The fruits of Bush's war

I wish there was a punchline, but there isn't anything funny here. I know that blogging against the civil war in Iraq is getting old, but I found something new to be horrified about. Dig this:

"More than one-third of U.S. soldiers in Iraq surveyed by the Army said they believe torture should be allowed if it helps gather important information about insurgents, the Pentagon disclosed yesterday. Four in 10 said they approve of such illegal abuse if it would save the life of a fellow soldier.
In addition, about two-thirds of Marines and half the Army troops surveyed said they would not report a team member for mistreating a civilian or for destroying civilian property unnecessarily. 'Less than half of Soldiers and Marines believed that non-combatants should be treated with dignity and respect,' the Army report stated."
-- From the Washington Post

When we Liberals say we want to support the troops by bringing them home, we are often mocked for not having the stomach to defend America. But this illustrates quite clearly another way to care about those who serve our nation. We want them to come home with the same mental health and values that they went in with. We even hope that the experience of service will improve their characters.

But, as the war drags on, and men are forced to extend their tours and return multiple times, they are losing a bit of their humanity. In an environment where discipline comes from the top, the decay of values has to be coming from someplace. Either the leaders on the ground are not competent to command men (which I doubt), or our troops are getting serious mixed messages from the top.

This is why we have to be a champion for human rights for even the most horrific terrorist. This is why Guantanamo Bay must be closed. This is why we need to abolish the secret prisons, end rendition and come clean about what we have done. Because it is now clear that not only have we lost the respect of the world, we have polluted the minds and values of our brave service men.

We have to leave Iraq before we lose what it is to be American.