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February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
May 1, 2009
7 Iyar 5769
The Banality of Preening
By
Suzanne Fields
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Hannah Arendt was wrong. Evil is never banal. Evil is fascinating,
provocative and mind-focusing. Adolph Eichmann was probably a bore at a
Nazi dinner party, a dull bureaucrat following orders, but his acts
forever fascinate the human mind. We try but fail to understand how a
fellow human could do what he did without conscience, without regret,
without remorse.
What is banal is the moral preening of those who judge the way others
stand up to evil, who judge those who compromise in their human
fallibility to fight evil so that the rest of us can enjoy the good (and
the good life). What's banal are the pundits and partisan ideologues who
get their hands dirty only changing an ink cartridge but who seek
revenge on others who, acting in good faith, did what they believed was
right in thwarting evil. What's banal are those who round up the usual
suspects from history, usually the cliched villains of Nazi Germany, and
trot them out for comparison in show trials of their fantasies.
Shame requires that these moral purists make distinctions, sort of. "I
know it's offensive to compare almost anything to the Nazis," writes
Richard Cohen in The Washington Post, who proceeds to offend: "But the
Bush-era memos struck me as echoes from the past." Mark McKeon, who
prosecuted war criminals in Bosnia, concedes that the level of
Republican crimes does not approach the crimes of Slobodan Milosevic and
Saddam Hussein, but he would nevertheless punish "the most senior
government officials responsible for (contemporary torture) crimes."
The debate is not one of good vs. evil, but of moral abstraction vs.
grim reality. The debate has moved from saying that "torture is wrong"
almost everybody agrees with that, in the abstract to seeking
revenge against those falsely perceived as moral enemies in our midst.
It's easy to scorn lawyers who abuse the right to sue, but making
lawyers criminals for the advice they offer is alien to everything we
are as Americans.
Defending certain rough interrogation techniques to squeeze evil men for
information that could prevent catastrophe, at a time when everyone was
terrified, was commonplace, driven by common sense. Thousands of
Americans were regarded as at risk of mass murder by evil men plotting
mayhem. But now that the risk is regarded as small, even as nonexistent
by some, and the debate has moved away from preventing mass murder to
punishing those who in a moment of national peril thought the best
techniques were those that were necessary and legal.
What a difference eight years make. We forget the agony, the gruesome
details of death in the Twin Towers, when hundreds of Americans faced
the choice of jumping to their deaths or waiting to be burned alive or
crushed under the weight of collapsing concrete. We all felt that "there
but for the grace of G-d go I."
We've forgotten the sudden fear at the sound of an unexpected plane
overhead (though New Yorkers felt a reprise of that terror this week
when one of the president's planes flew low over lower Manhattan in a
training exercise), of our suspicious glances at the "swarthy" man
sitting next to us in a crowded theater, a sports arena or an outdoor
concert. We've forgotten how eagerly we embraced the tedious obstacles
to personal freedoms that we confront every time we board an airplane.
We forget how appreciative we were of George W. Bush that the outrages
of human decency following 9-11 were not in New York or Washington but
in Madrid and London. But it's not fashionable to remember all that this
season. The absence of mayhem is just a happy coincidence.
Few of us concern ourselves with how this happened. We don't celebrate
the illnesses we don't get. We usually appreciate the doctors who
administer the vaccine. In the years following 9-11, faith in
government "intelligence" was rewarded. We grew to put aside daily
fears because we felt the men and women in charge really were in
control. The intelligence agents were living up to their assignments.
If "mistakes were made," as the passive voice addresses uncomfortable
facts, we stopped making them. They're behind us now.
President Obama was right when he announced to the CIA that he wouldn't
punish those who followed "Bush administration guidelines." He was right
when he said he wouldn't look back in anger at the Bush administration
officials who approved of "enhanced interrogation," that "this is not
the time for retribution." We hope the president remembers that there's
nothing banal about keeping your word.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Comment on JWR contributor Suzanne Fields' column by clicking here.
Suzanne Fields Archives
© 2006, Creators Syndicate, Suzanne Fields
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