a statement of conscience

As I write this, the United States Senate is engaged in a bit of political theater, while they pretend to debate whether or not they will make torture an American value. They are pretending to debate whether or not to give one person -- in this case the president -- the ability remove rights that we've all taken for granted under our Constitution for over two centuries from anyone he (or she, someday) identifies, without any accountability or oversight. They are pretending to debate whether our Democracy even matters, any more.

The legislation before the Senate today would ban torture, but let Bush define it; would allow the president to imprison indefinitely anyone he decides falls under a wide-ranging new definition of unlawful combatant; would suspend the Great Writ of habeas corpus; would immunize retroactively those who may have engaged in torture. And that's just for starters. . . .

Today's vote will show more clearly than ever before that, when push comes to shove, the Republicans who control Congress are in lock step behind the president, and the Democrats -- who could block him, if they chose to do so -- are too afraid to put up a real fight.

This is far too much power for one person to have, and is antithetical to everything America and freedom and Democracy stand for. In fact, this is the sort of power that someone like, say, Saddam Hussein had. Or Stalin. Or Pinochet.

I haven't written much about politics here in recent memory, because there are others who say what I want to say and they do it much better than I do: Glenn Greenwald, Josh Marshall, John Cole, and Digby, for example. But even though I've become entirely disgusted with what used to be my government and I don't have a whole lot of faith in the congress or the president to listen to me (actually, I don't have a lot of faith in the president listening to anyone who doesn't tell him exactly what he wants to hear,) I still believe in the underlying principles of Democracy. I still believe that it is the responsibility of every American, whether they feel adequately represented by the current congress or not, to stand up for their beliefs, even when they speak them to deaf ears in the halls of power. Even -- no, especially -- when those beliefs are unpopular.

My government is supposed to represent me, and as an American citizen, I must accept responsibility for the things my country does in my name. It is with that responsibility in mind that I feel compelled to write the following, not for congress who have already ignored my calls and letters, but for my own conscience, and for my children, should they one day ask me, "What happened then? Why didn't anyone try to do anything?"

What the House did yesterday, the Senate looks to do today, and the President will surely enact as soon as possible, is a direct assault on American values, and contrary to everything our country stands for. Though cynically and cowardly enacted as a purely political tool during an election, those who supported this bill do not speak for me, do not act in my name, and do not reflect my values.

Torture is not an American value. Torture is a totalitarian, sadistic value. Suspending access to courts and the right to face your accuser is not what Americans do. It is what tyrannical dictators and despots do, not a democratic republic like the one I was brought up in and love. Time and again, torture has proved unreliable to prevent or solve crimes, and it reduces our country to the level of the very terrorists we are supposedly fighting.

I believe in the right to a speedy and fair trial for everyone, even the most repugnant of defendants. No, especially for the most repugnant of defendants, because if we, as a society, can't guarantee the most hideously accused among us that right, what is it worth to the rest of us?

George Bush and his enablers in the congress -- Democrat and Republican -- has done more damage to our country, and our once impeccable moral standing in the world than all the terrorists combined. President Bush and his Republican allies in congress like to say that "they hate us for our freedom," but President Bush and his Republican allies in congress have spent the last five years working very hard to take that freedom away from the people they supposedly work for, and vest that power in something they call the Unitary Executive. If the Democrats won't stand up to stop torture, what will they stand up for? If Congress won't do its constitutional duty now, then when?

I am disgusted with, and ashamed of my government.

Shame on President Bush. Shame on his Republican allies in congress, and shame on the spineless, cowardly Democrats who did not stand up to them. Shame on them all, and shame on all of us if we do not turn out by the millions in the next election to put men and women into congress who will have the courage to do their constitutional duty, and defend the Republic from all enemies, foreign and domestic.

Comments

[Harley's Angel]

The white house has and continues it's course of "father know's best" It is sickening and disheartening to watch. Which is why we need to stand up and be counted. Let our reprsentatives know that we won't stand for this kind of behavior. Write your Congressman today!

[yankee17]

I completely agree with you. The Constitution of the United States gives us the right to revolt when we are dissatisfied with our government. I fear that day is fast approaching.

[Literalreddy]

This is the day we lost the struggle, our way, our souls, and the world.

[starshine_diva]

Thank you for not being afraid to speak your mind. Now if only the rest of America - and Congress! - could do the same.

[fuzz]

Please never hestitate to speak your mind. You are 100% about true American values and you should be proud to say it.

[Jax]

Nostrodamus once predicted that "the end of the world as we know it" will be heralded by "a man in a blue turban".

Interesting to note: in his tour of service, Bush wore a blue helmet.

[Darth Paradox]

The Democrats did try to stand up against it. They're not spineless, not this time. But Reid made a tactical error and got fucked by procedure - it's actually impossible by the rules of the Senate for a filibuster to occur now.

Yes, there are some Democrats that are on the wrong side of this issue. But the majority of them - and the leadership - are doing what little they can in a Republican-dominated government to fight it.

Please don't propagate the "spineless Democrat" talk. It's only going to make it harder to remove from office the people that are really responsible for this abhorrent, disgusting law.

[jslicer]

I have been heartened by the many people who actually feel ashamed for voting for Bush in '04. I hope they will do the right thing on November 7th and remove his congressional power base. Another party in control (even if the "spineless" Democrats) will stop his power grab dead.

[silver rock]

Boy, I hate to say it, but torture is now an American value. It doesn't work, it produces no useful information, it's done for revenge by thugs and bullies.
And the thugs and bullies are running things now. I've never been so tempted to leave this country.

[Tak_Kovacs]

Dude, you and your country need to own up to your mistake. You voted this idiot in for another term! What did you think was going to happen? Take it from a country who is having to learn humility the hard way, you brought this on yourselves...one term is a mistake, two is just asking for trouble!! Stop moaning and do something about it before all your rights are gone.

[kaellinn18]

Wil, there is a grassroots movement (I don't know if there is an official site or not) of people who are planning on voting people into office, as long as they are not incumbents.

The current state of our government sickens me as much as it sickens you, and I'm more of a conservative. It's just despicable. I, for one, will not vote for a single person who is currently in office. I am sick of it.

[Darth Paradox]

kaellinn, please be careful. Because of the two-party system, at this point it's a lot more important to make sure that the leadership changes hands than that individual incumbents are voted out. Voting out Democrats will not help get rid of the Republican leadership that's trying to pass this bill.

At this point, the only way to create change in Congress is to vote Democrats into office. I wish we had a multi-party system like the European parliaments, but that's just not the case right now.

[Wil]

I agree with Darth Paradox. We must take at least one house of Congress away from Republicans, so that hopefully there will finally be oversight and a check on White House power. I understand the risk of furthering the "spineless" frame, but the fact remains that Reid didn't even try to get a filibuster together, until it was apparently too late. That is unforgivable and inexcusable, not just for him, but for all the Democrats.

And please don't point your accusatory finger at me, Tak_Kovacs. I didn't vote for Bush, and in fact I actively campaigned against him, twice.

[Darth Paradox]

There's a dailykos thread somewhere with some people reporting their conversations with Reid's office.

As far as I can tell, what happened was that Reid gave up the filibuster in exchange to get some amendments on the floor to fix some of the serious problems with the bill - specifically, restoring judicial oversight (i.e. habeus corpus), and clarifications to make sure that the Geneva Conventions were followed.

The problem was, once those amendments were rejected, Reid had left the Democrats without any ability to prevent the majority from passing this piece of shit. And apparently, as far as he could tell, he didn't have the votes to make a filibuster hold up, which would be why taking if off the table seemed to be the thing to do, to get a chance at getting these amendments in. (Personally, I want to know who the fuck those Democrats were that wouldn't commit to the filibuster. Those are the people who have most profoundly betrayed us here.)

Anyway, I truly believe that he did what he could with what he had. And it seems Reid's entire office knew, and knows, the stakes that they were playing for.

[Kornham]

I didn't vote for him -twice. I think that he was elected illegally.

[scott5309]

Wil,

don't shy away from posting political stuff... if it's what's on your mind and you feel strongly about it, blog it!

i wrote on the same subject earlier on my blog, albeit a bit more...colorfully. you said it all so much better, but i think you might appreciate it
(i, uh, feel kinda strongly about it):
http://karmacomedian.blogspot.com

and thanks for the ron moore link the other day... i love bsg, but for some reason had never made it over there. great stuff!

[Jeanine]

Wil,
Thanks for getting political. You are as eloquent as always.
I am deeply disturbed at these changes. But as long as good people of conscience keep speaking up I have to hope...I just have to hope. And I will vote!

[Marianna Scheffer]

Just found your blog. Great work. I was listening to Randi on the subject earlier. It's so outrageous!

[Kornham]

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter" MLK

[Mike From OH2]

Wil, right on. You nailed it when you said "..even the most repugnant of defendants.."

If , ugh, Osama's buddies cannot have a proper trial then what's then we have lost the moral highground.

When Colin Powell has to tell the President in a public letter about that concept, then things are messed up.

[Keith Coogan]

I think you are being a bit naive, Wil.

Our government has always done some pretty shady stuff. Usually they perfom these digusting and totally un-American acts behind closed doors, and with the lights off.

The current administration is making the mistake of wanting to do these things publicly. I know we've tortured and played hardball in the past, I just liked my government better when it at least made an effort to deny such acts, or please, even pretend that we have NEVER done such things. People are much happier living in denial.

Your note today should remind the current administration that they should have kept quiet, but no.... they want to bring it out into the light. Some people might not want to look at such things in the light, cuz they sure don't photograph well.

Thank you for the well thought out, lucid and reasonable article. You Roxxcss!$$#^%#$#@!^%!!!11!

[mirkrim]

It's quite a paradox that everybody against Bush feels he's violating the fundamentals of democracy, yet it's the same democratic system that gave him two consecutive terms in office.

[Mike Cohen]

Continue to speak your mind. This needed to be said.

I get more disgusted every day when I see what's happening with our government. I'm afraid it reached the point where our reputation will be permanently damaged.

Tak_Kovacs - I voted against Bush both times. Don't blame all Americans for the stupidity of some. He didn't win legitimately in 2000 and I wouldn't be surprised if his win in 2004 was the result of Diebold's shenanigans.

[Shannon_B]

Those of us in the rest of the world have watched in horror as the errosion of American rights unfold like a plot straight out of a film about totalitarion governments.
(Anyone seen V for Vendetta)

While I still hold hope that further travesty's will be stopped by the election of a new government there is still a large part of me that fears that even if a new government is elected it will fail to turn back these changes.
I fear that we are looking at the begining of the end of the United States Of America.

You are walking a fine line and with one miss step you will be lost.

If you fail to elect a new government the process will be accelerated and if a new government doesn't reverse the changes it will slow but not stop because eventually a government further down the track will take advantage of the laws left in place.

I have for a long time held hope for this world of ours but I am slowly coming to believe that if we don't do something soon, the world we give our children will be a nightmare made reality and we only have ourselves to blame.

Bad things happen when good people do nothing and we the good people of the world have done nothing for a long time because we are too cynical to believe we can make a difference and unless we wake up it may be too late.

But in the end I am still just as bad as everyone else because I believe the small amount I do, will not stop the fate that is coming for us all.

I do not look forward to explaining to my child why we willfully destroyed thier inheritance.

Shannon, Australia

[Lytspeed]

I find it very interesting that President Bush claims to need these administrative "tools" to help protect us from terrorists.

Yet, during the time since 9/11, while torturous methods have been in use by our forces, suicide bombings have increased significantly. (See the U.S. and British Intelligence reports leaked yesterday and today for confirmation of that.)

Okay, with that in mind, can someone please explain to me why "coercive tactics" are necessary to ensure our safety?

It seems to me that as long as the United States continues to meddle in the Persian Gulf region, our safety is in question. And as long as we have secret CIA prisons in which "coercive tactics" are being used against Muslims (or anyone else), our safety is even more in question.

Suicide terrorism, like what took place on 9/11, is used to protest foreign occupation, and it has worked in the past to make the U.S. leave an occupied territory. (See the U.S. Marine Barracks suicide bombing by Hezbollah, Beirut, 1980.) Immediately after that event, President Reagan removed all U.S. troops from Lebanon. The suicide bombers in Iraq and Al Qaeda will keep coming until we reduce our troop presence in Iraq, and the longer we continue to use "coercive tactics" like those used at Abu Graibh, the more brutal the suicide bombings will be.

Okay, that's enough. Thanks for speaking up, Wil. I agree with you 100%.

(Oh, and congrats on your Omaha winnings!)