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>Talk About It

1. Who do you think is responsible for what happened at Abu Ghraib? The people who did certain things? The people who told them to do certain things? The people who put them into that situation? What about the prisoners themselves? Who is "innocent" and who is "guilty"? Can you distinguish them? How, or why not?
2. What do you make of Jeremy Sivitz's claim that he was trying to be a "nice guy" and that he was punished because "being a nice guy doesn't always pay off"? What bad things have you been tempted to do because you wanted to be "nice" to someone? Was it easy to take a stand? Hard? Would you go easy on someone like Jeremy for just trying to fit in? Would you take a stronger stand?
3. Do you think these people have come to terms with the wrongness of what they did? How much of what they say sounds like excuses or explanations, and what's the difference? Does it sound like they are in denial? How would you explain that? How have you accepted or denied your own actions in the past?
4. How quick are you to believe the images that you see in the media? Did this film make you see any of the Abu Ghraib images in a new light? In a light that surprised or shocked you? Why do you think some images are better known than others?
5. One of the interviewees says the situation in Abu Ghraib did not seem "weird" to her because it took place in the midst of a war. Does war change things? Some Christians reject war because it involves killing people; others say killing people in the line of duty is tolerable, on some level. Does a similar ambiguity exist with regard to interrogations and treatment of prisoners of war? Are there any limits? What are they?

For further discussion, read Christianity Today's story, "5 Reasons Torture Is Always Wrong."

The Family Corner

Standard Operating Procedure is rated R for disturbing images and content involving torture and graphic nudity (consisting entirely of images and videos shot by the military police at Abu Ghraib, including images of battered bodies, men being forced to masturbate, etc.), and for language (a couple dozen four-letter words).

Photos © Copyright Sony Pictures Classics

© Peter T. Chattaway subject to licensing agreement with Christianity Today International. All rights reserved. Click for reprint information.

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