Use of Torture in Interrogations of POW's 5

Souljunkie, I can respect your take, that it's important to try to see things from a soldier's perspective when discussing morality in warfare. It's hard to do, but worthwhile. On the other hand, I couldn't disagree more when you say we can't, or shouldn't, expect rules of war to be enforced. One reason Saddam had to be taken out - one reason why we're over there in the first place - is because Saddam is a war criminal with a history of flaunting the rules -- including, just as one example, the rules governing the treatment of POW's. Is extraction of information more difficult when "stretching the rules" isn't an option? Of course. But that isn't justification on its own. Not to make light of what we're talking about, but simple analogies all draw on the same basic principle: It's harder to hit a baseball out of the park without 'the clear'; it's harder to earn a dollar than it is to steal one; the quickest and easiest way to get homework done on time is to copy someone else's. Its refusal to succumb to the easy, less honorable way of doing things is why the U.S. a good place to live. It's what makes decent people better than indecent ones - no "high horse" necessary. The U.S. and its treatment of POW's must be governed by rules, not by men. When the lines get blurred by emotion or power trips, ethics go out the window. This is why McCain's bill is so important, and why the government is right to intervene. I don't think I'm the only one who cringes when he hears about Iraqis, disguised as first aid workers, slaughtering unsuspecting (and, at times, unarmed) U.S. patrolmen. My stomach turns at the thought of using mosques the way real soldiers use trenches (now a common tactic among insurgents). I don't think we need to stoop to their level to beat them.