To Transcend is to rise above. Those that have their heads in the air will not stay there, but will fall with devastating results. Just keep watching the next elections.
ping
Article: In short, the clash between Senator McCain, et al., and the President of the United States is more than just another political clash. It is part of a far more general, and ultimately suicidal, confusion and hand-wringing in the face of mortal dangers.
HUMINT: This statement nails it. Unfortunately it doesnt fix anything. Some jobs suck and there's nothing anybody can do about it. Compelling confessions makes interesting television - but doing it for a living is worse than treating sewage. In fact the two jobs are synonymous. Jobs to compel confessions are inherently rare and are almost always clandestine. Therefore there's very little social context to support their requisite coercive techniques.
What I think most people miss however is where and when torturous [as opposed to coercive] techniques are used. Inspecting the historical applications of torture and comparing those to acts of terrorism, one quickly realizes similarities. A torturer has no regard for the sanctity of the lives of their enemy - just as the terrorist is committed to exterminating their foes.
While the West is compelled to intrusively inspect the minds of terrorists and criminals, the objective is always to save lives. Alternatively, the Iranian government among other state and non-state actors - is committed to destroying dissent. While there is no moral equivalent to Western interrogation and medieval torture, the issue deserves juxtaposition. Where we are now [in terms of violence] is not where we want to be. Where they are now is exactly where our ancestors have been. No Red Blooded American will return to medieval society without a fight.
Our objective to transcend, not retreat.