July 15, 2004

Some good sense from Brad DeLong...

...The hypothetical he describes--Osama bin Laden himself, a ticking nuclear bomb, a city that cannot be evacuated, et cetera--is not a situation in which torture should be legal. It is, however, a situation in which torture is pardonable. If you find yourself interrogating Osama bin Laden in such a situation, you do what you must do--and then you ask the president for a pardon. And the president has the power to give you one.

That's what the procedure is with respect to torture. And I think that's what the procedure should be. [link]

Thanks to Andrew Case, who has interesting thoughts on the subject also.

Of course the issue probably wouldn't even have come up if our 'Loyal Opposition" were actually loyal. Their wartime criticisms would be constructive ones, seeking the best balance for the good of America. But the slavering glee with which they welcomed Abu Ghraib, and the poisonous hatred they displayed in immediately using it to try to cripple our leadership and war effort, without care for the morale or safety of our troops, shows how little they can be trusted.

Posted by John Weidner at July 15, 2004 7:09 PM
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