It turns out that an LDS Judge (Jay Bybee) was responsible for penning a crucial memo that helped to justify the torture of prisoners.
A hero who saved lives.
One who authorizes, endorses, or engages in torture is no "hero." And Bybee will likely be impeached (at least I hope so). In the glorious words of Fox's Shep Smith, "This is America -- we do not f***ing torture!" Amen, brother.
"Moving beyond apologist persuasion, LDS polemicists furiously (and often fraudulently) attack any non-traditional view of Mormonism. They don't mince words -- they mince the truth."
-- Mike Quinn, writing of the FARMSboys, in "Early Mormonism and the Magic World View," p. x (Rev. ed. 1998)
When is Kerry Shirts going to waterboard Bill Hamblin in his backyard? Let's put it up on youtube and show everybody how benign it is.
Pentatach wrote:Personally, I think it's a huge joke. Legal memo is an expression of opinion, nothing more. It has no authoritative or precedential value at all. It's basically a "here's what I think based on my reading of the law" type of thing.
Just the Judge's opinion. It isn't doctrine.
"And yet another little spot is smoothed out of the echo chamber wall..." Bond
However, not a single Democrat questioned him at his confirmation hearing. It was an outrage.
And now it's a double-standard which is what one expects from democrats anyway.
It's too bad that believing Christians believe as you do; the Atlantic has a great article this month on the complicity of the German populace in the extermination of the Jews, but also points out a fairly significant minority of opposition and outcry.
To be on the side of war and torture is to be on the side of the devil. Better to die and be killed than torture somebody.
I don’t think that there is something inside Mormonism that leads people to be torturers. Instead I believe that Mormonism teaches its members to be obedient to the organization. What Mormonism is great at producing is corporate cogs and bureaucrats.
Mormons are conditioned to support and uphold the organization and to hold not publicly question authority. From the time they are born, they are conditioned to function within a hierarchy where communication goes one way and each is to fulfill their assigned role. A core part of this belief is the idea that you, as an individual, do not have the full picture. Your knowledge is limited and your own opinion is biased. Those in authority know more than you and they have been around longer than you. They do not need your feedback, they need your execution. Mormons have this mindset preprogrammed into their operating system, and they are morally primed to not worry about their role that much. I have found that Mormons tend not to see institutional actions as either moral or immoral, and actions that support institutions are likewise dismissed.
Another contributing factor is that Mormons tend to see the world in black and white, good guys verses bad guys. Mixed in with that is the American Exceptionalism on which the entire faith is based and you have the same mindset that drove the NeoCons. America is right ergo American action is right. Bad guys are going to do badly, so like Jack Bauer they can use whatever means (institutionally) to pursue an end. I think this mixes with the institutional devotion to keep them focused on the flag waving and not on the likely outcome from individual actions.
To be on the side of war and torture is to be on the side of the devil. Better to die and be killed than torture somebody.
Yea, verily I say unto you, that it is better that one douche bag terrorist be dunked in water, than a whole office building full of people perish, yea, even unto death.
“A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take away everything that you have.”
rcrocket wrote:Better to die and be killed than torture somebody.
It hardly ever happens, but Crock and I agree in this sentiment.
"Moving beyond apologist persuasion, LDS polemicists furiously (and often fraudulently) attack any non-traditional view of Mormonism. They don't mince words -- they mince the truth."
-- Mike Quinn, writing of the FARMSboys, in "Early Mormonism and the Magic World View," p. x (Rev. ed. 1998)
Doctor Scratch wrote:Wow. My head is reeling already. "a contact in at the CIA"???
Yeah, this is really interesting. Notice, he didn't say he had a friend or an aquaintance at the CIA, but a "contact". I think we can safely assume that this person is a business contact which of course means, somhow apologetics is connected at a professional level with the CIA. Why? No ideas here, it's just another unanswered question.
Lou Midgley 08/20/2020: "...meat wad," and "cockroach" are pithy descriptions of human beings used by gemli? They were not fashioned by Professor Peterson.
LM 11/23/2018: one can explain away the soul of human beings...as...a Meat Unit, to use Professor Peterson's clever derogatory description of gemli's ideology.
And now it's a double-standard which is what one expects from democrats anyway.
It's too bad that believing Christians believe as you do;
Why?
the Atlantic has a great article this month on the complicity of the German populace in the extermination of the Jews,
So? This only shows that the notion of "innocent civilian" is just for political gain and is not a reality.
To be on the side of war and torture is to be on the side of the devil.
To be against war and torture of those who are against agency, freedom, and democracy, is to be on the side of the devil.
Better to die and be killed than torture somebody.
Yea, verily I say unto you, that it is better that one douche bag terrorist be dunked in water, than a whole office building full of people perish, yea, even unto death.