One of the things we all need, especially at this moment, is to understand what our Constitution tells us about torture

and power. So little attention has been paid to that fine old document lately that I wonder if we still use it or if we use it at all except to employ a pair of scissors to cut out the parts we no longer favor. But, so far, the meaning has remained intact. That meaning is clear to me: it is the diffusion of power among the elected gentlemen who would govern us, which protects us FROM the government. All of our military personnel, as I did when I was young, swore an oath on it upon entering the military: "...to protect and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic..."

Those words still ring in my ears and mind some 50 years ago.

Some people in the White House seem to enjoy bending the rules of many key word's definitions thereby changing, carving and gutting the heart out of the meaning within our laws.

Gen. Geo. Washington during the Revolutionary War advised his men "to treat them [prisoners] with humanity." Since that time we have always done so. Not any more! Nazism, American style, now!

Two of Mr. Bush's "yes" men, as Attorneys General knew and know the law-at least the letter of it, but they do not understand its spirit. What they totally misread was the Constitution: They have been loyal to the man but not to it. And THAT is an open door and highway to Nuremberg, Nazi Germany. In the early days of Nazism all the officers in their army swore oaths to Mr. Hitler, making Hitler the sole authority and power! No one would or could disobey his orders.

I remember my Instructor's voice in Philosophy class at Jr. College exclaiming that torture corrupts the soul like an infectious disease and spreads to infect the entire society. Creeping slowly along, invisible to sight, silent to hearing, taste, touch, smell, balance, this insidious disease doesn't kill or leave a mark on the body. But it corrupts and rots your minds, hearts, souls and our society in America. I don't think most Americans want to go down that garden path.

This Constitution was made for American citizens. But we extend our rights to those who are not citizens with whom we come in contact for the express purpose of treating them as gentlemen when doing business. By treating people well we show them respect. For the moment you do not show respect but rather contempt for your enemy then, when he has captured one of your own in war he will do with him as he pleases. If we had treated Muslim families and Arabic individuals with an ounce of respect in the first place our fighting soldiers would have had a fairly good chance of being treated with respect by the enemy, but, now it's too late, our terrible reputation has been fixed. Had we done this in the beginning this war would have gone a lot easier, perhaps, not lost. Generally speaking, people whom we treat well usually behave well, "Do unto others ...".

So, we have reached torture on the goal post. Where do we go from here!? Internment camps for Americans!? Osama bin Laden must be laughing his backsides off thinking of all the things we've done to ourselves, which is far worse, in one sense, than what he has done to us. The so called neo-conservatives and their bed fellows; some of these men would have you believe that America is a Great Empire, has a fantastic Destiny and, by the way, who is going to pay for this expensive war?, are getting nervous. In mid-term elections on November 7/06, many politicians will try to become reelected by the public and find out who they've really been working for; for the public-is waking up!

Our President's obsessive secrecy; his FBI's spying on the public; his instigation of spying on a grand scale; gagging of people's mouths through the PATRIOT ACT. His abuse of presidential signing statements; his seizures of power; his lies, deceptions and deceits; his ability by fiat to determine that I as a citizen am guilty of a trumped up charge; torture has now quietly begun to slip into our laws, he actually believes that having others tortured he would gain the truth and acted on it, as if believing that tortured confessions could be justified in a court of law and all other obnoxious elements in the so-called "'Patriot' Act (s) I & 2". It seems to me as if our Chief Executive only wants revenge rather than justice.

"Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little temporary Safety deserve neither Liberty nor Safety".

Benjamin Franklin, (1759)

Conclusion:

The professional sadistic torturer is never sure of what he has or is satisfied for he is paranoid and that is one price of and consequence for revenge. Surely, that American presence at Abu Gharib, was not created nor maintained by "...a few bad apples", as parroted by the President, no no, torture* was and is endemic throughout our military and civilian systems all the way up to and through our political and civilian policy makers as a matter of semi-secret policy. But it failed as it always does. The hardened sadist doesn't want the truth. He wouldn't know the truth if it was handed to him on a silver platter. He just wants his ripped out fingernails! It follows, then, that from the very first instance of the slapping of an unbound prisoner will ultimately lead to the last heavy handed use of torture, death! "Torture gives unreliable and false information." It is degrading, demeaning, decadent, it is the lazy man's way of accomplishing an act when other ways may be found. It is the coward's way. It is the way to a lower moral ground.

Michael Arno Bender 1/31/06

Wow Scomo, you really are completely nuts. Clinton, excuse me "bubba" deserved impeachment for lying about sex but Bush doesn't for breaking the law? The former had some sex and didn't want his wife to know, the latter spied on Americans and tortured people, held them without charges and otherwise completely disregarded the rule of law.

People like Scomo are why dems and repubs can't have a civil discussion. Right wingers can "understand" when some poor teenager stumbles and gets pregnant so long as she has the baby (Bristol Palin) and she is white middle class, they can understand when the minister stumbles and gives into temptation and has sex so long as the minister repents and gives to charity. They can understand that it is OK to torture ppl so long as you swear it saved lives. But god help you if you are a democrat and you stumbled and had some sex outside marriage, YOU are evil. I cannot understand these right winger religious types...