A prayer for the 4th

From TPM to me to you -- here's a great op-ed piece by a true patriot. I offer this link as a prayer on July 4th that this great nation will come to its senses and stop the sanctioned use of torture.

The Stain of Torture, by Burton J. Lee III, a former physician to the president to George H.W. Bush and a board member of Physicians for Human Rights.

It's precisely because of my devotion to country, respect for our military and commitment to the ethics of the medical profession that I speak out against systematic, government-sanctioned torture and excessive abuse of prisoners during our war on terrorism. I am also deeply disturbed by the reported complicity in these abuses of military medical personnel. This extraordinary shift in policy and values is alien to my concept of modern-day America and of my government and profession.

[...]
America cannot continue down this road. Torture demonstrates weakness, not strength. It does not show understanding, power or magnanimity. It is not leadership. It is a reaction of government officials overwhelmed by fear who succumb to conduct unworthy of them and of the citizens of the United States.

Amen to that.