Fighting Them Over Here

Eschaton regular dave™© posted the following excerpt from an article in this weeks' New Yorker about the wingnut responsible for "24," a show I don't watch, but which I understand is highly influential:

[U.S. Army Brigadier General Patrick Finnegan, the dean of the United States Military Academy at West Point] told the producers that “24,” by suggesting that the U.S. government perpetrates myriad forms of torture, hurts the country’s image internationally. Finnegan, who is a lawyer, has for a number of years taught a course on the laws of war to West Point seniors—cadets who would soon be commanders in the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan. He always tries, he said, to get his students to sort out not just what is legal but what is right. However, it had become increasingly hard to convince some cadets that America had to respect the rule of law and human rights, even when terrorists did not. One reason for the growing resistance, he suggested, was misperceptions spread by “24,” which was exceptionally popular with his students. As he told me, “The kids see it, and say, ‘If torture is wrong, what about “24”?’ ” He continued, “The disturbing thing is that although torture may cause Jack Bauer some angst, it is always the patriotic thing to do.”

With all due respect, Brigadier General Finnegan, the disturbing thing is how people who fail to grasp the need for America to respect the rule of law and human rights manage to get admitted to one of the most highly selective institutions of higher learning in the country.

Oh, wait. I understand. Admission to West Point requires nomination by a member of Congress.