Slow posting

I've been slow in posting this week, for a couple of reasons. First, we're in the early phase of development for our next release and that means that I'm writing lots of design specifications, and reviewing the specs that others have written. After a while, the thought of writing anything becomes repulsive!

The second is a bit more serious. I've been reading lots, probably too much, about the situation at the Abu Ghraib prison in Bhagdad. It makes me very, very sad for my country. We've completely lost the moral high ground; how can we protest someone else's treatment of Americans when we can't do the right thing ourselves.

I'm sad, in part, for the MPs, who, being at the bottom of the food chain, are going to be offered up in national penance for this. Yes, they did wrong and must be punished for it; even if they were ordered to do these things, the orders would be illegal and they have the right and duty to refuse illegal orders. Much more, though, I blame the chain of command (yes, all the way to the top) for allowing this to happen and even encouraging it.

What's even more sad, is that this is not an isolated incident. It's grown out of the Guantanamo Bay dentention center and secret prisons in Afghanistan. Whiskey Bar has some good comments on this and even more links. Other commentary on the whole Iraq situation from The Leiter Reports.

What makes me the saddest, and most frightened, is the fact that the terrorists may be winning. Their goal is the destruction of the United States. Now they have no chance of doing that physically, but that's not my worry. I'm afraid that they're winning by forcing us into fundamental change — change that goes against our founding principles. Each time we give up a freedom, or take it from another, we become more and more like the terrorists, and less and less like ourselves.

Yes, we are fighting against some very, very nasty people. People with no respect at all for the rights of others, nor of freedom, nor any kind of human decency. They certainly don't "play fair." But, as soon as we use that as an excuse for doing the same kind of thing, we've lost, no matter how many of them we capture or kill.

I love my country and I support the brave young women and men who are serving it throughout the world. They have difficult and dangerous jobs to do, and they are, almost universally, doing those jobs with courage, character and honor. There are times when I question the character, honor, wisdom and motivation of the people who sent them to do those jobs.

Update: I had a link to a post by Brian Leiter, referring to some bills before Congress that would reinstitute the draft. That link, and those bills, are outdated.