Do you think there should be torture of any kind?
By katran
@katran (585)
United States
May 2, 2009 1:28pm CST
I know that the United States has been buzzing about waterboarding lately and whether or not that constitutes torture. I personally do not care whether you LABEL it as torture or not, because even it is torture it is about as mild as you can get. I think I was tortured worse than that in swimming lessons as a little kid. I probably inhaled more water than that too.
We all know that a lot other countries in the world would pull out all the stops as far as torture goes if they caught an American, but many people say we should not sink to their level. While I think there might be some truth to that, I also think that we are not talking about playground fistfights here. We are talking about national security and the safety of our country.
So, in light of all that, I have a few questions for you:
1. Do you think waterboarding is torture?
2. Would you support more aggressive forms of torture in the interest of protecting our country?
3. If we do not use torture, what method would you suggest we use in order to get very important information out of people? Should we just give up interrogations altogether if they won't speak when we say please?
3 people like this
10 responses
@anniepa (27955)
• United States
3 May 09
1. Do you think waterboarding is torture?
Yes, I do. It's not the very worst form of torture, but it IS torture.
2. Would you support more aggressive forms of torture in the interest of protecting our country?
No, the United States doesn't torture, or never DID at least. There is no evidence it's protected us, certainly no evidence it would do any more than than other methods.
3. If we do not use torture, what method would you suggest we use in order to get very important information out of people? Should we just give up interrogations altogether if they won't speak when we say please?
As long as the experts say torture doesn't work and is unreliable and doesn't produce true information, I don't see how that works better than saying "please". However, I'll leave it up to the experts what alternate methods should be used.
Annie
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
3 May 09
I've told you many times Annie that the EXPERTS, including Dennis Blair Obama's OWN DIRECTOR of National Intelligence say enhanced interrogation, including waterboarding DOES work and has gotten us high value information. Just an FYI, Kieth Olbermann is NOT an expert.
@katran (585)
• United States
3 May 09
Who are the experts? What sources are you using? Are you getting this information from the government or from a left-wing blog? Because I have heard that, although it does not work 100% of the time, it has worked. And, of course, NOTHING work 100% of the time.
If there was evidence from experts that it does usually work and that it has given us valuable information, would you change your mind?
@deebomb (15304)
• United States
2 May 09
Yes I think it is a form of torture. I just finished watching an interview with a Vietnam POW. He was really tortured with his tied behind his back until his shoulder blades touched each other while in leg irons then was doubled in half as his arms were pulled up. After this he couldn't use his hands for weeks. This went on for weeks and months for 7 years. He never did give the Vietnam officers what they wanted. What they did get was misinformation. So in my opinion torture most likely wouldn't work. Not being a psychologist I would have no idea but possibly some strong mind games.
@Adoniah (7513)
• United States
2 May 09
It used to be that Things like that were kept secret from the enemy and were much more effective. Now that it is blabbed all over the news it is not at all effective because the enemy is prepared for it. There is no fear involved when you know what is coming.
Our country will now have to come up with something more aggressive than waterboarding to get the terrorists to talk. They will also have to keep it quiet in order for it to work.
Yes waterboarding is torture, but so are a lot of things that we have been doing to these people. Once you start, you cannot backpedle. Not to mention we are working with people that treat each other worse than anyone in this country would ever treat an animal.
I am not into torture, but I would suggest that we do what they do to each other or their women in the future to get info. That should humiliate them. They seem to react the best to forms of humiliation. Make them wear a Burka in front of their women and relatives. That should do it.
Shalom~Adoniah
@pawilliams1 (51)
•
3 May 09
Difficult one this because you are treading on people's human rights, potentially whether a state engages in torture or not.
Firstly, there is the human rights of the person being tortured. I believe that everyone has the unalienable right to live without fear of being tortured.
But there again, there is the human right of everyone in the community as a whole NOT to be blown up by a terrorist. Again, everyone should be able to live without the fear of being killed by a terrorist.
So it is a judgement question. I would say that if there is credible intelligence that someone can provide information that would save people's lives then the use of extraordinary methods of gaining that information is justified. One person may have to suffer a little bit but if it saves the lives of tens, hundreds or thousands then it must be worth doing.
@Mikaela_taz25 (1842)
• Philippines
3 May 09
I believe that Interrogations had been the best method of getting an information of that person and believed it or not it works most of the time.but since some methods had been made Public, the Human Right Activist are more concern on Human right violations. So, if interrogation is removed then it will be hard to gather more information
@peavey (16936)
• United States
2 May 09
1. No, I don't think waterboarding is torture. We use it to train special forces!
2. More aggressive than waterboarding? Yes. It's the President's job to protect the people of this nation. If torture is what it takes to get information that could save another 3000 citizens of the United States, he should have the courage to OK the use of it.
3. If we don't use torture, we'd have to give up interrogations if they won't give information - even if we say pretty please and promise them a cookie.
@laglen (19759)
• United States
2 May 09
1. I wouldn't put a label on it but support it.
2. yes more aggressive
3. see above!
I think that we should use what ever means necessary to get the info we need to keep us safe. For people that think other countries would not, the dwarfs probably killed snow white.
@goldeneagle (6745)
• United States
2 May 09
I would say yes. As long as the information obtained saves American lives, I don't care how they go about obtaining the information.
@spalladino (17891)
• United States
2 May 09
1. No, I can think of several better examples of torture.
2. Definitely yes. I'm tired of this country being so PC about every da*ned thing when there are/could be American lives at stake. Pull out a few fingernails and see how fast someone talks.
3. Nope, I vote for torture...the worse the better. It's not like we're dealing with civilized people who play by the Marquess of Queensberry rules.
