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Thursday, May 01, 2008

Images speak louder then words, in this case.

View this prior to reading this post.

Before you click that link, let me warn you, it's Amnesty International's newest anti-torture advertisement. It's NSFW and graphic.

I've got a problem with torture being used to get information out of people. I've got a big problem with the fact that my government, the United States of America, is currently engaged in it. I recognize, Amnesty International is appealing to the emotions of the viewer with the format and setup of this commercial. I can't however, say that this should be discredited because of that or that it should be discredited because it is not a depiction of an actual waterboarding session.

As a BDSM aficionado, I realize that waterboarding has been around for a while. I recognize that in some contexts, this and other torture techniques can be used in a non-injurious fashion. So, the question is not if the practice of waterboarding itself is abhorrent. It's a question as to if torture as a mode of interrogation is abhorrent. I think one can add also the question if torture used as a punitive measure is abhorrent as well.

Perhaps because I am not an expert, or some how otherwise well placed to say with any authority on the topic, my stance here is going to be disregarded. Perhaps, I'm sad to say, my stance would have been ignored anyways. After all, I am but one person in a nation of many and I am in the middle-lower end of the economic spectrum. We all know "he who has the gold rules" and such. All of this said, I still have to say my piece, again, on this topic.

Torture is wrong as a punitive measure and as a mode of interrogation. If it were consensual and all parties involved were willing participants in all stages of the planning and enactment, with provisions made for the care of any accidental injury, this entire situation would be different. Safety, however, is not a primary concern when torture is applied as a punishment or as a tool to pry information out of someone. And I am quite sure that all parties are not consensually involved in the planning or enactment of this, especially the subject of the action.

There's alot of reasons why I can describe as to how torture is wrong to use for these instances. I've gone over them in the past, as well as the emotional appeal against torture. I can't say anything more then the images of that video I've linked to, however. And I doubt that my meager words fail to convey the injustice of this practice used as a punishment or tool of coercion when they're compared to the sound of the scene at 1min 9 sec.

If this is the sound of a man who consensually entered into this situation, assured of his safety and knowing that this was the extent of what would occur; what of the one who is subjected to this under duress and doesn't know if he is going to be drowned or if something worse is going to happen when they finish?

Spread the link, make people aware of it and ask the question:

Why are we condoning this with our silence?

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