One thing that the current debate on U.S. torture policy proves is that the U.S. is just another country.
Tom Friedman proves it when, along with virtually the entirety of the country's political, intellectual, and media leadership, he says that
justice taken to its logical end here would likely require bringing George W. Bush, Donald Rumsfeld and other senior officials to trial, which would rip our country apart
This is a characteristic of a country which does not have national mission other than survival. It wants power and prosperity, but it's not a beacon of freedom or a city upon a hill. It's not and therefore never was the moral leader of the world.