re: #176 Killgore Trout

I don’t see Obama as being rah-rah about torture, though. It’s entirely possible torture is continuing at those gray sites. But he’s not making long, twisted arguments about why it’s okay and how it really produces good intel. I don’t know whether torture is occurring at those sites; as I said, I hope it isn’t given that torture is the stupidest way to go about getting intel, but it’s possible we’re still being stupid. It’s possible Obama knows about it. I don’t know. I do wish that I did know.

I think people are kidding themselves if they think Obama’s treatment is morally superior. It’s just an illusion because it’s under the radar and out of the press. I actually think he’s much harsher and I don’t consider that a bad thing.

I’m a little puzzled by this, since it involves a ton of assumptions. The only thing you actually know is that rendition still occurs and we still have overseas prisons. There’s no reason to believe there’s more torture going on.

If what you’re referring to is the drone strikes, I do think it’s morally superior to kill an enemy than to torture them. It’s hardly picking posies from the Basket of Moral Wonderfulness, but torture combines cruelty and pointlessness in an ugly way.