[For non-American readers, the USA has just celebrated its annual Thanksgiving holiday, at which the traditional fare is roasted turkey]

Amnesty International recently started a campaign called "unsubscribe" to make a broader public aware of what's being done, in our names, to "protect freedom". President Bush's mealy-mouthed attempts at plausible deniability on torture should make anyone who lives in this country ashamed. I will be very surprised if we do not see the President expressing "shocked surprise" within the next five years at the actions that were taken under his orders.

Amnesty have produced a short video highlighting just one interrogation technique that the CIA deem "acceptable". Caution: do not view this video if you are under 14, or if you wish to avoid images of a disturbing nature. Young people should have their parents view the video and explain why they should not watch it.

It's ironic that according to the Bush doctrine the only way to defend our freedoms is to trample all over them. If the methods they sanction really are necessary then clearly freedom isn't worth defending anyway. But then I have never though that "freedom" for President Bush meant freedom for everyone, just freedom for the Americans to pursue irresponsible lifestyles without interference. And not even all Americans.

But hey, as long as people like this continue to believe that America is the world, that might is right, and that the end justifies the means I will continue to be baffled as to how this squares with 97% of the American population professing a belief in God. I don't know what proportion of those 97% are Christians, but if the Christian right are happy about the way this country is being run then I am happy not being a member of the Christian right.

Let's not, by the way, get started on what happens to the turkeys ...