Waterboarding, torture, et al.

Discussion of the interrogation technique "waterboarding" is all over the internets these days, particularly surrounding the confirmation of former federal judge Michael B. Mukasey as head of the DOJ.

I am sort of amazed and aghast that the legality waterboarding is even an issue. The right answer is "It doesn't matter if waterboarding is legal or not. The simple fact that it is borderline, and debatable to so many, means we shouldn't use the technique, because it should be the goal of any moral democratic nation to strive to be ethically right. We should err on the side of doing the right thing, and avoid actions that rub up against the border."

One of my ongoing frustrations with the current political milieu is that there is almost no discussion of ethics or right and wrong. People play fast and loose with ethics - particularly the current GOP administration - and then everyone haggles over legal details. Why won't anybody simply stand up and say "I don't give a rat's ass if it's legal or not, it's wrong, so we shouldn't do it"?