.trashes, what is it and, how do I empty?

I recently went to empty some files on my iPod and found them stuck in a folder called ".trashes" , note the . before trashes. I have figured out it is a trash folder on my iPod, a folder I cannot view on the Ipod. Why?, I do not know.

After I dragged the files I wanted to remove, into the trash on my mac, then I tried to do a secure empty and it took a really long time. Even though the files where small.

So I did a google search on ".trashes" and I found out that it is a sort of secretive hidden folder that can only be accessed by special "forensic tools" , used by Law enforcement. ,,,,sounds kind of Orwellian to me. Why all the secrecy? I thought that Apple products offered the user more options to privacy on one's hard drive. I searched the data base here and found nothing significantly addressing this issue.

So what is the deal here? How can I view my .trashes, and clear it as I want to?

Anyone know? All comments will be appreciated.