So what is torture anyhow? That's a question that the apologists for torturing U.S. prisoners of war are quick to take advantage of. They try to paint things like, say, simulated drowning, as "not torture".
Personally, I have an easy answer to that question. A human being is a human being, whether two years old, 22 years old, or 72 years old. If you do it to a two-year-old child, will the child be taken away from you and then you go to jail for child abuse? Then it's torture.
If you put a two-year-old child naked into a cold room for days at a time, with a lightbulb turned on 24 hours a day, will you go to jail for child abuse? Then it's torture when you do it to a 22 year old.
If you tie a two-year-old child to iron rings in the wall with rope so the child cannot sit down and rest and sleep, will you go to jail for child abuse? Then it's torture when you do it to a 22 year old.
If you pour water onto a two year old's face until the two year old is frightened out of his or her mind thinking he is drowning, will you go to jail for child abuse? Then it's torture when you do it to a 22 year old.
If it's not okay to do it to a two year old, it's not okay. Period. People are people, regardless of their age, abuse is abuse regardless of age, and abuse or torture is wrong, period. People who try to justify abuse of anybody make me want to look at them suspiciously -- and I sure as hell wouldn't trust them with a two-year-old kid. Someone who would torture a 22 year old certainly isn't going to blanche at torturing a 2 year old, and is not to be trusted with anything that relies on people having even a modicum of moral values.
-- Badtux the Torture Penguin
excellent analogy.
ReplyDeleteHot damn if you didn't hit the nail on the head right there, BadTux.
ReplyDeleteThe Bulldog Says...
I spent a tour in Cambodia in the early 80's and saw first hand what humans could do to people of any age, from newborn to old age. The Khmer Rouge didn't care about age. They would wipe out an entire village including dogs and other livestock to get one person, or because they felt like it. At least... if the village was lucky, they were simply killed. Otherwise they were raped, mutilated. bodies broken, and left to die. Some would become a meal for the packs of wild dogs and other animals. Some were still alive.
ReplyDeleteAnd I saw a lot of tortured people of all ages. I won't describe more of what I saw.
10 years after my tour, I could handle visuals (war movies etc). But it took a lot longer for me to get over the smell. I almost became a vegan, not because I believe in the vegan cause, just so I could eat without getting upset or throwing up.
Two of my team suicided. One there, another 2 years after.
Torture didn't do Pol Pot any good, and he had millions tortured. It didn't do the USA in Vietnam any good, the USA still lost (And the US Army and Intelligence Services water boarded many VietCong there).
Torture is not a tool for getting accurate information (intelligence). It's a tool of fear and terrorism. It's a tool used when you want the *enemy* to fear you. And they do. And so they should. The use of torture is an act of terrorism. It's as simple as that. Anyone who condones torture is a terrorist. It is also a tool of the insane or power mad. Those who believe they have power over life and death.
The USA is engaged in 'State Sponsored Terrorism'. And the history books will show this for centuries to come.
"The moving pen writes, and once writ, not all your piety nor wit can erase but a word of it."
Any American who thinks the World doesn't know, that the World isn't watching, that the World doesn't care, that believes that once Bush is gone all will be forgiven and forgotten, is a complete fool.
Cheers!
Oops!
ReplyDeleteThat quote should be: "...moving finger writes..." *sigh* been a long time since I've thought about Khayyam. There are other variants... :)
Here's the original translation by Fitzgerald of Omar Khayyam's original Arabic Rubaiyat (quatrain)
ReplyDeleteThe Moving Finger writes; and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all your Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all your Tears wash out a Word of it.
-- Omar Khayyam
Most Americans (that have ever heard it, and are not Literary Academics) think it's American! LOL But sorry... was written by a rag head! Oops! ;)
PS Tux... can you delete one of the two comments above. The first didn't show up for some reason, so I did the 2nd with some mod's. :)