Read it and weep

“The ONLY thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” This quotation, attributed to Edmund Burke, popped into my head as I read about Philip Gourevitch’s book “Standard Operating Procedure” [“He’s Still Waiting for the Outrage,” by Josh Getlin,” July 3]. This book is one more discouraging indictment of a society that has lost its moral compass. Gourevitch states that the general response to Abu Ghraib was shock followed by apathy.

The Talmud states: “Who can protest and does not is an accomplice to the act.” By this standard, we have millions of accomplices to torture, justified as necessary in the defense of our freedom and values.

James Fournell

Anaheim