Thursday, September 15, 2005
I'd like to thank my co-stars....
Orac's edition of the History Carnival includes the exchange between Mr. Jones and myself on historical judgements and comparative ethics. Since he's given it a TV theme, I'm working on my Emmy acceptance speech....
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When I sent him my link, I figured he'd include yours as well. Next time I'll be clearer. Anyway, both my original post and this one point the way, so I think you'll get the traffic.
You're right that the abuses were disgraceful, immoral. But they were not, by and large illegal. That's a minor point, in terms of historical judgement, but a major one in terms of political judgement: when Lincoln's Order 100 is cited it's because he went beyond existing law to set a high standard.
When the Bush administration argues that torture isn't, that the conventions don't apply, that the constitution doesn't follow the flag, it is lowering our standards.
There is a pragmatic argument against too-rigid standards to which I'm sympathetic, but only with the best possible justifications and in the light of the best possible results. Convenience is not an excuse.
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