Amidst the current sturm und drang over whether or not torture was a good idea post 9/11, I feel like I am not hearing an important viewpoint. People argue about whether torture is a useful way to get intelligence from suspects. The preponderance of opinion I have heard from professional interrogators is that it is not a good method of getting quality intelligence. Meanwhile, former Bush officials say that it did help them get information that headed off terrorist attacks. I have a hard time believing anything they say, but hey, who knows?
What I don’t hear is this: torture is wrong. But what if we can get useful information by using torture, that can protect the lives of United States citizens? It’s still wrong. It’s evil. It’s sickening.
If you advocate torture, what are you defending us from? You have already brought the worst into our midst.
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3 responses so far ↓
Rick Wolff // Apr 24, 2009 at 2:57 pm
I can remember a pre-9/11 defense of torture from Alan Dershowitz, on the talk-radio circuit. He suggested the most extreme scenario. At the time, I thought he was from Mars. So did most else, including the most conservative commentators. But his arguments were cogent, and as impassioned as any of his arguments.
Jonny // Apr 24, 2009 at 2:59 pm
Which is to say very impassioned, and not very cogent.
dahveed // May 1, 2009 at 9:28 am
I just don’t want to put the country through the horrible bloodletting of prosecuting the Bush administration to the fullest extent of the law. I just couldn’t stand to see Bush, Rumsfeld and Cheney being carted off to an international prison, perhaps even rendered to one in Uzbekestan(sp?) or Egypt. It would just be too much for me or my fellow patriots to take. Of course, we might learn something important about government complicity in the banking collapse…
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