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general petraeus’ letter to the troops

Posted on May 12, 2007 | Filed Under terrorism, torture, war 

It is good, very good, to hear General Petraeus talk about dignity, respect, and integrity, values, law, and doing what is right. It is good to hear him take an unequivocal stand against torture, both because it is wrong and because it serves no useful purpose. It is good to hear him emphasize the first reason, stating clearly that war is not just about doing what works, not just about gaining the upper hand by whatever means necessary, but about doing the right thing the right way.

We need voices like his in leadership, in the military and in government. The …

disheartened, but not surprised

Posted on May 4, 2007 | Filed Under torture, war 

Many Troops Say Torture OK is the title of an article posted at Military.com. The article discusses a report released today by the Army Medical Department detailing the results of a study of American service personnel in Iraq.

Among the findings of the report:

More than a third of those surveyed believe torture should be permitted if it could save the life of a fellow soldier or Marine.
Ten percent of the soldiers and Marines in the survey admitted they had mistreated civilians or damaged property “when it was not necessary.”
Only a third of Marines and roughly half of soldiers …

sadly, this is who we have become

Posted on April 25, 2007 | Filed Under torture 

Watch the trailer for a new film documentary, Taxi to the Darkside, chronicling the fundamental shift in our government’s attitude toward and acceptance of what are euphemistically called “alternative interrogation techniques,” or more plainly called, torture.

And here is another trailer for an HBO documentary investigating the abuse of detainees at Abu Graib.

andrew sullivan on torture

Posted on April 5, 2007 | Filed Under torture 

We are in a propaganda war as well as a military one. In fact, the war of ideas may well be more important in this war than in previous ones, since our only long-term hope of prevailing is talking the majority of Muslims out of the Islamist camp. The damage that legalizing torture has done to this effort and therefore to the war against Islamist terror is incalculable …

Andrew Sullivan explaining his opposition to the Military Commissions Act and to any official sanction of torture in any form. Read the rest of his response to Andy McCarthy.

torture hurts all of us

Posted on March 29, 2007 | Filed Under torture 

I started realizing that most of the prisoners were innocent. We were torturing people for no reason. I started getting really angry and really remorseful and by the time I got back I completely broke down.

I’m from New York City. I’m college-educated. But you put me in Iraq and told me to torture, and I did it and I regretted it later.

I didn’t know I would discover and indulge in my own evil. And now that it has surfaced, I fear that it will be my constant companion for the rest of my life.

(Tony Lagouranis, discussing his service in Iraq …

ten steps

Posted on March 21, 2007 | Filed Under justice, torture, ucc 

Worth checking out: Ten Steps to Restore the United States’ Moral Authority: A Common Sense Agenda for the 110th Congress

This document posted on the Human Rights Watch website provides a good summary of the ways the conduct of the war on terrorism has undermined the consistent application by the United States of basic principles of human rights and suggests a specific agenda for restoring our moral compass. Signatories include Amnesty International, Physicians for Human Rights, the Justice and Witness Ministries of the United Church of Christ, and close to twenty other religious and human rights organizations.

speaking out against torture is not a “left”/”right” thing … it’s a following jesus thing!

Posted on March 13, 2007 | Filed Under church, torture 

The National Association of Evangelicals has endorsed a declaration confirming their opposition as people of faith, as followers of Jesus, to the use of torture under any circumstances, even in a “war on terrorism.” The permissibiity of “enhanced interrogation techniques” is not a “left”/”right” issue. It is an issue of basic human rights, of basic human dignity, of basic regard for Jesus’ teaching on the way we are to treat our neighbors and our enemies.

I am encouraged that the whole church is speaking with one voice on this issue. May our voice be heard! May our nation not find itself …

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