Do "terrorists" derserve rights?

Question

In a recent question I pointed out that the Republicans in congress intend to legalize torture of American citizens. Including the rape and torture of American children.

"John Yoo publicly argued there is no law that could prevent the President from ordering the torture of a child of a suspect in custody – including by crushing that child’s testicles."

One of the responses I got was that "terrorists" don't deserve ANY rights. Do you agree with this statement? It goes against all prior US law.

Don't you worry that non "terrorists" could accidently be labled "terrorsts" and unjustly tortured?

That's what this bill allows

I can't believe that there are people on this site justifying the crushing of childrens testicles.

Your just as bad as the terrorists.

You guys are fearful and pathetic. You're buying into the propaganda.

3000 - 4000 people died on 9/11 we've killed many times that amount in the years since who are the terrorists?

Answer 1

Not everyone is a terrorist, and that must be defined before any rights should be removed. America is at war ignoring the Geneva Convention rules of POW's just calling it terrorism. This is no more than war crimes.

Answer 2

It isn't right, but who's going to tell the US that? These are still people - with their own experiences in life and their own upbringing. If we're to truly set a good example then we shouldn't torture.

The US can't have it both ways - it can't wage wars without enemy soldiers. Labelling the insurgency as 'non-combatents' is a wickedly ignorant brush-off of an angry and scared population. A great deal of people in custody have't even been charged for years! Everyone should have their basic human rights in place when their own ethics are put into question, because of the possibility of being completely innocent.

See a lot of people are going to say "you're crazy.. they're just all evil mad terrorists". The US would often stand out of the crowd at the UN, and be the only one voting against things like all people should have access to clean drinking water, things like that time and time again. It's ethically and morally wrong in every way; so now who looks like a bunch of evil terrorists?

Answer 3

Its more about what we are as a people, than what terrorists deserve. When we discuss the "allow-ability" of torture we are saying that in some specific cases we can be reduced to the primitive level of our enemies, that, in effect we can do the uncivilized and become uncivilized ourselves. How do we ask a man to torture another human being and not lower our morality in doing so. Surely you don't expect a member of congress who votes for allowing such a bill to actually do the deed. So the whip and brand would be delegated to someone else. Don't we all find that a bit unnerving, and what kind of man would that be, and would we have to terminate the torturer because how can you do that to another human and still kiss you wife goodbye in the morning?
I could even see it happening if you knew you could get useful information, but all indications are that with enough pain, and / or disorientation, you just get garbage because they want it to stop. So its fairly useless, unless you are a friend of the dear Marquis.

Answer 4

For those old enough to remember the "Cold War", you must remember the horrors that were supposedly committed in the Soviet Gulags, or the treatment given to the enemies of the state by the Gestapo during the 2nd world war. We in the west thought the Chinese were the lowest thing on the planet for their torturing of their own people. Are the people of the US so desensitized as to condon the same and worse being carried out by the authorities in your own country? Ironically the most death Penelties are handed out by China, Saudi Arabia,and the USA. The US is being viewed now in the same way that these other countries have been seen for some time. I imagine the USA, as far as torture goes equals Saddam, if not worse. Is this image the one you really want for the so called "Land of the free and home of the BRAVE" It doesn't take bravery to torture so called confessions out of defenceless prisoners. Most of them are guilty of nothing. The major crime for the guilty is defending their homeland from invaders. It's time for some serious self examination. "Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely". I have never seen a truer example than what is happening right now.

Answer 5

There are no US or international laws regarding terrorists. They are simply lumped into the groups protected by the Geneva Convention. There are several problems with this:
1) Terrorists don't wear uniforms.
2) Terrorists do not serve any particular country.
3) Terrorists use women and children to reach their goals.
4) As I type, thousands of new terrorists are being indoctrinated in countries such as Pakistan, where for hours, children bow to the US flag and the Israel flag and chant "Death to America, death to Israel."
5) Terrorists who are captured within the US usually have plans for an attack. If the hijackers of those four planes had been captured prior to 9/11, and interrogated harshly, perhaps 3000 people would not have died that day.
There is a distinction between terrorists and POW's.
No, I don't worry that "non-terrorists" could be caught and interrogated harshly or tortured. Take the prisoners at Guananamo for instance; they are NOT your normal, run-of-the-mill POW's OR criminals. These are people who would not hesitate to strap a bomb to their own children, or to themselves, if it means that they'll be able to kill some Americans or Jews.
HONESTLY. I don't even know why I'm bothering to explain this to you. Perhaps it's in hopes that you'll actually pay attention...but that's a really distant hope.

The bill you speak of which supposedly gives the right to the government to "crush a child's testicles" DOES NOT EXIST. Period.

Answer 6

A terrorist is only a terrorist when someone in authority through our legal system has determined under law that person is a terrorist, or has committed crimes against our nation. We are now using Terrorist as a catch all phrase just like weapons of mass destruction was used so much to justify attacking a nation we'd already bombed silly for 10 years. The newsmedia controlled by those in power know how to use buzz words to get people worked up--otherwise why would we attack a country that had no ties at all to the 9/11 attacks, and leave other nations with obvious links like Saudi Arabia alone? That wasn't our agenda. Our agenda was Bush's pre-election agenda: he was going to get Saddam because "he tried to kill my daddy" (although Daddy probably also tried to kill him using the CIA).

These are troubling times to me. Not because of the minor, isolated attacks on the WTC and the pentagon, but what our govt is doing in response that seems to make no sense. We keep gnats off of airplanes our security is so tight there, but our ports, borders and places of mass congregations of people such as football stadiums are sitting wide open. In my opinion, there are not that many terrorists, and the newsmedia and the govt has hyped it up so much to justify its actions. Does make you wonder why all of our govt buildings are now fortresses, while a suicide bomber could easily kill hundreds or thousands at the local mall.

It is also troubling that so many people support what our govt is doing in the name of another buzz word, national security. Football mentality I guess--we have teams and we scream and cuss and fight if our team of decent young guys lose to another group of decent young guys, as if winning or losing a sporting event is the most important thing in the world. Really mirrors what we are doing as a nation.

Answer 7

Every living being deserves rights!
Terrorists also deserve rights because otherwise the govt. can lable anyone as a terrorist and torture him. How do you establish before a judgement is given that he or she is a terrorist? A terrorist kills your brother/sister but even in case of a WAR the enemy soldier kills your army men. Why both of them shouldn't be treated at par?
We can have a different set of procedure for the court which is trying a terrorist. Not all of the rights which are available to an ordinary prisoner could be settled for a terrorist. And, that procedure should be under judicial review by a higher court.
We do not want a Hitler type regime again. Or do we?

Answer 8

This “righteous” administration has set back any chance we have of becoming the USA we have always aspired to be. They have set back the concept of us being a civilized country by constantly acting more and more barbaric with the jingoistic waving of the flag with total disrespect for all those brave men and women who have forth to defend with honor serving bravely wherever and whenever we sent them into harm’s way. They use the name of Jesus to inspire their hordes and then act like Satan. When did two wrongs ever make a right? Our so-called leaders act without any intelligence and then try to justify their own terror evoking misinformation by getting the simple minded to become a mob of blood thirsty savages. We once had utopian dreams of becoming a civilization that would inspire the world to copy. Let us not let that motivating dream turn into a nightmare by following this fool who calls himself the POTUS drag us into the pits of hell. The powerful are driven by greed and nothing else. They will use whatever fabrications will further their dream of living in opulence while they let their devotees live in poverty and laughing all the way to the bank.

Answer 9

A person is innocent until proven guilty. At least that used to be the rule in the U.S.

80% of the inmates at Abu Gharib were innocent, and it's estimated that a similar proportion at Gitmo are also innocent.

If they're being held without changes for years and years, how is their guilt or innocence to be determined? By the fact that they were arrested? By the fact that they confessed to interrogators under extreme distress or even torture? This is not American justice.

Answer 10

Since you are so quick on wanting to give terrorist rights, then if anyone killed your child they should just walk away without having to answer for their crime????????
No one in this country ever crushed a childs testicles as torture....
Children in this country don't get tortured...Apparently you are not from this country, which explains your confusing question.
Somehow you are misinformed on what you are talking about, or you just want to start a rumor....(Not having It !!!!)

Answer 11

To answer your question I'd like to ask you one. Do you support the death penalty? Because if I am not mistaken. Ever since we've been doing this. (U.S.) we've only been right about half the the time. That's all of our executions that our criminals have had since day one. Doen't that make you feel bad for those who died in the name of Justice and we're innocent the whole time?