Letters to the Editor
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Why hold back?
Given the "coercive" (i.e., "torture") methods this article describes as being used and the Administration's position that the president can disobey any law or treaty he chooses, I wonder why we don't just go all. What's to prevent us from bringing back the rack, cat-o'-nine-tails, iron maiden, chains, flaying, white-hot poker up the ass, or whatever diabolical means suits our ends? The answer, I'm afraid is damn little. The media and the American public are asleep at the wheel and our politicians for the most part are spineless nabobs who are more concerned about their own welfare than that of their constitutents or -- most distressing -- our nation.
Our principles, such as those in the Constitution and Bill of Rights, used to be considered inviolable. They were models -- imperfect but pretty good ones -- for the rest of the world. Under the rallying cry of "War on Terror," our president and his minions continue to move our nation toward a way of life that is at odds with the fundamental beliefs upon which the United States of America was founded. As a people have we lost our ablity to know right from wrong and stand up for what we believe in? Is this the legacy we will provide for our children?