The problem is not "torture"

[kentuck]

Torture is only a symptom of the problem. The problem is with the soul of our country. There should be no debate about what constitutes "torture". The Administration says it is torture if it "shocks the conscience". Well, "waterboarding" shocks my conscience. The smirk on the face of the tyrant that leads this nation "shocks my conscience". My conscience has been "shocked" so many times that I have lost count.

A nation that has become so politicized that it cannot recognize torture when it sees it is lost. A nation that would defend the people that indulge in such perversions is a sick nation. It does not make us safer or stronger. In fact, it makes us more vulnerable and weaker.

The problem lies with those Americans that would give up their Constitution for a promise of safety. In the end, they end up with neither. The problem lies with those Americans that refuse to admit that they are giving up anything. The problem lies within our hearts. We have met the enemy and it is us.

[yardwork]

1. I agree completely. k&r.

[Az]

2. The problem is the noise machine

The right perfected the noise machine. The media has become the conduit for it. By insisting that the media had a liberal bias they created a situation where the media was desperate to avoid even the appearance of bias. To this end they have opened their broadcasts to the noise generated by the right. In some cases more than complicitly.

The media used to report the news and didn't try to put balance on any view. It reported facts and checked them as well. But now the right has created a system where every fact gets spun by pundits. And with so many conflicting sources of information the public becomes confused.

Add to this noise the 24 hour news channels. Because they have to fill 24 hours 7 days a week 365 days a year with news that is compelling enough to make people tune in they have to push only the most emotional and inflammatory stories. This helps create a prevalent aura of fear in the society. While crime rate and violence dropped at a steady rate for the last 20 years the news channels churned up so much fear that if you ask anyone they will claim crime is the worst its ever been. Go check the real numbers for yourself.

From the Bureau of Justice




Its the noise machine. The media no longer serves We The People. It serves Corporations and the Right. And it has deafened the people to reason and rational thought.

[CrispyQ]

3. Excellent post.

You said: "The problem lies with those Americans that would give up their Constitution for a promise of safety. In the end, they end up with neither."

Mitt Romney said: "And I hear from time to time people say, hey, wait a second. We have civil liberties we have to worry about. But don't forget, the most important civil liberty I expect from my government is my right to be kept alive, and that's what we're going to have to do."

Does this guy even know what the Constitution is about? Sadly, his statement will resonate with millions of Americans -- even some in my family.


k&r

[concerned citizen23]

4. Perhaps undecided policy makers should go through the interrogation?

To circumvent the rule of law our leaders play a linguistics game in describing how suspects are rounded up, detained, and the methods employed for interrogations that are not consistent with federal and internationally recognized standards.

Perhaps those policy makers having difficultly deciding whether waterboarding is torture should physically go through the interrogation process to better ascertain the verbiage to describe it and the laws that govern over it?