{"id":122,"date":"2006-10-06T09:00:59","date_gmt":"2006-10-06T14:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/weeklyrob.dreamhosters.com\/?p=122"},"modified":"2006-10-06T09:00:59","modified_gmt":"2006-10-06T14:00:59","slug":"a-torture-primer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/?p=122","title":{"rendered":"A Torture Primer"},"content":{"rendered":"

blindfolded<\/p>\n

Slate (link on main page) provides a primer on torture techniques used (or allegedly used) by Americans. (<\/span>link<\/a>)<\/span><\/p>\n

Click the links at the top of the page to see all the pieces. The most interesting living room conversation is on the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Taxonomy of Torture\u00e2\u20ac\u009d page, where they discuss the techniques and their legality.<\/p>\n

I had a discussion with a right-wing friend recently who questioned whether the Geneva Conventions spells out what was acceptable and what wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. To him, we need clear definitions, because until now, we just don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153torture\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and what isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. To me, this stuff has been defined for a long time.<\/p>\n

If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re interested, check out the actual text of the convention. (<\/span>link<\/a>)<\/span><\/p>\n

One example:<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153corporal punishment, imprisonment in premises without daylight and, in general, any form of torture or cruelty, are forbidden\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Article 87<\/p>\n

Do we really have to define cruelty? Luckily, it goes further to explicitly say that they \u00e2\u20ac\u0153must at all times be protected, particularly against acts of violence or intimidation and against insults….\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Article 13<\/p>\n

But let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s leave Geneva aside for a second.<\/p>\n

In 1994, the U.S. ratified the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d (<\/span>link<\/a>)<\/span><\/p>\n

From that convention:<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153… torture means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating or coercing him or a third person, or for any reason based on discrimination of any kind….\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

I guess we have to define \u00e2\u20ac\u0153severe\u00e2\u20ac\u009d now, or some weasel will say, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153oh water boarding isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t severe suffering. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a walk in the park.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the same mindset that feels comfortable explaining that the Geneva Convention only protects POWs and Civilians. So therefore, when we want to torture someone, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll call him something else.<\/p>\n

First thing they scream is \u00e2\u20ac\u0153WE\u00e2\u20ac\u2122RE AT WAR!\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Let the president do whatever he wants! He has to protect us, because we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re at war!<\/p>\n

The second thing they scream is that the people sitting, uncharged of any crime, in a cell in Cuba were picked up ON THE BATTLEFIELD. You know, so they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re really really really bad. (Forget about those who were picked up in their homes after paid informants turned them in.)<\/p>\n

The third thing they scream is that these people, who we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re at war with, who were picked up on the battlefield, are not \u00e2\u20ac\u0153prisoners of war\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not \u00e2\u20ac\u0153civilians.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Torture away.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Slate (link on main page) provides a primer on torture techniques used (or allegedly used) by Americans. (link) Click the links at the top of the page to see all the pieces. The most interesting living room conversation is on the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Taxonomy of Torture\u00e2\u20ac\u009d page, where they discuss the techniques and their legality. I had […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,9,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-122","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-humanity","category-law","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=122"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=122"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=122"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weeklyrob.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=122"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}