WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE THE GOOD GUYS

Debate on the subject of torture is highly disturbing, because it is not a debate we should be having. Americans should find the matter equally disturbing, because it says volumes about who we are as a people. The United States of America should not let our standing in the world be denigrated by the use or even discussion of inhumane treatment of prisoners. While the legalities involved may seem complicated, the U.S. should always go the extra distance to insure proper treatment of detainees.

There has been much discussion of waterboarding of late. It's torture. If you don't think so, check it out on YouTube, but make sure to get one of the real vids, not one from the looney left. No sane human being can watch that procedure being performed and conclude it is anything but torture. Our standards in this area should be a "golden rule" standard. Would we want American POWs treated in a similar manner? Whatever information might possibly be obtained would come at great cost to our moral standing and would likely be highly unreliable. It took me about ten seconds of seeing waterboarding conducted to conclude that it is without a doubt torture, and it pains me to think my countrymen would engage in barbarity of this sort.

That brings up any number of questions about the definition of POWs or enemy combatants. According to the Geneva Conventions, to which the U.S. is a signatory, the terrorists we fight now don't technically fit into the definition of prisoner of war. They are not members of a recognized national armed force, they do not have commanders directly responsible for their subordinates, they do not have a fixed distinctive sign recognizable at a distance, they do not openly carry arms, and they definitely do not conduct their operations according to the laws of warfare. The left would like to gloss over that reality, but it couldn't be any more clear. While the terms may exclude them, ANY prisoners taken by our armed forces should be accorded the full rights of POWs, and that means humane treatment. Granting full POW status not only is a gesture of civility, it stands in stark contrast to the conduct of our enemies for all the world to see.

Of course granting that full POW status also implies certain conditions on the enemy. No prisoners should be released as long as hostilities continue, period. If the detainess are to be accorded the status of prisoners in war, then nobody leaves until the war is over. If it's not over for fifty years, then so be it. Al Qaeda doesn't exactly operate with a strict chain of command, so no detainees should be considered "officers" and given special privilege. Only the few rights legally mandated for them should be granted, and never one bit more. Considering they behead their prisoners on the internet, that's more than fair. There are many tactics we can legally employ that are highly effective. Sleep deprivation, isolation, use of noise, and a system of increased privileges for cooperation are all within the limits. Prisoners who know they will not under any circumstances be released will fold more easily. We can beg, we can keep them up for days, we can blast them with nonstop Black Sabbath or bluegrass, but no torture.

America wears the white hat. We're the good guys, or at least strive to be. Proponents of harsh interrogation techniques always forward the ticking nuke story, but it's a red herring designed to eliminate further discussion. We are faced with a difficult conflict against elusive enemies who continually demonstrate their complete disregard for human dignity. Our response cannot be to descend to the depravity of our foes, but rather we should take every step we can to insure prisoners held by our forces are not mistreated under any circumstances. That provides not only a standard for others, but a standard we can live with afterward. Waterboarding was used during the Spanish Inquisition and by the murderous Pol Pot regime in Cambodia, not exactly regimes we wish to mimic. John McCain has been very clear on this subject, and he should know. The United States must declare that all enemy combatants will enjoy full POW rights and that we do not torture people, ever. While we may not expect our enemy to do the same, we cannot climb down into the gutter with them. We're supposed to be the good guys, and good guys don't torture prisoners.