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Torture is OK
Today Supreme Court Justice Nino Scalia opined that torture wasn’t necessarily unconstitutional. His reasoning was complicated but the gist of it was that torture’s ok if the torture furthers the interests of Antonin Scalia and the victim's name isn't Antonin Scalia.
I’ve noticed that about a lot of people in government lately. Bush and Cheney for example, are pretty quick to cause the suffering and loss of life of others, even Americans, but were pretty reluctant to go in harm’s way themselves.
It makes me a little nostalgic for the Clinton Administration. Say what you will about Bill, but if there was one thing he was careful with, it was the lives of our boys. Remember Mogadishu? Eighteen American soldiers lost their lives there, and that cost the head man, Defense Secretary Les Aspin his job. That sent a powerful message, namely, the commander is responsible that most precious of resources, his troops.
When it came time to put an end to the genocide the Balkans, not one single solitary American soldier died in combat. I have to think the lesson of Aspin helped with that exceptionally well planned and executed war.
It didn't quite go that way in Iraq did it? Despite evident ineptitude, Donald Rumsfeld held on to his job until even Republican lawmakers began gagging on his incompetence. Even then, Bush was reluctant to let him go. After all, it wasn’t his children going off to war.
Now they want to turn back the clock to a time when torture in the furtherance of the interests of the state was the norm. You’re being told it will end the killing and the suffering. It’s a pernicious lie. It’s just the beginning.
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