In a Sleeping Bag

Those of us privileged to work at UUSC sit here during long days educating ourselves about U.S.-sponsored torture and talking about how to get our supporters involved in stopping that unique form of inhumanity. Seriously addressing the real lives of the tortured and the torturer presents daily emotional challenges.

Today's Washington Post carries a story about the treatment by U.S. interrogators and CIA-trained Iraqis (Scorpions) of one Maj. Gen. Abed Hamed Mowhoush, a former officer in Saddam Hussein's army. The author betrays no sympathy for Iraqi officers or the current insurgency. I am with him on that. He only tells one more in a long line of stories that must continue to be told. Read it and know why we must Stop Torture Permanently.

Read it if you doubt whether torture is U.S. policy in the war on terrorism. Read it if torture sickens you, but you fear that it may be necessary to save U.S. lives. Read it if you have ever snuggled up in a sleeping bag. Remember it when you are deciding whether or not there is anything you can do.

One man is being court-martialed for this heinous act. Decide for yourself if he should face the music alone, or if he should be joined by decision makers that will sleep comfortably tonight.