I’m by no means alone in being a fan of the NPR show This American Life. Its a finely crafted production, that at its best comes off as a little magical. Last night I listened to their Peabody Award winning episode “Habeas Schmabeas“, about the Bush administration’s misadventures in denying Gitmo detainees the right of habeas corpus- a bedrock principle of the western civilization they are trying to protect. It moved me.
Assumption of innocence and fairness are expectations of American society that I take for granted. It’s unacknowledged piece of mind that I won’t be accused of wrong-doing without evidence. The choices I make, in what I write and read, where I go, and who I meet are done so without fear that they will draw the wrath of my government or my neighbor.
Many people in the rest of the world don’t share the luxury of predictable consequences faith in fairness that I have, and it sickens me that my government is playing a role in perpetuating that deficit.
Listen to the show. It’s good.

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