In
the recent televised debate on national security, several Republican
presidential candidates stated their support for waterboarding and other
“enhanced interrogation techniques.” There are, no doubt, some Democrats that
support this position. But torture is torture -- and whoever says it is not is
wrong – Republican or Democrat.
To
take the edge of it, we often hear waterboarding euphemistically called an “enhanced
interrogation technique.” But whatever it called it is torture and torture is
immoral, un-American, illegal, and wrong.
As
a matter of fact, after World War II, we prosecuted Japanese soldiers as war
criminals for waterboarding our military personnel. And time and time again, we hear experienced
interrogators say that torture is simply not a good way to get useful
information. As a police officer for over thirty years, I know that good cops
get better information from suspects than bad cops!
We
say we are a nation, “under God.” If that is so, then we must remember that God
teaches us to defend and respect the dignity of all human beings – not to abuse
and torture them.
This issue is beyond political parties.
For example, Senator McCain, our most recent
Republican nominee for President, a war hero, and a survivor of torture, said that he was “very disappointed by
statements supporting waterboarding. Waterboarding
is torture.”
Let’s get it straight. Regardless of our
political affiliation, waterboarding is torture!
And let’s not stand for it! So to make sure what we are talking about. Take a look at the Christopher Hitchens video on waterboarding:
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