Waterboarding
It should be no secret to any of you, especially those of you I know through the internet, that once upon a time, I was a fairly die-hard Conservative politically. I was very young and my parents were Conservative as best as I knew and my dad works for Big Oil (but he's Little Oil). So out of stubbornness, naivete, and loyalty, I clung to the Political Right.
Mind, I am not at all saying that all Conservatives are stubborn, naive, or loyal. I'm not even saying it's wrong. I'm just saying that my reasons for being a Conservative were wrong. But things changed. The Political Right caused a lot of problems for my family and led to a lot of heartache and destruction and hard times (for my family specifically). So I finally began to reevaluate my beliefs based on what I felt to be true and right rather than what I thought my parents believed to be true and right or what Christianity teaches to be true and right.
I discovered, much to my parents' amused chagrin, that I am, in fact, fairly liberal.
But the change was slow. It took most of high school. It took most of the Bush Administration.
But I remember one thing specifically that really blew my mind and changed the way I see things.
We were in IB English, junior year. Our assignment was to research a controversial topic, write a persuasive paper, and then give a fifteen minute speech on it. I, in my infinite stupidity and need to be different and noticed, chose Irish independence. It was ridiculous, I was not truly passionate about it, and my paper and speech were both awful. I'm not afraid to admit that now. There will be more on that in a post to come.
What's important about all this is that Abimbola Salami, my dear friend, chose to do her research on abortion. She argued Pro-Choice. One day, we were discussing it at our table. I think it was Danielle and Alison and Abi and myself and maybe Samantha Woods. I mentioned, I believe, that I personally was Pro-Life because abortion is murder except in the case of rape or incest.
And Abi asked me why it wasn't murder just because it was a result of rape or incest.
... And I didn't have an answer.
So I reevaluated things again and realized that while I, personally, am Pro-Life, and while no one is actually Pro-Abortion, I can't say what I would do in that situation and I definitely can't say what someone else, who may not share my religious beliefs, should do in that situation.
I'd like to think that I would choose to have the baby. Maybe I wouldn't keep it, but I would like to think that I would have it. But the choice is important. The ability to have a choice is absolutely critical. And, what's more, the United States of America is not, whatever anyone might say, a Christian nation. We are not a Theocracy. I cannot push my beliefs on someone else as law. It's Unconstitutional. When I receive absolute proof that sentience begins at conception, or perhaps absolute proof that sentience begins at a certain time of gestation, then I say, if we can say that without shadow of a doubt, then perhaps we can look at legislation, but not until then, and there can be no exceptions for rape and incest. Murder must be murder unconditionally (although perhaps allowances should be made if neither baby or mother are expected to live through the pregnancy?).
The point, however, of this post is not abortion or about how I'm liberal now.
This is the point:
I don't know where I stand on waterboarding. I believe torture to be wrong, but I also think perhaps it might be a necessary evil. When one man waterboarded can be weighed against the lives of thousands as in an event like 9/11, I think it might be ... not justified, but simply necessary. But I don't know where I stand and I want to be better informed. I want to have an opinion. Maybe my opinion will be the same coming out of this, but here's what I'd like: I want all of you reading this who have an opinion on the rightness or wrongness or necessity of waterboarding to please leave comments explaining your views or attempting to persuade me on mine. I will read all of them and take them into account. You are allowed to discuss with other people who reply, but please keep it civil. This is only a discussion. Any comment that condescends or attacks another person or their beliefs will be deleted.
Mind, I am not at all saying that all Conservatives are stubborn, naive, or loyal. I'm not even saying it's wrong. I'm just saying that my reasons for being a Conservative were wrong. But things changed. The Political Right caused a lot of problems for my family and led to a lot of heartache and destruction and hard times (for my family specifically). So I finally began to reevaluate my beliefs based on what I felt to be true and right rather than what I thought my parents believed to be true and right or what Christianity teaches to be true and right.
I discovered, much to my parents' amused chagrin, that I am, in fact, fairly liberal.
But the change was slow. It took most of high school. It took most of the Bush Administration.
But I remember one thing specifically that really blew my mind and changed the way I see things.
We were in IB English, junior year. Our assignment was to research a controversial topic, write a persuasive paper, and then give a fifteen minute speech on it. I, in my infinite stupidity and need to be different and noticed, chose Irish independence. It was ridiculous, I was not truly passionate about it, and my paper and speech were both awful. I'm not afraid to admit that now. There will be more on that in a post to come.
What's important about all this is that Abimbola Salami, my dear friend, chose to do her research on abortion. She argued Pro-Choice. One day, we were discussing it at our table. I think it was Danielle and Alison and Abi and myself and maybe Samantha Woods. I mentioned, I believe, that I personally was Pro-Life because abortion is murder except in the case of rape or incest.
And Abi asked me why it wasn't murder just because it was a result of rape or incest.
... And I didn't have an answer.
So I reevaluated things again and realized that while I, personally, am Pro-Life, and while no one is actually Pro-Abortion, I can't say what I would do in that situation and I definitely can't say what someone else, who may not share my religious beliefs, should do in that situation.
I'd like to think that I would choose to have the baby. Maybe I wouldn't keep it, but I would like to think that I would have it. But the choice is important. The ability to have a choice is absolutely critical. And, what's more, the United States of America is not, whatever anyone might say, a Christian nation. We are not a Theocracy. I cannot push my beliefs on someone else as law. It's Unconstitutional. When I receive absolute proof that sentience begins at conception, or perhaps absolute proof that sentience begins at a certain time of gestation, then I say, if we can say that without shadow of a doubt, then perhaps we can look at legislation, but not until then, and there can be no exceptions for rape and incest. Murder must be murder unconditionally (although perhaps allowances should be made if neither baby or mother are expected to live through the pregnancy?).
The point, however, of this post is not abortion or about how I'm liberal now.
This is the point:
I don't know where I stand on waterboarding. I believe torture to be wrong, but I also think perhaps it might be a necessary evil. When one man waterboarded can be weighed against the lives of thousands as in an event like 9/11, I think it might be ... not justified, but simply necessary. But I don't know where I stand and I want to be better informed. I want to have an opinion. Maybe my opinion will be the same coming out of this, but here's what I'd like: I want all of you reading this who have an opinion on the rightness or wrongness or necessity of waterboarding to please leave comments explaining your views or attempting to persuade me on mine. I will read all of them and take them into account. You are allowed to discuss with other people who reply, but please keep it civil. This is only a discussion. Any comment that condescends or attacks another person or their beliefs will be deleted.