THE MATTER OF TORTURE AT THE HANDS OF AMERICANS HAS BEEN ON public display for more than a year now as this book of essays and documents goes to print. In this past year, 2004–2005, we have learned much. We have learned that, starting in 2002, the abuse of prisoners from Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere took place at more than one American military prison; that ghost prisoners and ghost detention centers exist under American supervision; that the practice of rendition, sending prisoners to countries that torture, is practiced by the United States government; that the Bush administration supported a policy that narrowly defined torture and then declared abusive behavior permissible in the case of suspected terrorists, enemy combatants, and other detainees of the war on terror.

We have learned something else as well. We have learned that very few Americans are eager to engage in a debate about the revival of torture as an overt practice conducted in their name. Despite the appearance of pictures of abuse on television and in the print media, despite the publication of a wealth of documents and government reports attesting to the use of abusive, torturous methods, the public response has remained at best apathetic. It is not that Americans don't care about the introduction of torture into our language and our national identity, it is more that we are confused about how to address the issue. And in that respect, we have had very little guidance.