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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
Menachem Wecker: Business Schools Teach Real Estate Despite Troubled Housing Market
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Jan. 29, 2009
/ 4 Shevat 5769
Torture must remain an option
By
Michael Smerconish
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
If President Obama had read The Philadelphia Inquirer on Tuesday, he would have seen this headline: "'We're proud' of 9/11, Guantanamo pair say." What followed was an Associated Press story on what could be the last session of the war-crimes court in Guantanamo Bay.
"We did what we did; we're proud of Sept. 11," said Ramzi Binalshibh, a senior al-Qaeda member. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the 9/11 mastermind, echoed that sentiment, and at one point asked that his lawyer be removed because counsel represented the "people who tortured me."
Torture was on Obama's mind in his inaugural address and two days later when he signed an executive order outlawing aggressive interrogation techniques. "I can say without exception or equivocation that the United States will not torture," the president said Thursday.
His actions came as no surprise. Candidate Obama made clear his opposition to harsh interrogation techniques. And in his second full day of office, the president also signed an executive order to close Guantanamo.
I hope the president reconsiders. No one, including me, is "for" torture. But let's evaluate that option with common sense in the context of limited information published about actual implementation.
One well-documented case is that of Mohammed, who continues to boast of his role in murdering 3,000 innocents.
Logic dictates that those assigned to question Mohammed were our most skilled interrogators. If those individuals could procure information from Mohammed with quiche and a warm blanket, they would have done so. Therefore, if the interrogation included coercive measures, it would not seem a leap of faith to conclude that less strenuous measures failed.
There was great deliberation about how to approach Mohammed and other high-value detainees, and their treatment was approved by no less than the secretary of defense and vice president. In other words, this was not Abu Ghraib, a case of aberrant soldiers acting outside their authority to degrade and humiliate other human beings.
To the contrary, extreme methods were implemented on the recommendation of individuals with expertise in such matters and in consultation with the military chain of command. The techniques were to be used sparingly with prisoners who were believed to possess information that could save lives. For the entire hullabaloo about waterboarding, only three prisoners at Gitmo are said to have undergone that method.
Among those who have acknowledged the need to keep all options on the table in such limited instances are law professor Alan Dershowitz, former President Bill Clinton, and Sen. John McCain.
Writing for the Wall Street Journal in November 2007, Dershowitz observed: "Although I am personally opposed to the use of torture, I have no doubt that any president - indeed any leader of a democratic nation - would in fact authorize some forms of torture against a captured terrorist if he believed that this was the only way of securing information necessary to prevent an imminent mass-casualty attack. The only dispute is whether he would do so openly with accountability, or secretly with deniability."
In an National Public Radio interview, Clinton recommended that Congress draw a narrow statute "which would permit the president to make a finding" in the case of a ticking-time-bomb scenario. The commander in chief, Clinton added, would have to "take personal responsibility" for authorizing torture in such extreme cases.
The idea of responsibility is one that even McCain has acknowledged. McCain as a presidential candidate spoke against torture. But in 2005, he told Newsweek: "You do what you have to do. But you take responsibility for it." And in February, McCain voted against legislation that would limit U.S. interrogators to methods approved in the Army Field Manual, which disallows physical force.
Critics argue that Americans are above such barbarism, that torture doesn't work, and that it produces false information.
Well, no one ever responded better to an argument like this than David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister, who observed: "While it is good that there be a world full of peace, fraternity, justice and honesty, it is even more important that we be in it."
As for the efficacy, again, think of those charged with the awesome responsibility to get information from the likes of Mohammed. Surely they don't relish using harsh techniques and would not recommend doing so unless they believed that all other measures were exhausted, and that the most extreme measures could work.
If the experts thought these techniques useless, there would be no debate. Sadly, given security considerations, their voices cannot be heard in this argument. But if our interrogators think these derided methods must be kept in our arsenal, who are we to second guess them?
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Comment by clicking here.
Previously:
01/15/09 Making a case for suing Madoff
12/22/08 A difficult but rational chat about plans
12/17/08 Facebook epidemic: More than 120 million have joined, many too old for this nonsense
12/01/08 The high price of downsizing the news biz
11/14/08 Prescience on greed, arrogance of a system
09/29/08 Closer look at party lines
08/26/08 Obama's pick creates GOP opportunity
08/21/08 Fishing with the Angry Everyman
07/31/08 The perils of e-mail: Ponder, then click
05/22/08 Two very different sides of the Internet
02/12/08 Sublimely ridiculous suits
11/28/08 Cell phones cut out secondary circle of kinship
09/26/07 What do we owe those who have died in Iraq?
08/30/07 A Navy SEAL's gut-wrenching tale of survival
07/30/07 First it was a faux pas, now it's a new word
© 2008, The Philadelphia Inquirer Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services
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