On his second day in office, President Obama signed executive orders to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility and to require the use of the Army Field Manual for interrogation. I'm relieved to hear this news. These actions will help restore the image of America throughout the world and help us reclaim the moral high ground.
The fight against terrorism is a deadly fight, and one we must wage with all the skill and strength we can. But when we act in ways that are worse than the enemies we're fighting, how can we claim to be fighting for freedom and democracy?
Besides that, the usefulness of the Guantanamo Bay facility and extreme interrogation have been seriously questioned. Were these methods of dealing prisoners actually effective? There's not any evidence they work, and they may actually be counterproductive.
By holding ourselves to our highest ideals as a nation, we're more likely to prevail in the struggle against terrorism, as well as the struggle to win the hearts and minds of people across the globe.
Closing Guantanamo raises difficult issues. Where will the hardened prisoners go? That will be a prickly problem to solve. But at least we're going in the right direction.
-
No comments:
Post a Comment