Torture

I realize that I'm posting a lot of political items. I don't want this to turn into a boring, sanctimonious blog, because nobody will read it. I assume you're here to check in on what I'm up to... I'll try and make sure that I post that stuff as well..

But.. in follow-up to my post on Gonzales.. we have more news on prisoner abuse. Look, I know that bad shit happens in a war. My father fought in WWII in the Pacific theatre, and he's told me stories that would curl your hair. I know it may seem like I'm just another privileged guy who never had to experience that shit. That's true - I am lucky. That doesn't mean that a reasonable person couldn't come to some conclusions based on the information at hand.

So today we have news on the court martial of a soldier involved in abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

The defense contends that Graner was told by higher-ranking soldiers and intelligence agents to rough up the detainees prior to interrogation, and that he had no choice but to obey despite personal misgivings.

This all goes back to memos Gonzales wrote for the White House. It became the defacto policy on the treatment of prisoners. Now, the military is putting the grunts who followed the policies on trial and hanging them out to dry.

There are always going to be people involved in a war with sadistic tendencies. What is supposed to keep them in check is the policies of the military and government they serve. When you remove moral policies, you unchain unspeakable horrors. These abuses were not done on the chaotic battle field. They were not spur of the moment decisions made by young men and women under the stress of combat. They were cold and calculated sadistic acts committed on largely innocent men and women.

Whether or not the tortured prisoner was actually an "insurgent" or "terrorist" is irrelevant. The Geneva Conventions are there to ensure humane treatment, even under the worst conditions. That protects our soldiers as well.

The whole point is, this war is about more than terrorism, or weapons of mass destruction. This is a war of morality and culture. We're trying to impose a democratic form of government on a people that have never had that. When you torture and kill prisoners, you lose your moral superiority. Why would the Iraqis want to be like us, if all we do is bomb, kill, torture and maim? There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. There was no "imminent threat". There was no other justification for the invasion. The only way to salvage something positive out of this mess is if we can bring an entire civilization out of oppression and tyranny. Imposing our own tyranny will only make the world a far more dangerous place.

And to think.. Bill Clinton got impeached for lying about a blow job. Consider what Bush has wrought and he gets re-elected. Go figure...