What are your thoughts on torture?

[Tim]

I'm curious to see how the members on the board feel about torture...

 

[pjbleek]

voted...

 

[Tim]

I just saw this the other day and I found it quite interesting.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The more often Americans go to church, the more likely they are to support the torture of suspected terrorists, according to a new survey.

source...

Why do you think this is?

 

[RedRyder]

Bible toting folks supporting torture of suspected terrorists? Interesting survey.... What religion?

 

[HottyToddyChick]

I want desperately to say yes, but my stomach just churns at the thought of being tortured and I could never wish something on someone else that I wouldn't want for myself.

I think it has to do with the wording, maybe. I don't know if it's justifiable so much as a last resort or a necessity depending on the situation, but not sure about justifiable....

 

[BadBoy@TheWheel]

If you gave me the choice:

Water board this person...and save 5 lives...I'd do it

Even though by UN standards, as well as our own military...Water boarding isn't torture

Just sayin'

 

[BadBoy@TheWheel]

I just saw this the other day and I found it quite interesting.

source...

Why do you think this is?

Propaganda. It's about as bullshit as the NRA

 

[satinbutterfly]

I can't decide. Yes, we could possibly save hundreds or thousands of lives, but at what cost? If we can do it, then we have to accept that it will be done to our soldiers. I'm not sure I could have that on my conscious.

 

[Tyler Durden]

For me, if it's to save the lives of our troops and civilians, then it has to be done. To what level, I'm unsure, I'm not so knowledgeable on the forms of torture to know which are the most effective and impactful whilst quick and least life threatening. And yes, of course this opens up the opposition to be able to torture our own soldiers to. I don't want to be brutal, but I guess that is the risk you take joining the military...that you MAY one day be captured and tortured. There job though is to defend civilians and our way of life, so I guess that is part of it however horrid it is to imagine

 

[Lord Stanley]

i have never read any concrete evidence that torture saves the lives of anyone, Dick Cheney says it does, he wants secret files made public to prove his point, i wish the CIA would do as he says, i think he knows they wont

i voted never

 

[Springsteen]

If it's absolutely essential then it has to be done. It shouldn't be done just for the sake of it though.

 

[jassilem]

At this exact moment I am quite favourable of it.. but only to one certain person!

 

[Alien Allen]

Define torture

At another site they are arguing about this topic.

I do not think water boarding is torture. And if anybody had a loved one who could be saved by getting info from somebody by doing that I bet they would ok it every time.

 

[RedRyder]

Define torture

At another site they are arguing about this topic.

I do not think water boarding is torture. And if anybody had a loved one who could be saved by getting info from somebody by doing that I bet they would ok it every time.

I think I'm gonna agree with you here. It's easy to look away for some when it's not all that close to home..... or right in their own back yard so to speak. Easy just to change the channel or the topic and move along.

If it were my father, brother, mother, sister, husband, son, daughter, etc..... you can be damn sure I'd want answers no matter how they were obtained.

...... I am not a regular church going person either, but I do believe in God.

 

[KpAtch3s]

Torture for no apparent reason I disagree with, but torture to find out information that is pertinent to our national security and saving lives is 100% justified. Our enemy will do whatever they feel needs to be done.

All's Fair in Love and War.

To put it bluntly:
People die, get injured, and are tortured in war. It's part of war and can't be avoided. Get over it.

 

[canidae]

I think it all depends on the situation, as others have mentioned. Tim says "suspected" terrorists in his poll. If everything was black and white, then I'd like them to be confirmed as terrorists before anything happens to them. Of course this is not the case, so what do you do?

And what are people's views on it being said that "we" are no better than the terrorists if we're going to torture them?

For me, it's too easy to sit here and decided what should happen. My attitude changes back and forth depending on what I think the truth is . . .

 

[All Else Failed]

If you do some research into the Spanish inquisition, you will be very interested in the fact that torture was universally seen as not a reliable way of extracting information.

 

[Meirionnydd]

If you gave me the choice:

Water board this person...and save 5 lives...I'd do it

Even though by UN standards, as well as our own military...Water boarding isn't torture

Just sayin'

Yeah..

Even though after World War 2, the Allies executed Japanese generals for torture because they waterboarded Allied P.O.W's,

 

[Accountable]

"Suspected" terrorists? No, absolutely not.
Confirmed enemy of the USA? Sure, as a last resort to prevent the otherwise inevitable death of innocent people, US fighters, or our allies. That means the event to be prevented must be in the immediate or very near future.

BTW, "terrorist" is a specialist, not an organization. A war against terrorism is a war against blanket-bombing with B-52s. What was Shock & Awe if not a campaign designed to induce terror in our enemies? A terrorist is no different than a sniper. Should we convict all successful snipers of murder?

Euphamisms piss me off and confuse an issue. Terrorism. Enhanced interrogation techniques. Police actions. I just wish people would say what the hell they mean.

 

[GameCrazed]

To say "waterboarding isn't torture" is the most pathetic thing I've ever heard.

Seriously, waht the Hell are you talking about? Causing someone pain for the sake of causing someone pain is torture. It doesn't matter if it's "nescessary to preserve our non-violent way of life" or it's "unpreventable when we choose it" doesn't change what it is.

For my money, if you can't even own up to your ideas you probably shouldn't hold them.