I have frequent debates with Republicans about why it is important for America to stay true to its values regarding Human Rights as well as the treatment of prisoners and the Geneva Conventions. China painfully illustrated to us one of the more important reasons why. How can we and our state department lecture the human rights abusers of the world on their practices when we take respected American and World edicts on the subject, like the Consitution and Bill of Rights, and the Geneva Conventions so lightly? The answer is, we can't. We, and more specifically, the Bush administration and congressional Republicans, have made a mockery of ourselves and our values and those whom we would like to influence to improve are taking full advantage. As reported by the Associated Press, here are some choice quotes from China's State Council in response to US State Department criticism:

"For a long time, the life and security of the people of the United States has not been under efficient protection ... Blacks are given heavier criminal penalties, arrested more frequently and are more likely to be targeted for hate crimes

As in previous years, the State Department pointed the finger at human rights situations in more than 190 countries and regions, including China, but kept silent on the serious violations of human rights in the United States... [It is] an act that fully exposes its hypocrisy and double standard on human rights issues

Since the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, Muslims have been targeted for arrests and detention under 'the banner of 'anti-terrorism,'...

China's report It also criticized American foreign policy and detailed prison abuse by American troops in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay, accusing them of using "various kinds of torture" while trying to "extract information."

The report also touched on gun ownership in the US, secret wire taps, accusations of torture in Guantanamo Bay and Iraq, the homeless and poverty rate in the US

Finishing off the humiliation, the Chinese said "We urge the U.S. government to look squarely at its own human rights problems, reflect what it has done in the human rights field and take concrete measures to improve its own human rights status."

I have to thank the Bush administration and the Republican controlled congress for this. I don't get enough humiliation on a daily basis and thanks to our trampling on our own Constitution and values, we've opened ourselves up to loads of it. The Chinas out there are now lecturing us on Human Rights, throwing back our words in our collective faces. I can't help remembering with irritated irony that the administration that did this was the one whose campaign promise was to bring honor and dignity back to the White house. Well, they lied and did the exact opposite. I hope all Americans remember that a betrayal of our values and worldwide embarrassment is what we can expect from electing Republicans to the White House.