What the studies say is that at a certain point the person tortured will break and will tell you:
The truth (nope)
What they think you want to hear to make it stop (yep).
It's not reliable. In many cases, I think torture is used as a means of revenge because the enemy or the information you're searching for is elusive.
Water boarding, sleep deprivation, electric shock yeah we can pretty it up but it's all torture. I think those that torture are war criminals and I they should be prosecuted as such (regardless of reasons, regardless of political affiliations).
I also think if you torture as a matter of policy you are setting a bad precedent for when your citizens are captured by someone else. So, even from a pragmatic view I think it will bite you.
Black and White issue for me.
The truth (nope)
What they think you want to hear to make it stop (yep).
It's not reliable. In many cases, I think torture is used as a means of revenge because the enemy or the information you're searching for is elusive.
Water boarding, sleep deprivation, electric shock yeah we can pretty it up but it's all torture. I think those that torture are war criminals and I they should be prosecuted as such (regardless of reasons, regardless of political affiliations).
I also think if you torture as a matter of policy you are setting a bad precedent for when your citizens are captured by someone else. So, even from a pragmatic view I think it will bite you.
Black and White issue for me.
The secret of poetry is cruelty.--Jon Anderson