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Shayne Looper: Who we were, who we are and who we aspire to be Comment By Shayne Looper More Content Now MailTribune.com By Shayne Looper More Content Now Posted Dec. 30, 2014 at 9:18 AM Updated Dec 30, 2014 at 9:23 AM By Shayne Looper More Content Now Posted Dec. 30, 2014 at 9:18 AM Updated Dec 30, 2014 at 9:23 AM » Social News On Dec. 9, a Senate Select Committee issued a report on CIA interrogation methods that focused on the use of “enhanced interrogation techniques.” The report was clearly flawed. Nevertheless, it brought to the light a policy that all Americans should denounce. According to Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va ., who served on the committee, the interrogation process failed on five major points. First, the program was conceived by people who had never met a terrorist and was conducted along the lines of untested theories of interrogation. Secondly, the people performing the enhanced interrogation techniques lacked the necessary linguistic skills, interrogation training and real-life experience to know whether the process was working. Thirdly, senior officials failed to provide sufficient oversight for the program, which was fraught with the personal and financial conflicts of those involved. Fourthly, and most disturbingly, the techniques used were brutal. The acronym “EIT,” despite Dick Cheney’s denials, means nothing more or less than torture. Finally, the quality of the intelligence gained from the ruthless treatment of detainees was suspect, and claims that it prevented further attacks or saved Americans’ lives are doubtful. To someone who grew up watching old war movies in which the Americans acted with honor, regardless of the ruthlessness of their enemies, the report is deeply distressing. As a follower of Jesus, I find it simply appalling. Freezing a man to death, threatening to rape and murder a detainee’s children, placing a man in a coffin-sized box for 11 days, and perpetrating other acts of torture — in one case on a man later discovered to have been wrongfully accused — these are not the kind of things that Americans do. They are certainly not things a Christ-follower can approve. Some people have argued that, while excessive, these methods were necessary to protect innocent lives. But how do we know that? Even the director of the CIA cannot say that these techniques provided life-saving intelligence that could not have been otherwise obtained. And even if it did, are we willing to corrupt our character and stain our national honor to obtain that information? Are we willing to become the kind of people we deplore? Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., himself a victim of torture as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, put it this way: “The main reason to oppose its use ... isn’t about our enemies; it’s about us. It’s about who we were, who we are and who we aspire to be. It’s about how we represent ourselves to the world.” McCain hit the proverbial nail on the head. It’s about who we were, a people who stood, at great cost to themselves, against Nazi brutality. It’s about who we are, a nation that promises “liberty and justice for all.” And it’s about who we aspire to be. Ah, but who is it that we aspire to be? On that point, I think, there is confusion and a lack of consensus. We no longer share a common vision, one capable of evoking our aspirations. As the biblical proverb rightly warns, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” This lack of an inspiring vision helps explain the bitter partisanship that has crippled our government in recent years. We cannot find common ground on issues of immigration, race and taxes partly because we have no guiding vision of who we want to be. We can’t decide on a road because we’re not sure where we want to go. There have been calls for a national conversation on these issues, but that conversation keeps turning into a shouting match for just this reason. Before a national conversation about legislative issues can be productive we need to have a conversation about national aspirations. What kind of nation do we want to be? That may be, in our increasingly pluralistic society, a long and difficult conversation. One thing I hope we can all agree on: we do not want to be the kind of people who resort to torture when we’re afraid. Shayne Looper is the pastor of Lockwood Community Church in Branch County, Michigan. Read more at shaynelooper.com . By Shayne Looper More Content Now MailTribune.com By Shayne Looper More Content Now Posted Dec. 30, 2014 at 9:18 AM Updated Dec 30, 2014 at 9:23 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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