The US defence department had been preparing to release the images

I heard the press briefing today. The speaker said that the decision of the 2nd circuit court left not much space but to release the last set of photos (I mean the speaker said today several times that you can view some pics on the DoD web site). This background seems to have changed now. For reasons I dont know. What occured to me was that the speaker was heavily involved in using jurisdictional terms. Not that I was very nerved by it but I wondered why at all there was such a sudden interest in judicial matters. Sure, Obama ios a lawyer and Bush couldnt put it right even if he was talking about football. But I think the point is elsewhere. I think for the first time since the inauguration it has become clear today that Obama does not provide the change he promised. He couldnt change too much concerning foreign policy, the crisis is still on and internally (domestically) the Repugs are rotten to the core. I think the perception of problems has changed for the Obama administration. They will be the US govt, whether they like it or now. And they will be also stricken in the Bush swamp. It's sad the energy to change only lasted this short. I think political business complicated immensely today. You have to split again from the left and become more left if you want real change.

Obama: Detainee photos would endanger troops

President Obama said that he told government lawyers to object to a court-ordered release of additional Defense Department photos showing alleged abuse of detainees because the release could affect the safety of U.S. troops and "inflame anti-American opinion." Obama's decision was a reversal of what the White House had previously said, and it drew swift criticism from the ACLU. full story

Obama reverses on the release of detainee-abuse photos

Blackburn: Halt prisoner abuse photos

U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and the American Legion are trying to stop the May 28 release of photographs showing American personnel abusing detainees in Afghan and Iraqi prisons.

bbc

The pictures were due to be released by 28 May, according to the court order.

The order was issued by an appeals court in September 2008, in response to a Freedom of Information Act request by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

'Disappointed'

The US defence department had been preparing to release the images, reportedly taken in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the dispute could now end up before the US Supreme Court.

Slowly but surely, Obama is owning the cover-up of his predecessors' war crimes. But covering up war crimes, refusing to prosecute them, promoting those associated with them, and suppressing evidence of them are themselves violations of Geneva and the UN Convention. So Cheney begins to successfully co-opt his successor.
The Atlantic Monthly's Andrew Sullivan, an Obama supporter during the election, is disappointed by the actions of the president he backed.

cbsnews:Its clearly been a reversal of a postion formed only 2 weeks ago:President Barack Obama is calling waterboarding torture and an act that violates the nation's ideals and values, and he says that's why he decided to ban the practice.

Answering questions at a prime-time news conference, Obama said Wednesday the American people will eventually recognize that banning torture enhances the U.S. position worldwide. Obama said the prohibition takes away a recruitment tool for al-Qaida and puts the U.S. in a stronger position with allies.

Obama also said that the argument that torture can yield information doesn't ask if that information might be obtained in other ways.