The horrors of Bush-era torture revealed:
“You would like to place Zubaydah in a cramped confinement box with an insect. You have informed us that he appears to have a fear of insects. In particular, you would like to tell Zubaydah that you intend to place a stinging insect in the box with him. You would, however, place a harmless insect in the box. You have orally informed us that you would in fact place a harmless insect such as a caterpillar in the box with him.”
UPDATE: Via CK MacLeod Andrew Sullivan says this is “how democracies die” (some would argue this is how democracies become butterflies). Glenn Greenwald, in his typically restrained fashion, calls it “unbelievably ugly and grotesque.. sadistic criminality,” though that probably more accurately describes Glenn’s prose.
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It would seem to me that this method of “Torture” is much more of a psychological torture than physical. I would guess, without having any direct knowledge, that many of the “Tortures” you would see the US government directly involved in would be in this category. Water boarding, insects, confinement, solitary, sleep deprivation are all psychological tortures. Here’s the rub, as far as these types of tortures, and the MANY more that more creative people than me can think up, they don’t really become what the left describes as “Torture” until they actually WORK. Every little boy has stuck a creepy crawly in some little girls shirt somewhere along the line, would anyone suggest we send them off to a war crimes trial and reeducation? It’s when information is actually obtained, or when tapes are discovered, or prisoners speak of unspeakable crimes again humanity, like they took away my holy book, or put a wet bag over my head, or put a fuzzy caterpillar in my socks, that the left REALLY gets in a twist. So I ask, what method of getting people to tell stuff they REALLY don’t want to tell would you after the fact say it’s NOT torture?
I’ll suggest that they be sent off for a war crimes trial as soon as they are keeping the girl imprisoned indefinitely without trial.
So I ask, what method of getting people to tell stuff they REALLY don’t want to tell would you after the fact say it’s NOT torture?
The standard technique for domestic law enforcement to extract information from gangsters and the like is to threaten them with a (fully legal and due-processful) draconian punishment for a relatively minor offense (decade-long prison sentences for drug possession, etc), complete with the threat of prison rape.
This, apparently, is not torture.
Eric,
Only if they’re terrorists being threatened by Republicans.
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