Lord Of The Flies
By Gary Aldrich (05/17/04)
In this well-known English novel, a group of kids are stranded on an island. Lacking parental supervision, they sink into a primitive state where torture and death become somehow appropriate. In the end, adults arrive to rescue the lost boys, who suddenly remember how to behave. Such a thing just happened in Iraq, but this time the mix included little girls—one fresh from employment in a pizza parlor—who brought with them cameras and an attitude.
At the end of the enforcement process is the reality of the prison cell. Those employed to guard the prisoners acknowledge they work near the bottom rung of the enforcement ladder. I doubt many Americans would want to trade jobs with prison guards.
It’s a dismal, depressing business. The potential for prisoner abuse is enormous. Guard abuses and inmate-on-inmate violence are what movies are made of. In fact, anticipated sexual abuse of the physically weak by gangs of stronger inmates cause some to conclude that criminals are finally getting what’s coming to them.
So what prevents these miserable environments from becoming even more hellish, having taken away the basic freedoms and dignity humans normally enjoy? Jails and prisons maintain some semblance of normalcy and stability because the wise provide adult supervision.
The dynamics inside prison walls are different than anything one has ever experienced. It’s a highly-volatile mix requiring specialized training and lots of experienced hands.
The carefully-controlled access, with daily activities marshaled by ringing bells or blowing whistles, adds to the din created by voices of those who must shout to be heard. Some are nearly driven insane by the Dante-like environment that must be experienced to be believed. Quiet sleep is impossible, and lack of sleep drives some crazy.
I recall my first visit to a city jail in San Antonio, Texas. I was a newly-minted FBI Special Agent on a mission to interview an inmate. As I waited, I noticed first the noise, then the awful smell.
It was lunch time and the inmates’ trays were being assembled. The lunches contained one unpeeled orange, two slices of white bread, no condiments, one slice of untrimmed Bologna, and a carton of milk. There was no plate, no fork, no spoon, no napkin, no salt and no pepper. Prison is mostly about what you cannot have, cannot do, and the operative word is “no”.
Even in America, prisoner abuse is a common occurrence, and over the years there have been significant reforms, including a requirement in many prisons that guards be college educated. There is also the need to test applicants for psychological weaknesses, and establish good character, since the potential for abuse is so great.
In Iraq, foolish people placed kids in charge of prisoners of war, forgetting the entire world was watching. While someone up the chain made a grave mistake, few believe it goes all the way to the top. What happened in Iraq is an example of bureaucratic incompetence in its purest, simplest form.
It’s political correctness run amok. Find the man or woman who assigned female American soldiers to guard naked Iraqi prisoners of war, and ask them what they were thinking. Ask them if they were thinking. Ask them if the situation was reversed, and the prison was full of young women, would they have sent young, sexually active male soldiers there with cameras to order the women to disrobe, masturbate, and walk on all fours at the end of a leash?
The prisoner abuses were not Don Rumsfeld’s fault. Moreover, he did not get a mandate from the people or from his president to reform the Department of Defense. The worst thing he could do now is resign. His troops love him – a lot of us love him – and his resignation would play right into the hands of President Bush’s political enemies.
Recall Janet Reno’s orders to storm the Waco compound – really a prison at that point – with her military tanks and poisonous gas. As a result of Reno’s direct orders, more than 80 American citizens died. Waco was one hundred times worse than what happened in Iraq. Yet Reno did not resign, although she was directly responsible.
In this case, nobody suggests Don Rumsfeld directly or indirectly ordered young, twisted women under his command to guard Iraqi prisoners and photograph their abuses. So why do most of the Democrats and some weakling Republicans feel the urge to push our Secretary of Defense off the plank? George Will, get a grip!
The federal government, including the Department of Defense, needs a serious management overhaul. What happened in Iraq is clear evidence, but Congress and the mainstream media continue to ignore the obvious: Donald Rumsfeld should not be sacrificed to cover up a larger problem.
Instead, Iraq provides our president an excellent chance to make some positive changes. Let’s begin by tossing out foggy minded, politically correct management.
Leave Don Rumsfeld alone and support President Bush. They are both doing a terrific job.
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