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To: VeritatisSplendor
I don't know, it seems to me that if the worst you can do is take away comforts, it would be relatively easy to resist giving interrogators information.

I know it sounds easy. Just consider these things.

Most people, when their lives are transformed into a seemingly endless cycle of exhaustion, fear, and misery, will opt to break and accept the rewards. Most Americans don't know the understand exhaustion, fear and misery more severe than the cable going out, and think that they could shrug off most any discomfort while in enemy hands.

Right.

I've also known many people who have gone to Army SERE school with the attitude of 'screw em, I'm not tellin them jack'. They've all come back with their tails between their legs. All of them. The reality of being a prisoner, under the 24 hour supervision of trained, intelligent interrogators isn't something most people can adjust to, be they jihad hardened terrorist or fearless Green Beret.

The difference is we use harsher tactics at SERE school, i.e. in TRAINING, than we do in real life. No real terrorist is going to break under harsh language. No results can be expected with kid gloves.

There are some people that simply won't break. You may be one of them. Statistically, we can and have gotten the results we've wanted out of the majority that do break, with tools that are not brutal or violent.

I'm not an interrogator. I realize I can't accurately convey what they do, and I wouldn't if I could. I do work with interrogators, though, and I know they're smart people used to making do with less than most other countries, and still getting results. What's going on now, is that they have no tools, nothing.

43 posted on 07/03/2004 10:39:11 PM PDT by Steel Wolf (Iran almost has nuclear weapons. They will get them unless we stop them.)
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To: Steel Wolf
There are some people that simply won't break. You may be one of them.

I'm not putting myself in any special category. I just find it hard to believe that a strong-willed, well-trained person would break under mere "discomfort". I am sure many of the Iraqi prisoners were neither strong-willed nor well-trained, and that the tactics U.S. interrogators used, which were not torture, obntained plenty of information.

In saying this, I am not arguing that the "discomfort" techniques are ineffective, nor am I arguing that we should legalize torture. I'm just pointing out the big gap between what we can immorally obtain (with real torture, inflicting physical pain) and what we can morally obtain (since the more important prisoners ought to be well-trained enough to resist interrogation that can't use torture).

44 posted on 07/04/2004 11:09:36 AM PDT by VeritatisSplendor
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