Be careful of how you phrase your arguments, Scott. ;)

Justice is fierce. Mercy is mild. Neither is weak, but neither stands alone well. Justice must be tempered by mercy or it becomes Manichaean. Mercy unsupported by justice will begin to invite the attention of bullies.

The argument rests on whether US actions are, in fact, justice. Hence the continued hollering about showing the proof to the world (which, if done, would also give ruinous hints about how such proof was gathered and compromise our ability to defend ourselves in the future). If we didn't care about justice, we wouldn't even bother to insist we have gathered proof, but just go in with guns blazing. If we didn't care about mercy, the carpet bombing would have begun on September 12. The diplomatic initiatives would have been laughed out of the Oval Office.

I don't believe two wrongs make a right. It makes ethics sound too much like algebra. That doesn't mean that the right thing is always pleasant, peaceful, or perfect. And -- please correct me if I have you wrong -- I think that is what you were getting at.

I don't think capital punishment is any more effective as a deterrent than life imprisonment, either, but that's a different discussion. :)

Mary Anne