re: #687 SixDegrees

Good points. I agree.

But in the case of waterboarding, I think we do have a working definition that describes it as torture — the definition we apply when our own captured troops are subjected to it.

If our own government classifies this as torture when it’s done to our troops by the Vietcong and the Japanese, and we try to use it to train Navy SEALs to resist torture, there’s just no doubt — it’s torture.

That’s why I keep imploring people to simply acknowledge this fact, and then we can deal with the important question, which is: are there times when it’s justified to use this form of torture?

I agree with Charles Krauthammer (as usual) on this: there ARE extreme situations in which it’s justified to use waterboarding. But we should go into it with our eyes wide open, knowing full well what we’re doing, instead of ducking and dodging and denying the truth — because that’s how you get into big trouble.