This is one of those days when I’m proud to be an American. So proud that I’d gladly die for the America portrayed in a new Washington Post column by former CIA agent John Kiriakou condemning CIA torture.
I had an allergic reaction to something I ate the other day that set my body on fire with hives. Most days that’s how I feel as an American under the Presidency of Donald Trump.
Mr. Kiriakou’s column flushed me with the feelings that once made me volunteer for the draft and to fight in Vietnam. Those were holy days because they showed me that something was more important to me than my own life. I’ve never forgotten the sweetness of those feelings. But I’ll stumble to my grave recovering from the debilitating shame I brought home from Vietnam, because of what I had done and been a part of there, because of the searing first-hand knowledge I carry of the evil that my beloved country is capable of.
The honorable Mr. Kiriakou’s column, I went to prison for disclosing the CIA’s torture, gives me hope. I’m proud of Mr. Kiriakou. I’m proud of The Washington Post. They embody the America I love.
Larry Shook.com 