by James Glaser
November 15, 2005

On Veterans' Day I watched a home-town parade, and I could see the pride people had when the Color Guard passed by. Military personnel, men and women in uniform, and veterans saluted, while others removed their hat and covered their heart with their right hand as the flag passed by. Young children cheered and older ones clapped. For me, it is always a thrill to see the Stars and Stripes presented by American troops looking their best with marching music in the background.

That was Veterans' Day, and that parade made me feel good about being an American, but today, that good feeling and pride in country was taken away. I had a couple of e-mails asking me what happened to America, and those questions were accompanied with this quote from the Washington Post. "The CIA is holding an unknown number of prisoners in secret detention centers abroad in violation of the Geneva Conventions, it has refused to register those detainees with the International Red Cross or allow visits by its inspectors. Its prisoners have 'disappeared' like the victims of some dictatorships."

The people sending this question about what has happened to America are appalled that American citizens are not outraged with this knowledge, and really what could I say... we aren't. American citizens have seen the photos of what the Bush administration is doing to suspects. People, some children, put in straight jackets, chained and hooded, flown to an American base in Cuba, where they are left in small wire cages year after year.

American citizens have seen the photos of the sexual abuse of prisoners in Iraq. They have seen the photos of suspects in Iraq and Afghanistan, who have been beaten to death by American troops.

The world watches as poll after poll claims over 50% of Americans want our troops out of Iraq, but nothing happens and no American takes to the streets, except to watch a parade go by.

My country and your country now has the same kind of prisons that the Soviet Union had, the same that Saddam Hussein had, and we say nothing. Today those prisons are filled with foreign suspects and those are the people we torture, but what about tomorrow? Who will be put in those prisons then? If we don't speak up now, who will stop Washington from taking us or our children?

When Adolph Hitler came to power, no one stood up and said he was wrong, and today few are saying that George Bush is wrong. The Stars and Stripes of America are now tarnished and yes, dirty. When we find out everything George Bush has done in our name, we will have no pride. Many of us have already lost that feeling of trust.