US waterboarded three senior al-Qaeda operatives

CharlesFeb 5th, 2008 - 20:18:11

Think of all the deluded hyperbole that has been associated with this issue...

Evil Cheney or Rove salivating as they strip the skin from helpless screaming victims (most likely children)...

While you were reading this AQ really did murder someone in horrific fashion.

What has caused supposedly sane people to engage in this 'transference' whereby the evils of AQ are superimposed on the US and its leaders?

I just have to shake my head.

Report this comment

HurrayforwaterboardingFeb 5th, 2008 - 21:14:51

Better than having your head chopped off. They don't seem to protest that

Report this comment

MHFeb 5th, 2008 - 21:40:09

If it saved one innocent life, it was well worth it.

Report this comment

philFeb 5th, 2008 - 21:55:32

the people who don't want any one to be water boarded, live in a dream world.they don't seem to understand that we are at war with real nut cases who would cut off their heads without even thinking about it.

Report this comment

InquisitorFeb 5th, 2008 - 23:23:38

Let me at them and they will beg for water boarding as a break.

Report this comment

tonny from belgiumFeb 13th, 2008 - 09:15:25

All the above posters forget a few thingds ;First of all people being tortured will confess anything,even false stuff,whatever you ask from them they will comply.So what is the result in terms of efficiency?
Second point is that you lose moral superiority ,when you use methods you claim to combat in others ,there is no more difference between you and them .
Third point is that untill a just trial is carried out,these people are suspects,and should be treated as such,whatever their crimes might be .
I see too much posts based on primitive hate and lack of thinking and it makes me wonder sometimes ,is there any diefference between the thinking patters of these supporters of torture and the islamic taliban.Scary thought for which they are responsible,not me .I just hope other people have more sense.

Report this comment

CharlesFeb 14th, 2008 - 21:59:35

'First of all people being tortured will confess anything'

You are an expert tonny? Sure the information should be confirmed, but you can be pretty sure that there are times when people do really 'break' and confess. If a hardened terrorist is not willing to cooperate, I think it is reasonable to try to coerce him to do so. It should be documented and reported and the people who do it should be accountable. It is not something anyone should be proud of. It should not be done for shallow propaganda or sadistic reasons. It is unfortunate that terrorists create circumstances where coercive interrogation is required at all.

'Second point is that you lose moral superiority, when you use methods you claim to combat in others ,there is no more difference between you and them.'

Why do these obtuse arguments circulate and get traction?!? If I kill a terrorist who murders innocent people, that does not make me a terrorist or his equivalent. That is just stupid. If I use coercive methods (sleep deprivation - even waterboarding) to interrogate a terrorist, it is not the same as a terrorist drilling holes in the knees of captured innocents in order to inflict pain (or slicing off their heads for that matter).

If tonny and others cannot comprehend the difference, then they are immune to reason.

'Third point is that untill a just trial is carried out,these people are suspects,and should be treated as such,whatever their crimes might be'

Says who? Under what legal jurisdiction do you make that broad claim? A 'just trial' in a time of war might be a soldier's millisecond decision to pull the trigger. That might be perfectly legal by any normal standard. Perhaps it is an officer deciding that the captured 'suspect' is not in a formal uniform of a combatant and therefore subject to immediate execution as a spy? Maybe they should be interrogated and then shot?

A terrorist is not a civilian. A terrorist is not a prisoner of war.

From Geneva Conventions:

4.1.2 Members of other militias and members of other volunteer corps, including those of organized resistance movements, provided that they fulfill all of the following conditions:
-that of being commanded by a person responsible for his subordinates;
-that of having a fixed distinctive sign recognizable at a distance (there are limited exceptions to this among countries who observe the 1977 Protocol I);
-that of carrying arms openly;
-that of conducting their operations in accordance with the laws and customs of war.

A terrorist should think very hard before they create situations of mortal danger for innocent people who must be protected by what we already know are imperfect means. The police, the legal system, the military - all very blunt instruments. That will never change. what is the latin for 'terrorist beware'? People who support terrorists should be aware of same. Their support creates situations where necessarily blunt force must be applied and where innocents may suffer unintentionally.

I agree that these processes should be closely monitored and certain criteria should be established and challenged/maintained so that extreme interrogations are not abused.

'primitive hate and lack of thinking'

It is the primitive hate and lack of thinking by terrorists that create these unfortunate situations.

'is there any diefference between the thinking patters of these supporters of torture and the islamic taliban.'

As I mentioned before, just because you cannot comprehend the difference, does not mean there isn't one.

Report this comment