The committee has made no decision on a possible grant of immunity, so it postponed Mr. Rodriguez’s appearance.

Apparently, Silvestre Reyes, chair of House intel committee, is a fan, so it is worth keeping an eye on any effort to give Rodriguez immunity to botch the criminal investigation.

Valerie took the fall for hubby Joe who wanted to be in the limelight with the NYt OpEd article. She could still be in the CIA except for that Vanity Fair cover shot of her in sunglasses with Joe is his old Porsche. I understand that is what finally tore it with her and her superiors at the CIA.

Still with publishing and script money along with speech honorariums, and of course pensions and later Social Security she and Joe will do fine.

Lab Dancer @92… brilliant. You’ve detailed the thought process in all its minute machicolations; webs spun of filaments so fine as to be demolished without so much as a startle. Chilling.

wavpeac @ 87, 97. Violence injures the brain in a number of way, primarily: (1) physical injuries, but also (2) unusually high releases of specific neurotransmitters (produced in response to anxiety or trauma).
If you are interested, the most readable resource is probably “The Paranoia Switch” (2007).

Mirror neurons are important for learning, and also for social (and emotional) attunement. Hot research area; social skills are increasingly a challenge in a globalized world, but they are also increasingly important.

Humans are social. Society is not possible without generally agreed upon norms, or ‘mores’. Damaging the health and well-being of the group is anti-social, and widely regarded as ‘immoral’.

In the mid-20th century, ‘the group’ was ‘my family’ or ‘my neighborhood’ or ‘my town’, or ‘my country’. Then man walked on the moon and we saw a little blue-green miracle floating in the vast, heartless, cold expanse of the universe. So what does ‘my group’ mean in 2007? It’s complicated.

Extremists are always dangerous, but as the world shrinks they pose a threat to everyone. Whether that is the person described by Lab Dancer who is ‘NOT investigating,’ because they lack a strong commitment to a system of clear laws, or whether they’re willing to use violence to harm those they believe oppress them… either way, given the weapons and the speed of circumstances, it’s a lethal mix in this historical era.
Shorter: we can’t afford to let these people call the shots.
Go look at that photo of earth, taken from the moon, if you doubt me

Another useful book if you are interested: The Mindful Brain (Siegel), 2007. If you read that one, you’ll see why Putin’s mastery of martial arts has some very interesting, intriguing implications.

And do you find it even a little suspicious that in Fall, 2002, the CIA apparently had no intention of destroying the terror tapes, but one month into an IG investigation into detainee interrogation, they had decided the tapes would be destroyed?

McCain’s Detainee Treatment Act passed the Senate on October 5, 2005 and a month later the torture tapes were lumps of melted plastic.

I also wonder how the detainee deaths fit into this–the one DOD and one CIA death in late 2002. How does that play into allegations of impropriety?

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/005067.php

I think that sums it up.
The Intell Committee is meeting Wednesday. (closed doors)
Should Immunity be granted.
My first reaction is yes… I just want the fucking truth
on exactly what happened…
I want us to look into the darkest corners of this administration,
and unmask the gang of murderous thieves who have hijacked justice.

Believe me whether immunity is granted or not you are not going to get the truth. What you will get is just enough to cloud the issues and for Rodriguez to skip on the potential charges against him.

“Peterson objected to the interrogation techniques used on prisoners. She refused to participate after only two nights working in the unit known as the cage. Army spokespersons for her unit have refused to describe the interrogation techniques Alyssa objected to. They say all records of those techniques have now been destroyed. …”.