Why Torture is Always Wrong and Never Works
72Torturing another human being is unexcusable, no matter the circumstance. Some may justify that the knowledge a terrorist might have could save millions of lives, and that in this case, the ends justify the means. To an extent I agree that the loss of an individual's well-being to save so many others can sometimes be justified. However, torture can not be justified in this way because it is incapable of achieving it's end; torture is not only inhumane, it is also very ineffective.
When an individual is tortured for information, that person will say anything you want them to. While being tortured, an individuals number one priority is to make the pain stop by doing whatever the torturer asks. However, if you are torturing someone, they probably don't have much respect for you, and will have no qualms about lying their ass off. If a torturer is trying to get information about a certain subject, he obviously lacks the information he needs, and has no way of being able to tell whether or not the person being tortured is being truthful. Therefore any information from a person being tortured is unreliable and unusable.
Torture also promotes terrorism. Terrorist actions against Americans stem from hatred for and a lack of respect towards our country.Whenever we torture a terrorist, members of his organization can use him as a poster child: "Look at what the Americans are doing to our people. Look how inhumane they are. Look at how badly they treat us." This just fuels the fire of hate. This is similar to John Oliver's Hornet Nest Theory of terrorism: if a hornet stings you, the best thing to do is to follow it back to it's nest, and hit it with a big stick.
Though we may hate terrorists for what they have done to our soldiers, torturing them is not a solution. It only continues the cycle. The best thing to do to captured terrorists is to treat them humanely, and give them, and other like-minded individuals, less reason to hate our country.
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Its not contradictory. Im saying that torture is not justifiable, even though sometimes the ends MAY justify the means. In the case of torture, the ends definitely do not justify the means, because torture can't actually achieve the ends it pursues.
I think your second paragraph is an attempt to parahprase me? If so... I think your analogy is kind of wacky.
Who is the Anti-Thor?
It's supposed to be a bit wacky. The point of the second paragraph is to demonstrate an example where torture IS justifiable. Your claim that torture is ALWAYS wrong seems like it could be easily refuted. (hence the hitting example) The question of torture is less about whether it's right or wrong and more about how right/how wrong. Everyone knows ripping someones guts out and peeling off there skin for a chance at information is bad. Likewise, if you were to save a hundred lives with the info gained by by punching someone in the face, it would seem to me to be excusable.
The answer to the torture question(which i do not claim to have) is not yes or no, it relies on qualifying the amount that is justifiable.
I know, but I don't think it can be so easily refuted. I think that punching someone in the face will NOT get you the information to save a hundred lives. If punching a guy could get you the information you need, I would be for it. But, I think the information gotten that way is necessarily unreliable. How can you possibly trust information from someone who is being tortured?
Torture is wrong. And it doesn't work. And it's against international law. And if we do it our own soldiers may be subject to torture. END TORTURE!
Hey thursty! So let me see if I understand, they can cut off the heads of innocent people, but you're worried about whether they will tell the truth? Who cares? We can't be in a war with combatants that don't wear uniforms and have absolutely no morals or sence of decency and try and be politically correct. If you want to beat these idiots you teach them what terror is!
Without the people identifying who the bad guys are we have to show them crossing us is worse than the alternative. They have to know we are serious and the level of desruction they suffer will be equal to thier level of cooperation. These morons want to wipe out a people and a country and hold the rest of the world hostage! I say where are the cattle prods!
RD who cares what a group of pansies in Europe or any where else think?I say don't put troops on the ground where this might become an issue. We have the technolgy to blockaid a country and create a modern siege machine. You must break them thats how the evil in WW2 was brought to its knees. Don't be a pansie stand for something! We didn't ask for this they brought their evil to our house!
Don't be a wimp! Don't be a liberal! Man-up! Peace
They gave up an human rights.
They gave up their human rights.
WHEN HAS ANYONE EVER GIVEN UP THEIR HUMAN RIGHTS??
The Anti-Thor 2 years ago
"Torturing another human being is unexcusable, no matter the circumstance...To an extent I agree that the loss of an individual's well-being to save so many others can sometimes be justified."
this seems a little contradictory. If I were to hit someone in the face and even have the possibility to prevent an attack and save lives then it seems to me to be morally accepted. It seems to me that torture in some cases could be excusable.