The difference between us and them

It was easy in the old movies. The good guys wore white, the bad guys black. You could tell the villains by their clothes, their accents, or even the color of their skin. It doesn't work like that in the real world. Terrorists come in all shapes, sizes, and beliefs. They can be white, yellow, or brown. They can be men or women, Christian, Hindu, Jew, or Muslim. There are no obvious differences between "us" and "them". The difference is in our ideals. The violence of beheadings, the massacre of innocents - these evil tactics are the difference between us and them. They believe that the ends justify the means. The U.S. Senate recently voted 90 to 9 to pass a bill that prevents our military from torturing prisoners. We are different from the terrorists. For us, the ends do not justify the means. The day after it passed, President Bush denounced the bill. He claimed that the end of stopping terrorism justified the means - torture. There is a line in the sand between "us" and "them". It is a fragile line, drawn only by our morals, by our ethics. We cross that line at the risk of becoming as evil as those we fight. The ends do not justify the means. It is not worth winning the battle if we lose our souls.