from the Taguba report: “(S) Positioning a naked detainee on a MRE Box, with a sandbag on his head, and attaching wires to his fingers, toes, and penis to simulate electric torture.” This just happens to be the cover of The Economist this week. So, yes, Don. FUCKING ELECTRODES.
