Dick Cheney - Cogito, Ergo Spud

According to US VP Dick Cheney, the treatment of prisoners as Guantanamo Bay, Cuba is perfectly acceptable.

So - let's see if I've got this straight:

1. These prisoners are held without charge and trial - essentially outside of the rule of law that the United States allegedly values so much.

2. These prisoners are held outside of the Geneva Conventions on Prisoners of War.

3. They are interrogated and abused on a regular basis by guards.

And Mr. Cheney claims "they are still treated with respect and dignity"?

Respect and dignity obliges the United States to either bring criminal charges against these people, or declare them Prisoners of War under the Geneva Convention. The United States is a signatory to that convention.

If the BushCo. want to claim that the US is in a time of war, then it is bound by the Geneva Conventions. Whether their "enemies" are or not is moot. To hold them in a legal vacuum is an abuse of the captives, and reduces the United States to the level of the very despots they claim to despise.

Between Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib,the United States has not shown itself to be a respectful keeper of prisoners in its "war on terror".