Sovay has a collection of headlines from the Arab and Iranian press on the torture story. There is, of course, no surprise that the headlines in the state-run papers are exceptionally outraged. It is indeed ironic to see Iranian papers trumpeting "Their True Face!", or Egyptian ones calling it "The Scandal!" Saudi papers likewise, right? These guys are among the worst torturers in the world. Their outrage must be wholly manufactured, musn't it?
Certainly the physical torture revealed is rather less strenuous than what is practiced by Arab states. If you'd like some details on what kind of tortures that would be, consider pages nine and ten of the Qaeda manual warning "brothers" what sort of tortures they should expect if captured. All of what was done and far worse is on offer, both physical, psychological and sexual.
All of it, that is, except one thing. The photos of the grinning servicewoman pointing to a masturbating man must be genuinely horrifying to Middle Eastern society. Out of all the rest of it, only two bad conclusions can come: first, that America is hypocritical, which most already believe; and second, that American democracy is no better than their own forms of government, which many already believe. Both points can be largely undone by a public and severe punishment of the offenders. I favor capital punishment, as I always do in cases of rape by uniformed servicemen overseas, which are treason as much as they are rapes. A swift and harsh punishment--even if it is "only" Leavenworth--will undo a great deal of the damage.
The reversal of sexual roles, though, can't be fixed. The damage done by that photograph will outstrip all the others, because in a very real way it points to a truth about America. It isn't true that we engage in routine torture, or that we tolerate it; it isn't true that our government is no better than Iran's or Egypt's. It is true, however, that we intend to totally destroy the sexual order of Islam in the Middle East. The servicewoman, dressed in a military uniform instead of a veil, placed in power over men, abusing them sexually--that violation will haunt our campaign forever.
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