Would torturing of proved terrorists until they grassed, be better in the longrun?

Question

Religious or not, it would work - see how you would like it if your family was killed in the name of extremists.
Extreme Ironists and Extreme Cellists are OK.

This can be voted on.
Lots of lives wasted for the sake of saying this country is about peace? I'm going on a plane in a few days and that's very scary, and all those can be tortured for the sake of innocent peoples lives. Imagine yourself near the back of a plane, sucked forward toward a gaping hole, at 10,000 feet or more. Then what would you think? Should we allow it?

Answer 1

Torture is a terrorist tactic. A peace-loving democratic society should NOT involve itself in terrorist tactics, period.

Answer 2

As a nation we can't really hold ourselves up as an example of a free democracy and, at the same time, torture people who are only suspected terrorists. Remember, no one has been proven to be a terrorist yet by way of a trial. Like it or not, trials are how we find people guilty in this country and if it's what we are asking other nations to do too, we are going to have to toe that line as well. Personally I don't want to see Americans tortured abroad but can we ask other nations to honor that request without honoring it ourselves? Well, we can ask but don't expect anyone to listen. I think the best argument against torture is that it is not very effective. People who are tortured will say anything to make the pain stop (wouldn't you?) but the trouble is, it tends not to be true. All of the studies have shown that intelligence extracted by means of torture is of little value.

Answer 3

First you have to prove your captive is a terrorist. The USA have had people in captivity for four years without being able to bring them to trial. Secondly, forget James Bond, torture is rarely used to extract information. Its main use is to break the will of those opposing an oppressive regime.
How would you feel if your 18 month old son was taken away from you, and you heard his screams from an adjacent cell? They were pouring boiling water over his penis. Case authenticated. Parents only guilty of not belonging to the same ethnic group as the reigning government. I have more, but you probably don't want to know.

Answer 4

I think you're wrong. My files show that, in fact, it is precisely from among the ranks of the Extreme Ironists and the Extreme Cellists that the greatest terrorist threats are to be found. They must be tortured, sentenced and dealt with.

We'll make the Ironists listen to cello music and the Celloists do the ironing until they blab.

Answer 5

NO. That would be lowering ourselves to the same level as the terrorists.

Also, torture does not give you the information you need, just what the person being tortured thinks you want to know.

Is the Geneva Convention totally dead then? Is the civilized world just going to give up? I despair I really do.

"To this end the following acts are and shall remain prohibited at any time and in any place whatsoever with respect to the above-mentioned persons: (prisoners of war)

(a) Violence to life and person, in particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture; "

Article 3 of the Geneva Convention

Answer 6

no, torture has been proven to elicit unreliable confessions for thousands of years. However better controls on immigration and enforcement of political asylum systems would be better in the longrun.

Answer 7

Torture is very good at doing what it does - which is to get someone to rapidly tell you what they think you want to hear.

If I tied someone to a chair and slapped them until I wanted them to tell me a banana was a pear, I could given enough time and sharp, spiky looking objects. I'm willing to bet that with 48 hours, a team working shifts and a pair of suspiciously blood covered pincers I could have him or her claiming she was a product of immaculate conception born of one father only.

Torture will get people to tell a story. It won't neccessarily get them to tell the truth. Check out Bravo Two Zero if you want to read about standard resistance to interrogation tactics.

As a deterrent - I don't think it'd work either. If these people are prepared to die for their cause, I think they'd be prepared to be tortured to death for it.

Answer 8

Whats new? They are already torturing terrorists (mostly civillians), works out against them in the end (produces more terrorists)

Answer 9

No, first find out why they became terrorists in the first place and then give those responsible a fair trial and shoot them in the morning.
By the way who sold them the weapons paid for by American and British taxpayers. Now you have the answer!

Answer 10

No. If someone is being tortured they'll say whatever the torturer wants to hear to make them stop. The information is totally unreliable.

Answer 11

It would save a lot of innocents deaths. The world enjoys hearing about deaths more. The press, TV, radio etc earn a living spreading such news. Sad but it's true.