The downside to "remembering" 9/11

[Ms2001]

*Originally posted by FoamChomsky *
**Note: While clearly torture is morally “questionable”, (to borrow the writer’s phraseology), I would suggest that this does not mean that the quality of the intelligence gained thereby is also “questionable”, as seems to be at the least implied from the juxtaposition of elements there. **

The intelligence gained from torture is not very useful. When you’re in extreme pain, you will say anything to stop it–whether it’s true or not–as long as it’s the kind of thing your torturers want to hear.

From an old KUBARK (CIA) training manual:

Intense pain is quite likely to produce false confessions, concocted as a means of escaping from distress. A time-consuming delay results, while investigation is conducted and the admissions are proven untrue. During this respite the interrogatee can pull himself together. He may even use the time to think up new, more complex “admissions” that take still longer to disprove.

[dropzone]

So what you are saying is that the confessions and conversions extracted by the Spanish Inquisition might not have been sincere? And that a witch really does weigh more than a duck?

[Dinsdale]

Foam - I’m not sure if you intended to respond to my description of some of the harms I perceive. All I saw in your posts was:

I of course defer here to the moral gravitas, if not the grammatical precision of “an individual who’s opinions and affiliations tend to reside outside of the mainstream”.

And I must admit I am unable to understand exactly what that is supposed to mean. Perhaps you are just too clever for me. But it looks unlikely that you and I will be able to conduct a meaningful exchange of views, at least on this topic.