If he's guilty, he might as well confess to anything at all. It muddies the water, it makes him look like an alpha dog, it gives al Qaeda a boost by association with him, a self-confessed megacriminal. Those who hate him are afraid; those who admire him admire him more. Who are we all talking about? Who has been on the front page?
If he were an innocent, or even an accomplice after the fact, responding to torture, he would confess to anything because of the effects of torture. Torture doesn't reveal original truth in any appreciable quantity; it compels agreement with the inquisitor. He would be aware of this. He would also be aware of the existence of corroboration, as some of it was collected when he was apprehended. So if he says he was tortured, and then he confesses, then he casts doubt on all of his admissions. How do the prosecutors dispell those doubts? By revealing some of the corroborating evidence. For his associates still on the outside to know a little more about what the prosecutors know would be of some use to them.
Either way, he turns this to his tactical advantage. He has no expectations of release. He believes he'll be executed (a martyr to his admirers) regardless. Why should he not grandstand?
There's probably enough corroborating evidence to support at least a couple of the crimes to which he has confessed. I can't say there definitely is, because I haven't seen it. One thing I'm certain of: unless we blow the world up, eventually, probably after I'm dead, the evidence will all be published. Someone, some day, will know the truth.
I can only hope that we don't completely degrade our justice system before then. And actually, I have reasonable hope that this won't happen. The US has a history of swinging back and forth. As long as there are enough people hollering on the side of habeas corpus, we won't forget.
Current Events » in reply to Seemling contradiction
A couple ways of looking at this:
The whole thread (53 posts)
- From your CIA and DoD: "Military: Suspected 9/11 mastermind confessed"
- I also helped Oswald shoot JFK, if anyone's interested... (n/t)
- Oops! Nabbed and tortured the wrong Mohammed
- A question on torture...
- He killed 3,000+ people on 9/11.
- After three years of torture he finally signed at the dotted line as requested. (n/t)
- Whereas you, of course, know that it was all an 'inside job'