This cannot stand. We cannot allow this administration and its incomprehensible defense of and support for torture in violation of the "quaint" Geneva Conventions to remain.
The chickens have come home to roost. As ye sow, so shall ye reap.
I weep for my country, and for the families and loved ones of those in Iraq and Afghanistan, those yet living and those already dead.
Peace.
UPDATE: I wrote this diary early this morning, in haste. I was so upset when I heard the news about our soldiers having been tortured that I could barely contain my anger.
I posted it quickly, knowing that I had meetings to attend off and on throughout the day. It moved to the Recommended list, but I was unable to attend to it full-time; additionally, the !@#$%@#! server errors made it extremely difficult to move through the comments.
Based on many of the comments, I thought it would be best if I were to clarify some of my statements above.
My heart is broken by the brutal and senseless murder of these two young men. The fact that they were tortured makes the grief all the more grievous. I have not a shred of doubt that the barbarians who did this to them - who alone among all humans, are 100% responsible for their actions - will pay the price for their heinous acts, whether in this life or the next. In the meantime, I pray for the souls of those killed and for the comfort of those who loved them, and for all who care about their fate.
I wrote this diary because I was enraged that our government - my government - could have taken - and repeatedly defended - a position that the provisions of the Geneva Conventions - provisions written with the understanding that war is a brutal and savage activity at its core, and that humans engaged in war often are prone to brutal and savage behaviors - are merely "quaint" anachronisms, no longer applicable to our current world situation, and that torture is an acceptable practice for our society.
Such a position is a disgrace to the people, history and ideals of the United States of America, and especially to those who have risked or sacrificed their lives to defend those people and ideals. That is not what we stand for, nor is it what our men and women put their lives on the line - and sometimes die - for. We as a country are better than that. I am angry that my country no longer can claim the moral high ground when an atrocity such as the torture and murder of these young men occurs at the hands of barbarians.
I do not wish ill to Messrs. Gonzales, Yoo, Bush or Rumfeld, nor to any members of their families. I was writing out of anger, and what I wrote in that paragraph was wrong. I apologize for having written it. I cannot pretend that I did not write it, but I do not wish to perpetuate what I wrote. I have changed the offending sentences.
I am heartsick today. I am sorry for causing misunderstanding. - OH
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