Friday, November 18, 2005
All This Talk About Torture Is...
well.....torture.
For weeks, the MSM has been all abuzz about the "debate" over whether or not the US should torture. George W. Bush has stated somewhat unequivocally, "We do not torture!" Yet in the true conservative hypocritical style, he has promised a veto on any bill containing anti-torture legislation. At the same time, we've got Five Deferment Cheney all but advocating the use of torture as a means of "interrogation." Meanwhile, on the other side of the aisle (which is where I'm located, just to avoid any confusion), we've got human rights advocates, clear thinking individuals, John McCain, and now the former CIA director who have stated that torture is wrong no matter what the situation may be.
First of all, I can't believe that we're even having this "debate." At what point did our country's moral fiber deteriorate to the point where bully-style, Tony Soprano-like behavior even merits consideration? When did "the land of the free and the home of the brave" become the "break your knee caps" society? Anyone who believes that this thug-like approach to security is a good thing only needs to look at the reputation of the mob to know how we're being viewed around the world. And if you're still comfortable with that, then I guess there's really not much hope in trying to get you to see the error of your ways.
But my favorite justification for terror came earlier this week when NBC (I think it was the Today show, but all those talking head shows blur together) presented one of the lawyers responsible for the Bush administration's policy alongside a military vet for one of their so-called "discussions." (By discussion I mean that they let both sides regurgitate their talking points ad nauseum and that way the station can claim to be non-partisan.) Anyway, the lawyer for the Bush administration said that the reason we can't outlaw torture is because al-Qaeda is not a country and has not signed on to the Geneva Convention. He further stated that we can't count on them to treat our captured soldiers hospitably just because we might do so with our detainees. In other words, they did it so that makes it okay for us. It's just like all of the other administration arguments right now such as "Clinton believed that Saddam had WMD, so therefore Bush couldn't have misled anybody" or some other such bullshit.
But what this lawyer was really advocating was the United States sinking to the level of the terrorists. By justifying torture on the grounds that al Qaeda would do it to us is, at best, the equivalent of the juvenile defense of "well, he did it first!" Is this what our nation has become? Not the beacon of leadership in a global society but the followers and the copycats of the worst among us? To me, this is just pathetic. My, how far we have fallen. What's next, are we going to hi-jack airplanes and fly them into buildings occupied by al Qaeda sympathizers? I can't wait to see the "debate" about that one.
For weeks, the MSM has been all abuzz about the "debate" over whether or not the US should torture. George W. Bush has stated somewhat unequivocally, "We do not torture!" Yet in the true conservative hypocritical style, he has promised a veto on any bill containing anti-torture legislation. At the same time, we've got Five Deferment Cheney all but advocating the use of torture as a means of "interrogation." Meanwhile, on the other side of the aisle (which is where I'm located, just to avoid any confusion), we've got human rights advocates, clear thinking individuals, John McCain, and now the former CIA director who have stated that torture is wrong no matter what the situation may be.
First of all, I can't believe that we're even having this "debate." At what point did our country's moral fiber deteriorate to the point where bully-style, Tony Soprano-like behavior even merits consideration? When did "the land of the free and the home of the brave" become the "break your knee caps" society? Anyone who believes that this thug-like approach to security is a good thing only needs to look at the reputation of the mob to know how we're being viewed around the world. And if you're still comfortable with that, then I guess there's really not much hope in trying to get you to see the error of your ways.
But my favorite justification for terror came earlier this week when NBC (I think it was the Today show, but all those talking head shows blur together) presented one of the lawyers responsible for the Bush administration's policy alongside a military vet for one of their so-called "discussions." (By discussion I mean that they let both sides regurgitate their talking points ad nauseum and that way the station can claim to be non-partisan.) Anyway, the lawyer for the Bush administration said that the reason we can't outlaw torture is because al-Qaeda is not a country and has not signed on to the Geneva Convention. He further stated that we can't count on them to treat our captured soldiers hospitably just because we might do so with our detainees. In other words, they did it so that makes it okay for us. It's just like all of the other administration arguments right now such as "Clinton believed that Saddam had WMD, so therefore Bush couldn't have misled anybody" or some other such bullshit.
But what this lawyer was really advocating was the United States sinking to the level of the terrorists. By justifying torture on the grounds that al Qaeda would do it to us is, at best, the equivalent of the juvenile defense of "well, he did it first!" Is this what our nation has become? Not the beacon of leadership in a global society but the followers and the copycats of the worst among us? To me, this is just pathetic. My, how far we have fallen. What's next, are we going to hi-jack airplanes and fly them into buildings occupied by al Qaeda sympathizers? I can't wait to see the "debate" about that one.
