Unjustifiable Means

I just posted a rather long tude over at the 'Tude dealing with the latest technological innovations that the FBI has implemented in their wiretapping program.

We're getting ready to open John Patrick Shanley's Doubt at The Alley. Without giving too much away, it details the struggles of a Nun at a Catholic school to remove a perceived (by her) threat to the students by whatever means necessary. At the very end of the play she makes a terrifying declaration while attempting to justify her actions to her protege, a younger and much less life experienced Nun:

"In the pursuit of wrongdoing, one steps away from God."

Much of what has been going on in the past six years in the pursuit of wrongdoing and terrorism on the part of our government has been done while "stepping away from the Law, Justice, and Human Decency."

We must never forget that no matter what the deed being responded to and how dire the threat, the ends never justify the means. Acting otherwise only leads to reducing oneself to the same level as the wrongdoer, or worse, even lower.