[quote=patb][quote=afx114][quote=Allan from Fallbrook]You would be amazed what sitting down with someone over a period of hours or days can produce in terms of useful intelligence.[/quote]
Forgive me if I am wrong, but didn’t Saddam reveal some stuff to his guards after months of being buddy-buddy with them? What we should do with suspected terrorists is throw back a few beers with them, play some Lego Star Wars, break the ice, and shoot the shit — who knows what they might reveal.
[/quote]
in WW2, our naval interrogators got more out of German Sub Commanders
over a game of chess, then they would have ever gotten out of
a steam iron[/quote]
Psychologists believe that the trust factor is fundamental to human nature. Spending time questioning, probing, re-examining previous testimony will lead to breaks in the story–pieces that don’t fit. More than that, al Queda and other terrorist types no doubt, have been “conditioned” or brainwashed to think that the west (Americans in particular) are evil and will torture them and have prepared them for those outcomes. What a mind-fuck for them to be treated according to the conventions! Why not be the shining light of humanity and keep our esteemed and once distinguished world position as a nation of laws that adheres to what is morally right in the world?
Waterboarding someone over 100 times–when did the perpetrators start to think maybe this wasn’t effective? Did they just get bored each day and pull the same poor sap out of his cell for some more “entertainment?”
Oh, and here is a short excerpt from the Third Geneva Convention regarding POWs (and one of the participants in a “war” does not need to acknowledge there is a war for hte conventions to apply) for the person who didn’t think the conventions applied except to treatment civilians in wartime by their own government–that was the first convention:
Art 1. The High Contracting Parties undertake to respect and to ensure respect for the present Convention in all circumstances.
Art 2. In addition to the provisions which shall be implemented in peace time, the present Convention shall apply to all cases of declared war or of any other armed conflict which may arise between two or more of the High Contracting Parties, even if the state of war is not recognized by one of them.
The Convention shall also apply to all cases of partial or total occupation of the territory of a High Contracting Party, even if the said occupation meets with no armed resistance.
Although one of the Powers in conflict may not be a party to the present Convention, the Powers who are parties thereto shall remain bound by it in their mutual relations. They shall furthermore be bound by the Convention in relation to the said Power, if the latter accepts and applies the provisions thereof.
Art 3. In the case of armed conflict not of an international character occurring in the territory of one of the High Contracting Parties, each Party to the conflict shall be bound to apply, as a minimum, the following
provisions:
(1) Persons taking no active part in the hostilities, including members of armed forces who have laid down their arms and those placed hors de combat by sickness, wounds, detention, or any other cause, shall in all circumstances be treated humanely, without any adverse distinction founded on race, colour, religion or faith, sex, birth or wealth, or any other similar criteria. To this end the following acts are and shall remain prohibited at any time and in any place whatsoever with respect to the above-mentioned persons:
(a) violence to life and person, in particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture;
(b) taking of hostages;
(c) outrages upon personal dignity, in particular, humiliating and degrading treatment;
(d) the passing of sentences and the carrying out of executions without previous judgment pronounced by a regularly constituted court affording all the judicial guarantees which are recognized as indispensable by civilized peoples.
(2) The wounded and sick shall be collected and cared for.
An impartial humanitarian body, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, may offer its services to the Parties to the conflict.
The Parties to the conflict should further endeavour to bring into force, by means of special agreements, all or part of the other provisions of the present Convention.
