”Few people would feel remorse about massive retaliation were any aggressor to use WMDs against the US.”
Retaliation that removes the likelihood of a repeated attack is one thing. Attacking innocents to pay back a dictator is another thing … a heinously evil thing.
”Even if it were only one of our population centers that was targeted and victimized, popular outcry would demand turning all of the aggressor's cities into a obsidian parking lot. Of course, this would result in the instant murder of millions of innocent civilians, with millions more dying slow deaths from radiation poisoning. I think I'm correct in my assessment of the reaction of the American people under such a scenario.
You are not correct about me but I speak only for myself.
”Thus, when it comes to torture, mutilation, and/or execution of our soldiers, merely for having been captured, our enemies face no consequences. We generally treat their people with a measure of respect, and certainly we don't immediately behead them in a public manner, if at all.
I don’t believe this statement in its entirety. Anyone who committed the crimes above should be tried and executed … in a respectful manner of course.
”In fact, none of the Al Qai'da detainees have yet to be executed. So where is the deterrent factor that might persuade Al Qai'da fighters to treat our POWs with respect? Every Al Qai'da member knows that the worse treatment they will receive is some rudimentary physical discomfort and interrogation, and then they will be sent to the over-crowded prisons such as Abu G or Bucca, where they eventually will be released and back out to commit more terrorist acts.”
Are you sure about that? Because if that is true, we are screwing up badly. However, I don’t see how torturing them would improve the situation for us.
”In WWII, when we caught a sabouteur or spy, they were tried (usually by military tribunal) and executed. During the Battle of the Bulge, 18 German commandoes wearing US uniforms (Operation: Grief commanded by SS Colonel Otto Skorzeny) were executed as spies.
I am not against executing war criminals.
”So where is the deterrence that would motivate them to abide by the GC? There is none.
Quit screwing around and kill them on the battlefield. That would deter them permanently. Surrendering to us should be just as permanent. You are capturing them hoping to benefit somehow and since you don’t you seem to want to get some satisfaction out of torturing them. Right?
Me:…The use of torture ends up being more about the torturer than the torturee….
”And it's no different with committing acts of warfare.”
There is a tremendous difference for those who chose to make a distinction. There is a certain kind of nobility a soldier may (or may not) possess regardless of which cause or side of an issue they may be defending. There is nothing honorable about torture and it is never justified by any incidental cause, it is in fact abhorrent to all of humanity across time and circumstance; and is, therefore, condemnable in all occurrences.
”We are all horrified by the idea of American soldiers torturing enemy detainees, believing that it somehow dehumanizes our soldiers and turns them into animals. But how dehumanizing was it to our bomber crews knowing that women and children were being blasted and fried by the bombs they were dropping from 5 miles up?”
I don’t know. I am against targeting innocents. Is there any follow-up info on the guys who crewed in the bombers that dropped nukes on Japanese cities?
”I hope that I'm never placed in such a situation.”
Me too.
”But I know that were an innocent person to die as a result of my failing to use all necessary means to safeguard them, it would cause me far more stress than using "aggressive interrogation" techniques in an attempt to keep those innocent people from being victimized.
I don't necessarily lump agressive interogation with torture. You don’t see that as a contradiction? You seem to be saying it is ok to target an innocent person to bring harm to your enemy… That is IMO the definition of a terrorist. At what point would you say we have become what we started out to stand against? |
