guantanamo

Let’s Talk About Torture

I have been proud to host many civil discussions on my column. We have talked about abortion, pornography, and various Bush controversies without ripping each other’s eyes out. It has been lovely.

But this is not going to be one of those articles.

Yesterday, the breaking news was that an American had actually been held and tortured at an American naval base in Iraq. His torture amounted only to being cold, subjected to bright lights and loud music, and repeatedly interrogated under the conviction that he was involved in something suspicious. He lost over three months of his life this way.

Now, compared to what others have lost in our prisons, this is nothing. Others have lost their dignity, their health, and their lives. What makes this story remarkable is that it is your final wake up call. Continue reading

Dear Democratic Party,

I know we haven’t spoken in a while. I would like to say it’s my fault, that I overreacted to your sleeping around, your unwillingness to defend our relationship to others, your weak justifications of your actions. But those were your choices, and I chose to distance myself from you as you seemed so hell-bent on your own destruction that I couldn’t bear to stick around and see your undoing. Quite honestly, I don’t know if I can ever trust you enough to commit myself to you, but I am willing to try to be friends.

As a friend, I want to offer up a little perspective on the situation in which you currently find yourself. I know it’s unsolicited advice, and I know unsolicited advice is rarely appreciated, but we have known each other a long time and I truly have your best interests at heart. I hear you’ve moved up in the world, lately, that some of the people who used to belittle and berate you have come over and started thinking you look pretty good next to the alternatives. That’s great; I have always wanted to see you succeed. But I also hear that you are getting, perhaps, a little over confident about the whole thing, walking around talking about how you are in like Flynn come November. I want to warn you to be careful there. The American people are fickle, and you don’t want to be eating your words a couple of months from now.

Continue reading