Douche-bag of the day

Today that honor goes to Joe Scarborough. When the best defense you can offer is, "It is! Because I say so!". The look of shock on Carlos Watson's face is actually genuine.

The old "torture works because I want it to", maneuver.

I have come to a realization on the torture issue. The pro-enhanced interrogation crowd has an easier case to make. It is a very visceral undercurrent to it. Most people on a basic level don't put much stock in psychology. They are individuals of course, and are not predictable. The idea that using softer means of interrogation, to gather information, flies in the face of all of our cherished cultural tropes. There is a conceit in there that only the guilty were tortured.

The belief that torture, more often then not, yields actionable intelligence is systematically taken apart here. I am not arguing that it never does (the whole a stopped clock is right thing), but that it does more harm to both our image, and our own security is my concern.

The main misunderstanding about torture is that it is used to gather new intelligence. It is not.

It is used to confirm information that the interrogator has. Meaning, you have an answer/hypothesis, now you are looking for confirmation. The other aspect is the coercive nature of torture, people just do not seem to understand that you will break. You will say whatever you think will stop the pain. Collectively we are view ourselves as the strong jawed hero. That is just not how it works. We all have our breaking points, and once there you will spew whatever you think your torturer wants to hear.

Star Trek: The Next Generation had an episode that actually did a good job of conveying this. Jean-Luc had been captured by Cardasians ( I may be wrong on this. I am sure Andy will correct me!) and was being tortured and questioned about Star Fleet. At the end of each torture session the interrogator asks Picard about the number of lights that he sees. There are three light globes every time, but the interrogator tells him there are four, and if he would tell him there are four the beatings would stop. Of course Jean-Luc does not. However in the closing scenes of the episode he is speaking with the ships counsellor (after a timely and successful rescue), and admits he was about to tell him there four lights. Not only tell his interrogator, but he had come to believe himself that there were four lights.

I am sure I am not doing the episode justice.

-Cheers