Tread lightly on the things of earth

In response to yesterday’s Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) action message, The Senate Can Stop Torture, which points out that

Congress is in a bind. Many members of Congress are opposed to any legislation that would condone torture, secret prisons, or other programs that would undermine U.S. security, and violate the moral principles on which this nation was founded. But members of Congress are under pressure because the president is arguing that these techniques are necessary for the defense of the United States. Hearing from their constituents now could help them resolve this dilemma and do the right thing.

I respond, with full resolve, by writing my senators:

Dear Sen. _____:

I oppose torture with every ounce of Jesus-led spirit in me.

Therefore please do not vote to further U.S. use of torture, or to water down its definition, or to retroactively justify its illegal use in any way.

In fact, please act forcibly against torture — against every form of brutal, inhuman, and degrading treatment — and against use of secret prisons.

Very little in the world is black or white, but this is:

NO TORTURE.
NO EXCEPTIONS.

Thank you.

(FCNL is a “Quaker lobby in the public interest,” founded in 1943.)