Justification Of Torture

Justification on the Use of Torture for National Security While the idea may seem contradictory, countries around the globe use torture as a form of national security. As noted in the works of an online database, Opposing Viewpoints, reasons originating from the early 1800s in Jean Larteguy’s novel, Les Centurions, depicts the opposing justification of why such a method is necessary for safety (7). In his novel, Larteguy stresses millions of lives were saved because a French soldier tortured an Algerian rebel, thus justifying the use of torture (“Opposing” 7). As time prevails, the question of whether or not torture for national security is still justified through a social lens has led to an uproaring debate amongst many parties due to societal
At a time where advanced technological innovations such as smartphones had recently been invented, research condoned by political journalist, Gary Bauer, recalled “A 2009 poll of registered voters [where] ... [, 52%, thought] using harsh interrogation techniques on captured and suspect terrorists [kept] them safe by preventing and thwarting terrorist plots” (27). Government officials, in particular, tend to refer to such media as a justification for using torture. U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Antonin Scalia, was a defendant of Bauer “and his use of torture at an international legal symposium in Canada in 2007” ("Introduction to Is Torture Ever Justified?”). In turn, evidence conveys how support for torture expands beyond civilians to political figures who are appointed to serve for what is best for every
After having conducted numerous interrogations of his own, former veteran of the US Air Force, Matthew Alexander, came to the realization that more members were willing to cooperate with troops when they peacefully approached them while torturing them only did the reverse effect (34). Furthermore, a history professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Alfred W. McCoy, states in regards to bureau agent, Dan Coleman, that if a tortured man is “...going to be ashamed and humiliated... He’ll tell you anything you want to hear to get his clothes back. There’s no value in it” (qtd in McCoy). In the article of David Rose who is a contributing editor for Vanity Fair, he discussed the impact of seeing Abu Zubaydah tortured influenced F.B.I’s assistant for counterterrorism, Pasquale D'Amuro, to persuade director Robert Mueller to discontinue the bureau’s role in future C.I.A. interrogations in which use harsh and extreme techniques to extract information (47). After speaking with officials from both sides of Atlantic counterterrorist agencies , Rose discovered that “...coercive methods failed to generate significant and actionable intelligence, [and] have also caused the squandering of resources on a massive scale through ...[improbable] plots, and unnecessary safety alerts”(43). Evidently,