Joho the Blog: Seeking middle ground on torture: "Can we get even to that common ground? Can we as a nation say that we abhor torture, except in the rarest of cases? That we do not believe in the institutionalizing of torture? That we will fight it around the world? That we believe in the rule of law and that no one is above the law? That we believe in treating even our enemies with dignity? That we support the established international conventions for treating prisoners? That we are sorry about what went on at Abu Ghraib?"
What amazes me is the lack of outrage here in the US. After September 11, many Americans expressed disbelief. "Why do they hate us?" They didn't understand. Now, my friends here and the people that I speak with don't seem to understand the magnitude of what's going on. America's leaders are not clearly apologizing. I know humility isn't America's greatest strength, but I do hope someone sets up a website, americansapologize.org or something, where real people in America can write heart-felt apologies (not excuses - apologies) for what their leaders and their country is doing. Take some responsibility, and at least try to counter some of the hate that is being generated here. I won't set this up - I'm not American. But I hope someone does.