It's Abu Ghraib, Stupid

To listen to the MSM and the political left, the GWoT can be distilled into two words -- Abu Ghraib. In its unceasing effort to ensure that this millstone is never lifted from the neck of America's global image, the ACLU has apparently won the release of yet more pictures. Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein -- the same judge who decided it was a 9/11 was foreseeable such that private plaintiffs could sue the airlines over 9/11 and that spammers really aren't such bad folk -- has now determined that too much Abu Ghraib is never enough. ACLU lawyer, Megan Lewis unsurprisingly hopes that the photos will:

"be extremely upsetting and depict conduct that would outrage the American public and be truly horrifying[.]"

Ms. Lewis is herself no stranger to captivity. In August 2001, she was profiled in the Dallas Observer shortly after being released from the pokey, where she served time for a misdemeanor committed during an anti-fur protest at Neiman Marcus in Dallas. Lewis found a way to get along:

Megan Lewis had found a novel way to win friends behind bars. A vegan who eats no animal products, the 24-year-old animal-rights protester gained some popularity among her cell mates at the Lew Sterrett Justice Center because she was willing to trade the meat and eggs in her meals for fruit.

This isn't Hellerstein's first foray into Abu Ghraib. In February, Hellerstein ordered the CIA to turn over Abu Ghraib-related documents to the ACLU, despite the government's insistence that (1) the documents were "operational" in nature, and thus exempt from FOIA, and (2) release would compromise national security by detailing intelligence sources and methods.

Sooner or later, there is going to come a day when a line is drawn. To paraphrase Andrew Jackson: "Judge Hellerstein has made his decision, now let him enforce it."

More indignation, of course, over at Free Republic.