Reader Greg Richards writes us regarding J. James Estrada's characterization of  Senator Durbin's  disgraceful comments:

Of course, we know what he is on — his high horse.

What Sen. Durbin doesn't understand is that there is a purpose to these interrogations.  Not only is the comparison with Pol Pot so extreme as to not merit any comment, torture in Nazi prisons, the gulag, Mao's China, Cuba, etc. is to simply destroy the prisoner in the interests of the state.  There is no point to torture in those societies other than to assert the power of the state.

We are in a war for our lives.  Prisoners in Guantanamo have put themselves outside the bounds of civilized conduct and are covered under no legal conventions at all.  The reason there are prisoners of war is so that we don't just kill 'em all on the battlefield, so they are ahead of the game from the start.  But in this case, we are also trying to get information to prevent terrorists from setting off a dirty bomb, in, say, the Capitol.

It has been said that a liberal is a person who will not take his own side in a fight.  Sen. Durbin seems to fit that description.  How do societies die?  When their citizens lose their faith in them and their willingness to fight for them.......like Sen. Durbin.  We can only hope that the good citizens of Illinois see the light when next he comes up for election.