If you were following the news during the March 2010 elections in Iraq, you might remember that the American press was flooded with stories declaring the elections a success, complete with upbeat anecdotes and photographs of Iraqi women proudly displaying their ink-stained fingers. The subtext was that United States military operations had succeeded in creating a stable and democratic Iraq. Early that year, I received orders to investigate 15 individuals whom the federal police had arrested on suspicion of printing anti-Iraqi literature. I learned that these individuals had absolutely no ties to terrorism; they were publishing a scholarly critique of Mr. Maliki s administration. I forwarded this finding to the officer in command in eastern Baghdad. He responded that he didn t need this information; instead, I should assist the federal police in locating more anti-Iraqi print shops.

Pfc. Bradley Manning, the 23-year-old Army intelligence analyst suspected of providing documents to WikiLeaks, can't reasonably complain that the military has him in custody. But the conditions under which he is being held at the Marine detention center at Quantico, Va., are so harsh as to suggest he is being punished for conduct of which he hasn't been convicted