Don't legalize torture

To the Editor:

American leaders arguing the pros and cons of legalizing and defining torture is a very disturbing agenda. It demonstrates how badly infected our political ethics have become.

The disease of righteousness is invading the moral fibers of our American foundation. Liberty and justice for all was not just a snappy verse; it is an ideal which has guided this country for over 200 years. It intends that we should not have one law for some and another for others.

Our historical values do not allow us to interrogate, try, convict, and possibly execute a human being without them ever being able to see the evidence against them.

The acts of terrorists are despicable and inhumane and should be dealt with harshly. But, in the quest for justice we should not take the moral low road. Our justified fears are not an excuse for inhumane behavior.

The United States should set the tone for justice. Torture is what it is. You know it when you see it. The way to decrease tortuous acts on our own and others is not by defining, clarifying, and inflicting it. That only makes us part of the problem.

Patt Truman

Eureka