Torture at Gitmo…?

…or just interrogation of really bad guys? The NY Times and other places are reporting that the International Red Cross is looking to visit D.C. to discuss the situation with the Bush administration. The details of the Red Cross' report are confidential, though the Seattle Times is reporting the group found "cruel, inhumane, and degrading" conditions there.

The Times records the respective responses from the Pentagon and the State Department:

"We certainly don't think it's torture," General Myers said before delivering a speech to the Economic Club of Indianapolis, according to the Web site of The Indianapolis Star. "Let's not forget the kind of people we have down there," he said. "These are the people that don't know any moral values."…

"We take their reports very, very seriously," Richard Boucher, the department spokesman, told reporters on Tuesday. Mr. Boucher declined to comment on the specifics raised in the report but said, "We value very much things they raise for us in their reports."

Whole thing here. More stories here.

The cover story of the January issue of Reason--on newsstands and in subscribers' mailboxes now--takes a contrarian view of the recent widely praised Supreme Court rulings on the rights of enemy combatants. Author (and attorney) Harvey Silverglate argues that the rulings do very little to rein in government abuses.

You can check out the cover and read the full table of contents, my editor's note, and a great story by Matt Welch on the revolutionary effect of low-cost European airlines by going here.

And, for just $19.95, you can subscribe (or renew your existing sub) to Reason and get a free paperback copy of the new anthology Choice: The Best of Reason by going here.