Of all the "personalities" on Fox, the only one I just can't figure out is Shepherd Smith. I dunno. He just seems like a nice guy.
But he's on Fox, and so I don't often watch him.
And now he turns up droppin' the F-bomb while condemning the use of torture! (Click below.)
Hey, maybe he is a good guy after all. Go Shep!
Here's the Huffington Post's story:
Shepard Smith Uncensored: "We Are America, We Do Not F**king Torture!"
Fox News viewers witnessed a rather incredible scene on Wednesday as anchor Shepard Smith and Fox contributor Judith Miller (of CIA leak infamy) repeatedly and passionately condemned torture, with Smith declaring at one point, "We are America, we don't torture! And the moment that is not the case, I want off the train! This government is of, by, and for the people -- that means it's mine. That means -- I'm not saying what is torture, and what is not torture, but I'm saying, whatever it is, you don't do it for me! I want off the train when the government starts -- I want off, next stop, now!"
The full segment is worth a watch. And Smith felt strongly enough about the issue to speak out about it again as he was heading into commercial break.
"They better not do it," he said. "If we are going to be Ronald Reagan's Shining City on the Hill, we don't get to torture. We don't do it." Fade to black.
9 comments:
Shep is waaaaay cool here, I must say. How impressive that he connects what the government does with *us*--reminds us that in at least a formal sense, we're complicit in what any administration does. That point gets lost all over the place. And no wonder!--we are so far from real democracy now that this thought doesn't even occur to many.
"You don't do it for me"--just really excellent.
Effing awesome.
mah - I agree. That point does seem to get lost all over the place.
When you say we are so far from a real democracy right now, what are the main things you have in mind?
ES
It's too bad that we ARE a nation with a history of torture, and this has been the case for well over 50 years. I'm disgusted too, but it shouldn't be treated like it's anything new. Interestingly enough, I'm actually reading "A Question of Torture" by Alfred McCoy right now, and it's pretty sick.
In my own experiences from 2003, the worst I had seen was a paper bag over a detainees head (for transport, initially). I had heard from others that Nerf footballs were occasionally tossed at them, though.
In 2005 when I worked in an interrogation facility, we had to physically sign off on the physical status of detainees before and after interrogation to verify that physical harm was something that had not taken place. As "Sergeant of the Guard" in my facility, we commoners were not allowed to witness MI interrogations. I DO however, have quite a bit to say, with photos, about the topic (on mine).
Stay tuned.
Oh dear, 13. I'm sorry you went through that. I'm also glad that you blog about your experience.
ES
ES, I mean mostly that the huge sums of money contributed to candidates by corporate interests have a weighty effect on what legislation and policies are enacted, so that democracy in the sense of the *people* deciding what occurs--ordinary citizens like you and me--seems largely a myth. (Witness energy policy for many years now--way out of sync with ordinary people's sensible desires for renewables and way IN sync with oil companies' interests).
Yet I do see hope with Obama--both his getting elected, and his policies so far.
MAH
Shep Smith is not exactly politically insightful. He is a political twit, an idealist, a patriot, a nationalist. The most interesting thing about his vehemence, was his use of the word "fuck". Everything else he said was obvious. Torture offends his sensibility of what it means to be an American. Whereas it should offend his humanity. He said "We don't do that!" implying that others (who are not American and therefore inferior) use torture. That is the point that is lost here. The history of torture indicates that at certain levels of power, the rhetoric of "rights" simply doesn't matter. But for Shep these torture memos stain his imaginary America.
Thanks 13 for sharing your stories. We need more discussion about these issues, here on this blog and elsewhere.
3:11, first, the reason that MAH was impressed by Shep's comment was his recognition that, in a democratic nation like our own, the actions of the government are our actions. Judging by their relative silence about our recent embrace of torture, it would seem that most Americans have forgotten this important truth. Second, that torture occurs and that Americans have used it is denied by no one. It is important to do what we can to adjust policies away from the practices we eschew. That we do not always live up to those ideals in no way diminishes the importance of embracing and publicly acknowledging them. 3rd, that someone is proud to be a member of a nation that has (in the grand schemes of things) tended to stand against (at least some) indecent practices in war is not a bad thing and does not suggest that he does not also recognize that all of humanity is owed respect and that much of humanity embraces similar ideals. 4th, it is possible, of course, that Shep lives in an imaginary world in which our nation never "dirties its hands." I think it is just as likely that he lives in a world in which his people express ideals that they must struggle to live up to and that necessarily give rise to passion when they fail so abysmally.
Roy, first, we don't live in a democratic nation. This is a republic. Democracy here means voting every now and then, and most that are eligible don't vote at all. I disagree that the government's action are ours. In theory, perhaps. In actuality, the government does plenty that it shouldn't or that it keeps from the public.
Second, I agree that we and the government should acknowledge the shortcomings of government actions. And, yes torture has been denied, for the past 8 years by the former administration. And they still deny it, though the memo speaks for itself.
Third, I disagree with your assessment of nationalism, belonging to "a nation." It's a fabricated myth that has historically produced division, hatred, genocide , etc. If you are going to stand against "indecent practices" I would contend that you do not need a nation to do that. Further, war itself is indecent, it's the breakdown of humanity, the threshold of collective inhumanity.
Fourth, Shep seemed shocked in the clip that the US government tortures. You and I know and others know this has been going on. The memos only reinforce that. Shep, like others who have denied that these "coercive interrogation methods" are forced to face up to their concept of what it is and what it does.
Contrary to Shep and others, it is not America that is great, but it's principles. Whether you wave a flag or burn one is pointless if you don't understand the concepts. And the concepts must apply to everyone, not just Americans. When Shep said "We don't do that". All I hear is his patriotic, nationalist rhetoric, about how "we" are better than everyone else. There is no humanity in that assertion, just nationalism. I'm not suggesting that Shep is disingenuous in his political beliefs. But his reaction seems more to stem from an affront to his idea of the US nation than it does from any sense of humanity (although there may be a connection there, I don't know Shep's political beliefs).
One last thing....Obama needs to support the prosecution of these tortures, as high up as possible. He needs to do this on principle. If he refuses as he seems to, then it's just more politics.
7:17, I agree at least on your last paragraph.
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