All's Fair In WAR

Mercer University News is at it again. This time, a poll was performed, analyzing the views on "white evangelical southerners" regarding whether torture of captured prisoners for information should be performed. See the Pole Here

The "Golden Rule" was used to incite a slanted response. The findings are that apparently, when reminded of the golden rule, white evangelical southerners are more likely to change their mind if they are in favor of use of torture.

The poll results in a complete waste of time, as determining whether the golden rule could sway opinions on the matter of torture in warfare is simply a gauge of the ignorance of the one being polled. Jesus quoted a rule that was around before His own incarnation, and was referring to our everyday interaction with each other as humans.

The poll overextended the realm of this rule's application by invoking people's opinions about warfare practices based on the golden rule. Consider the logic - if you would do to others as you'd like for them to do to you, then when you capture a prisoner, you should let them go immediately. After all, isn't that what you'd want them to do for you? Therefore, if we are going to follow the golden rule in warfare, when we capture prisoners, we should let them go. For that matter, when we get into a skirmish with a small faction of terrorists on a battle front, we should just let them kill us without shooting back and risking the lives of the terrorists - after all, isn't that what we'd want them to do for us?