Do you ever have moments when you think, "I can't believe I'm having this conversation"? This may be one of them.
For the past several months, the media has been debating, with its typical hysterical po-faced solemnity, "gee, do you think the USA should be torturing people to get information?" People have sat on news programs and seriously tried to argue the pros and cons. What's next? "Gee, do you think eating babies is okay?" "Is murdering your spouse ever a good thing?" For heaven's sake, Western Civilisation, what on earth have you come to?
So here's another one today: there's been a "call for a criminal inquiry" as it emerges the CIA has deliberately destroyed tapes of it engaging in torture. I should bloody well hope there'll be an "inquiry". And a prosecution and some hefty imprisonment, too, and maybe a change of government!
What is happening here? Slowly, surreptitiously, the level of barbarity we'll tolerate in our everyday narrative is gradually being increased. It's not too long ago that taking bribes, invading other people's countries, murdering scientists, graft, corruption, theft, torture, and preemptive war were considered WRONG. Period. No debate.
Now, well... and we all make faces and wring our hands... well, maybe, just once, then.... erm...
Moral relativism. Once the bottle is opened, the genie don't ever wanna go back in. Sheeeee-it - don't people ever read history any more?
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