Gordon England, Deputy Secretary of Defense, signs out the 8-page directive that apparently Rumsfeld couldn't bring himself to sign. A guy that smart, that far in life, should be able to admit when he made a terrible mistake.■"Pentagon tightening interrogation rules: 'Physical or mental torture' is barred," by Eric Schmitt and Tim Golden, International Herald Tribune, 9 November 2005, p. 7.
■"Secret military spending gets little oversight: Firm's fall, links to lawmakers shed light on how system works," by Matt Kelley and Jim Drinkard, USA Today, 9 November 2005, p. 1A.
■"Official lets slip U.S. spy budget: Conference hears total is $44 billion," by Scott Shane, International Herald Tribune, 9 November 2005, p. 7.
So, finally, the Abu Ghraib pictures do what they were meant to do: force some new rules.
But more than rules--transparency.
The U.S. military, and the defense community in general, needs more transparency. It needs to come back to society, which it serves.
In becoming more connected, we'll field a better force, and we'll do even more good around this world than we've done in the past.