The World Turned Upside Down

This is a note I sent to my congressman, Chet Edwards:

I have been hearing lately about the FOCA legislation. I have not heard your position on it, but wanted to express in the strongest terms I can that it must be opposed. I understand that abortion is not likely to be outlawed, and don't think that it should be banned in every situation. However, FOCA is a direct attack on the most innocent in our society. There must be common sense limitations on abortion and FOCA outlaws all of them.

To make a point, I compare it to the closing of the Guantanamo Bay terrorist prison. We disregard the lives of the innocent, but let human debris go free to rejoin al-Qaeda and endanger our troops and our citizens. The world really has turned upside down.

Preventing Torture

I am amazed at the naivete of the people who argue against all "torture" or coercive interrogations. I am just fine with someone arguing against torture. I hate when they use stupid arguments. Here is the latest one:

Make no mistake — logically, that's where the ticking-bomb scenario takes you. [Hillary] Clinton insists that she wasn't really saying that torture should be legal — no, no, of course not. She still thinks that torture is immoral, ineffective and counterproductive. It's just that for an "improbable but possible eventuality" such as a true ticking-bomb scenario, she thinks that we should make "a very, very narrow exception within very, very limited circumstances."

And this wouldn't undermine the Geneva Convention? You'd better believe that countries such as Syria, North Korea and Iran would also just love to carve out some "very, very narrow exceptions" to treaties banning torture.

This is a stupid argument because Syria, North Korea, and Iran ALREADY VIOLATE GENEVA CONVENTIONS. It is well known that these countries hold political prisoners and starve, torture, and kill them. North Korea's gulags and reeducation camps are infamous.

Our good behavior is not going to change their bad behavior. If you want to argue against coercive interrogations, fine. But don't pretend I am an idiot.

As a side note, I am surprised to (partially) agree with Hillary Clinton.