On Monday, April 13, Richard Butler, a British journalist working for CBS, was "rescued" by Iraqi forces from a house in Basra where he had been held for two months after being kidnapped. He was "in very good health condition, mentally and physically," according to the Iraqi Defense Ministry.

On Thursday, May 1, Sami al-Haj, an Al-Jazeera journalist was released by American authorities from U.S. custody at Guantanamo after six years of imprisonment. Upon his arrival in Khartoum, the Associated Press Reports, "He was put on a stretcher and taken straight to a hospital."

The release of the two journalists, within thirteen days of each other may have been purely coincidental, but maybe, it's the first sign of a prisoner exchange. They have one of our journalists, we have one of theirs, let's make a deal.

The Butler release reminds me of the Jessica Lynch "rescue". You may recall that Jessica Lynch was freed from an Iraqi hospital by U.S. special operations forces one day after Iraqi troops had abandoned the building. Butler was freed by American trained Iraqi troops who stumbled across him while on another mission. Butler told Iraqi state television that, "the Iraqi army stormed the house and overcame my guards and they burst through the door." Three of his guards escaped, but one was captured according to what Butler told the BBC.

Mr. Butler had been seized from the Basra Sultan Palace Hotel one day after the Iraqi police had demanded a list of people staying there. His interpreter was also seized, but was released three days later.

Reprieve, a British human rights organization, had been actively pursuing the release of Mr. al-Haj. Reporters Without Borders had been active on behalf of Butler. It would be comforting to think that they worked together and managed to arrange an exchange.

From the beginning of our war in Afghanistan, we have behaved like bullies. The Geneva Convention was not created because the world had suddenly become a nice place. It was created and observed because both sides, in any war, recognized that both sides would capture prisoners and neither side wanted its soldiers tortured. Afghanistan and Iraq were different. In our bullying conceit we were sure that our enemies would never capture any of our guys, or if they did they would have no place to hold them. So, we disgraced, tortured and water boarded the prisoners we captured.

In doing so, we have lost all moral authority to protect the men and women who serve, or will serve, in our armed forces. We have set an ugly precedent that endangers anyone who fights for the United States. We have done our armed forces a massive disservice.

I hope the release of the two journalists is really an exchange of equals. I hope that somewhere in our government someone has finally come to realize that what we do unto them, they can, and will, do unto us.