The Torture Question

WE don’t need to become like our enemy to beat our enemy. This, in a nutshell, is the argument against torture. Lindsey Graham, Andrew Sullivan, the Democratic party, the New York Times, and enlightened people everywhere have offered variations on this theme.

And it’s a good theme. But a lot of unanswered questions come with it. What does it mean to be like your enemy? Our enemy is monotheistic. So are we, or at least most of us. Should we start worshipping a whole passel of gods just to be different? Our enemy wears pants. We wear pants. If we don’t lose our pants, will the terrorists have won?

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Jonah Goldberg

Jonah Goldberg is a National Review contributing editor.

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Terrorism

WE don’t need to become like our enemy to beat our enemy. This, in a nutshell, is the argument against torture. Lindsey Graham, Andrew Sullivan, the Democratic party, the New York Times, and enlightened people everywhere have offered variations on this theme.

And it’s a good theme. But a lot of unanswered questions come with it. What does it mean to be like your enemy? Our enemy is monotheistic. So are we, or at least most of us. Should we start worshipping a whole passel of gods just to be different? Our enemy wears pants. We wear pants. If we don’t lose our pants, will the terrorists have won?