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Due Diligence
By Nancy Greggs
You, our elected representatives, are about to be asked for your support of torture. On its face, it does not seem feasible that any American would ever countenance such a barbaric, godless practice. But this, under the leadership of George W. Bush and his administration, is where we are.
I know you would never consider investing money in a stock, a piece of real estate, or a new business without performing all due diligence; i.e. a complete vetting of the facts, the goals, the possible rewards and pitfalls of such a venture.
I would ask you to exercise the same vigilance in this matter, a decision which will impact our standing as a nation for all time, the consequences of which define our nation not only in the short-term, but for recorded history.
This is not a step to be taken lightly or without serious examination. This is not a financial transaction which, in a worst-case scenario, will end up being a tax write-off as opposed to a hoped-for profit. This is a matter of human life and our traditional adherence to the concept that all life is a gift of the Creator, and is to be treated accordingly with dignity and respect.
Before you make your decision on this all-important matter, I would ask that you look at the photographs from Abu Ghraib; I would ask that you view the films. If you are too squeamish to do so, fight the natural urge to retch – and take a good, hard look. Because THIS is what you are being asked to condone; THIS is what you are being asked to adopt as our country’s policy.
Request a private viewing of the videotapes of the torture already undertaken by what is purported to be a God-fearing, Christian nation. I understand the hellish screams of the tortured children are especially bone-chilling. Take your own children to watch it with you, so they, too, can understand what it is you are contemplating condoning. You may think that too harsh a notion. Maybe you’re too ashamed to let them know what it is you’re considering supporting – and if it is, maybe your shame is telling you something you should heed.
LOOK at those photographs. Memorize the details; the blood, the sweat, the humiliation. Imagine the cries for mercy. Now imagine your own child begging for an end to unspeakable pain. Picture their faces in place of those too brutalized to be recognizable. Now picture someone else, on the other side of the world, ignoring your child’s pleas – just as you now consider ignoring the pleas of some other mother’s child.
This decision, once made, cannot be undone. Even if our country’s future political leaders reverse whatever policies you agree to now, the evil will not be minimized; the wrong will never be righted, the tortured will never be made whole again, the dead will never be resurrected.
So now you must choose. You will either stand up for what is right, or you will cower in fear and cast your lot with those who promise political advancement in exchange for your soul.
If you choose to stand on the side of righteousness, I and millions of other American citizens will stand with you – regardless of political loyalty or party affiliation.
If, on the other hand, you choose to stand with those who would ignore everything this country holds to be sacrosanct, I and millions of Americans will impatiently await the day you stand trial, as those who commit crimes against humanity almost inevitably do, to serve as witnesses to your willingness to conspire with others against your fellow citizens, against your fellow man.
And don't be lulled into the false sense of security promised by your fellow defendants. Thirty pieces of silver buy very little in the way of a good legal defence. And in the Final Judgment, they will buy you nothing at all.
Think about it.
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