I wasn't really trying to put Pat on the spot, I was really curious. I kind of thought many of you had already seen it and it is so depressing that it is hard to comment on. When I post something like that I always feel like I should do so with an apology because I feel like it will probably give some people nightmares. I think this because I had nightmares after I watched it.

One of the big reasons I posted it was because I saw Senator Whitehouse discussing what needs to be done about this recently (I think there is a video of him talking about this on the internet somewhere) and what he had to say left me deeply disturbed and I could not stop thinking about it. He did not mention this movie, he didn't have to, what he talked about is the actual evidence the government has in its possession and the fact that the previous administration (or at least parts of it) had set policy to institutionalize torture and what this means for us as a country.

We have to face certain facts and one of those facts is if your government makes torture a matter of policy it will effect us not just in the present but for many generations. Let's face it, you stop being the "good guys" when you start torturing people. This changes the way the world sees us, as a country, and as Americans. Think of the generations of Germans that will have to live in the shadow of what Hitler and the Nazis did.

In terms of giving people immunity for their testimony, I have to say I would do this. I think it is the only way to move up the chain and get to the people most at fault for what went on. Giving them immunity is not excusing their behavior but rather using what they did to shine a light on those who hold the most responsibility for what went on. The only way to prevent this kind of thing from happening is to hold the decision makers at the top accountable. As you see in the film, the investigation into what went on looked "downward" to scapegoat the people on the bottom rung. Doing this says to the people who made this policy that "Hey, this is ok. We can do this and just throw the public a bone by prosecuting a few peons."

In the end what that shows as well is that the Cheneys, Rumsfelds, and Dubyas of the world will happily betray our troops and feed them to the wolves for their own mistakes. Why should any soldier follow orders knowing this? This idea also makes it important to prosecute those at the top of the ladder, to say to our troops we as a nation will hold those who gave you those orders accountable.

It's all an ugly heartbreaking thing and when I heard Senator Whitehouse saying we need to put this evidence in front of the American people, I'll admit I was not so sure he was correct. It reminded me of the scene in Jaws where the mayor tells Roy Scheider he's not going to let them cut open the shark right there in broad daylight and have the "little Kintner boy spill out all over the dock."

I wondered what would happen and the obvious backlash that would take place. I also thought it may be the only way to fix the problem and get to the people on the top rung. Obviously Senator Whitehouse had already come to that conclusion.