Jonah:

As interesting as the issue of where to draw the “torture” line, is the

meta-issue of why people are engaged passionately with this.

I would much rather, as I said at length in that column I’ve linked to, that

my country not approve systematic torture of captured terrorist suspects. I

also think there’s a lot to be said for the argument that it’s in the most

trying circumstances like these that our character as a nation has a chance

to show itself. Yes, sure. I don’t want bad stuff happening. When it

happens — as now and then it surely will — I want it properly

investigated, and suitable punishments awarded. No problem with any of

that.

There are people out there, though, for whom this is an issue in which their

emotions are passionately engaged. You can see it in your mailbag, I’m

sure, as I can in mine. I don’t get that. The War on Terror has many

aspects and angles, and each of us, according to temperament, is more

involved with some one angle than with some other. What is it that gets

some people so powerfully, angrily indignant about U.S. misbehavior –

which, as Rich’s post pointed out — is anyway at a pretty low level as

these things go for U.S. forces in hot combat. (And let’s not even talk

about the troops of other nations…)

So why are some people fixing their interest on this one aspect of things?

In some cases I can figure it out. It’s not hard to see why Democratic

Senators would make a meal of it, for instance. But what about so many of the rest? Why is

the thought of U.S. troops misbehaving so obsessively exciting to some

Americans, rousing them to such furious indignation? I don’t get it.