I was at this lunch meeting with Hayden described on the front page of the Washington Post, but the article, which focuses on the 1970s abuses by the CIA, unfortunately does not at all relay the substance of the questioning by the historians present. I wish Hayden had kept his canned speech and it was just a question session.

I was thinking that instead of asking challenging questions about why the CIA refuses to release the presidential daily briefings still held classified, the highly educated audience should have stood and simply and flatly and clearly told Hayden that it is appalling and shameful that our country tortures people, and highly decorated individuals confess to that openly, and we do nothing but sit and listen and maybe wring our hands.

Shame on us. Shame on him.

Wonder what it is like to be in a civilized country that has embraced aggressive war and immorality as its cardinal principles of policy? We live in one. And we are sitting here going about our daily business and acting as if this is not happening. It is not a far step from having a government kidnap and torture people arbitrarily as it is to have a government kidnap and murder people arbitrarily. Ask the Germans. People went about their business in that country as well.