From Philip Gourevitch at Talking Points Memo on writing his new book with Errol Morris, Standard Operating Procedure:

No, the real shock in the Abu Ghraib story when it broke in 2004, was that there was no political price for it, no accountability for it, no public debate about whether these photographs were the way that we Americans wanted to be projecting our image and our force into the world at the start of the twenty-first century. The pictures themselves had instantly become iconic, the most witnessed images on earth since the collapse of the World Trade Towers, and it was obvious that their infamy belonged to the entire nation - and not just to the hapless soldiers who were court-martialed and sent to the brig for taking and appearing in them. I mean, nobody was carrying those pictures in protest through the streets of Baghdad, or Jakarta, or Tehran, to demonstrate against Charles Graner or Lynndie England or Sabrina Harman or Meghan Ambuhl or Jeremy Sivits or Javal Davis or Ivan "Chip Frederick, the seven "bad apples" whom the Administation's master framers wanted us to believe were solely responsible for the nation's dishonor.

So that dishonor was compounded by our acquiescence in it. The expose had become the cover up.

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Morgan Tsvangirai's announcement yesterday that he will not participate in Friday's runoff election in Zimbabwe because people would be risking their lives to vote for him:

"There has been too much violence, too much intimidation. A vote held in these conditions would lack all legitimacy," Ban said. "I would strongly discourage the authorities from going ahead with the runoff on Friday; it would only deepen divisions within the country and produce a result that cannot be credible."

"What happens in Zimbabwe has importance well beyond that country's borders," he said. "The region's political and economic security are at stake as is the very institution of elections in Africa."

Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe's president, has said only God will remove him from power.

As to what the U.S., Iraq and Zimbabwe have in common, here is the money quote:

The chair of Zimbabwe's electoral commission admitted that there is political violence but said it was not "serious enough to discredit the election as not being free and fair."

"Some people can also describe an election held in Iraq as free and fair depending on how you evaluate," commission chair George Chiweshe said. "We do not have a war in Zimbabwe . . . we will be able to hold a credible election on Friday."

What gives me hope in the midst of all this:

February 7, 2002. America lost a little of its greatness that day. We lost our position as the world’s leading defender of human rights, as the champion of justice and fairness and the rule of law. But it is a testament to the continuing greatness of this nation, that I, a lowly Air Force Reserve Major, can stand here before you today, with the world watching, without fear of retribution, retaliation or reprisal, and speak truth to power. I can call a spade a spade, and I can call torture, torture," - Air Force Major, David J. R. Frakt, in closing arguments on June 19, 2008.

Let freedom ring..............