Torture

There has been a growing movement in the Catholic Blog-o-sphere concerning torture. I've always known it was wrong, but I usually blamed my liberal tenancies, especially since I never win the argument when I'm surrounded by other Catholics. Thankfully, as I usually do, I can rely on the Church to set me straight.

Torture is happening far more than we, as a country, would like to acknowledge. How do I know? After all, suburban mom, home-schooler, and otherwise boring person does not qualify me to speak on much. I know because I have heard first hand stories from my family, my brother serves in Kuwait and Iraq, my brother-in-law recently returned from Afghanistan and my dad, a veteran of the Marines were sharing stories at our late Christmas dinner. I was shocked, appalled and left speechless. I love these guys, especially my brother-in-law, he is well read, and a smart guy, yet, he tortured. Everyone did from what he was saying. It wasn't as extreme as water-boarding, but there were many little things that were unnecessary for the questioning of other human beings. Honestly, they treated the dog that wandered in from the desert better than the locals. I was sickened.

The simple lesson, just because we can, and everyone else does, doesn't mean we should. This week I'm teaching the kids about the Holocaust. How can I tell them all that happened to rob people of their dignity and eventually their lives is wrong if I think it is okay to do the same today? I'm not the best spokeswoman for this cause, admittedly, I'm not the best at expressing the truth with clarity, but hopefully, I can convince my family, and friends.