The following is an open letter to Marc Theissen and the ‘torturers of freedom’ whom he blindly supports, aids and abets. I invite the reader first to view the website of this conservative apologist: http://www.marcthiessen.com/ But read with caution, and consider what it truly means to be a Conservative in the modern age and how that differs from times long gone. Mr. Theissen supports the torture meted out by representatives of the U.S. Government since 9/11, as being both necessary to ensure our freedom and security as well as being heroic.
Is it heroic to torment the body of a supine individual who cannot move or defend himself? Was it heroic for the Spanish Inquisition to torture and murder thousands of Jews and dissenting yet faithful Christians for their disparity of belief? Did this protect the sanctity of the Kingdom of God? Was it heroic for the Romans to torture our Christian ancestors for fear that their beliefs would cause the ruin of the Roman Empire? Was it heroic for the Nazis to torture Jews to ensure that their “filth” would not contaminate Germany and Europe any further?
Numerous people have died under torture by American hands over the last three decades alone, and these numbers are increasing. Can we be sure that these folks were indeed guilty of the crimes that they were being accused of or investigated for? Many have been shown to have been innocent. Even still, our Constitution - the document that guides us morally in our American experiment - is very clear about "cruel and unusual punishment". Our assent to the Geneva Convention is central to America's moral position as "the good guys". That we did not torture in previous wars and centuries is crucial to our identity as morally superior. Even if they had been guilty, has not torture been shown to create erratic and unreliable results? Perhaps we can say that the program of torture is not so much for the purpose of gaining intelligence but for two other reasons - very nefarious and devilish reasons - 1) to strike terror into the hearts of any potential adversaries, effectively creating an American junta in various countries and even in our own, in which the authorities may not be questioned or challenged. The loss of freedom is one step away. 2) To allow those personnel (be they military or spies such as the CIA) to exercise their blood lust, thereby funneling the Satanic urges of these erstwhile sociopaths into more "efficient", "acceptable", and “sociable” channels of behavior.
I did not ask to be the beneficiary of this evil. I did not ask to be protected by Devils and Demons. I do not wish to be kept safe in my bed while others, either in my back yard or a half a world away are twisted and gouged, nearly drowned or choked. Our children, nestled safely in their beds, while someone else is systematically deprived of sleep, food, medical attention, dignity, and legal counsel—guilty or innocent, merely “accused”—are not safe from the tyranny that is perpetrating these crimes against humanity; they are being nursed by its cold, dead teat and being weaned in a world where true conscience is rarely found.
The bottom line: I see the smug, smiling face of Marc Theissen, barely out of his diapers, still bearing the baby fat of his privileged youth, preaching to us from his Ivory Tower of safety that we should be grateful for the torture that is being committed in our name, for our “safety”. I remind this un-American buffoon that he must re-read the words and opinions of our founding fathers, such as Ben Franklin who counseled us that those who would trade a little security for a little liberty deserve neither security nor liberty. Perhaps one day, those like Marc Theissen and his ilk - the John Yoos and Jack Bybees of the world - will be deemed enemies of the state, while they protest that they are prisoners of conscience as they writhe and bleed in agony of the torture that is necessary to silence them for the sake of the safety and sanctity of our "free" state.
My America doesn’t torture. My America fought against the Nazis, against the Fascists and the Empire of Japan, all regimes that tortured and committed countless crimes against humanity without a second thought. And we won without having to resort to torture to meet our goals. This is what made us the good guys. I do not relish the thought of dishonoring my forefathers by resorting to torture, having erroneously convinced myself that the laws which governed their wars, and the morals that guided our founding fathers, are obsolete, not good enough for our modern world. Stand up, America, and count yourselves among the good guys. Do not emulate your enemies, or you will become like them. You will become them.
