I think what you might be missing is that the dark times of Pearl Harbor, Hitler and 911 were all perpetrated by someone else.

As much as Andy Rooney would like to ship them off to some desolate Island and revoke their "Americaness", we can't deny that they are part and product of our system. For the first time in my memory, "we" are- the bad guys.

Before, we simply pointed our finger across a gulf of righteousness to distinguish ourselves from our enemies. Now we are forced to look in the mirror and the finger is pointing back.

Hunter’s statement is not a comparison of the acts of the past with Abu Graib. It’s a painful inward look at an event that stands by itself.