He’s out of touch, they claimed. He’s bitter. He should give it up…head back into the shadows, they said.

Critics were having a field day with Former Vice President Dick Cheney as he made himself very visible and very available to talk about torture over the past couple of weeks. One of his biggest bones of contention: the fact that the Obama administration was willing to (under request of the courts--based on an ACLU freedom of information request) disseminate photos of detainees being abused by the U.S. military. They supposedly weren’t as inflammatory or graphic as the infamous Abu Ghraib pictures that cost this country so dearly both in increased opposition and in irreparable harm of reputation…they reportedly weren’t as degrading or had the same shock-value…but they were nonetheless, likely to stir up more hatred.

The Obama administration, following its campaign-made mantra of transparency, said releasing them was the right thing to do.

Then, a light went on.

Somewhere, in someone’s head at the White House, the pistons began to fire and it was determined maybe this wasn’t the best idea.

Maybe there is nothing to be gained by releasing the images. Maybe they could only do more damage. Maybe, transparency doesn’t have to mean all dirty laundry, all the time.

I couldn’t agree more.

As a journalist it is indeed my profession’s purpose to shed light on that which is often kept in the dark. So criticism and calls of hypocrisy aren’t unexpected. But there are times when just knowing that something exists is enough. Not everything has to be seen, published, emailed and aired across the world…especially, if the cons outweigh the pros so much as to possibly instigate terrorist acts or inspire another generation of extremists.

Maybe that’s what the minds in the West Wing also pondered. Perhaps they realized, promising 100% transparency sounds utopian, but can lead to something very opposite. In fact, it’s very likely this administration is learning that the promises, the pledges and the vote-seeking vows may be full of the best intentions…but at 1600 Pennsylvania, very little is black and white.