BBC/Ridge: US 'should not rule out torture'

[Raster]

The former head of the US Department of Homeland Security has said torture may be used in certain cases in order to prevent a major loss of life.

Speaking to the BBC, Tom Ridge said the US did not condone the use of torture to extract information from terrorists.

But he said that "under an extreme set of circumstances" such as the threat of a nuclear attack, "it could happen".

It comes a day after the US was accused of eroding human rights by campaigners.

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4175713.stm
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Torture is barbaric. Good people shouldn't torture other people. Good nations shouldn't draft legal opinions rationalizing the use of torture.

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. Tom is talking of the Ticking Bomb Standard

and I wonder if he should enjoy being subject to the ticking bomb standard.

Problem is that none of the people thinking of allowing torture, since none of them, they think, will ever face it.

A-holes!

[Raster]

2. they use the same discordance with everything. Take health care.

Their nests are sufficiently feathered for generations. They don't have to worry about their benefits. So why should they worry about yours?

Take Social Security. Most of them have made enough in the corporate/government scam. They have no retirement concerns. So why should they be concerned if you do.

Take the Iraq war. Their children won't be in harm's way. Yours probably will be.

[tom_paine]

3. Imperial Amerika is not a "good nation"

Not anymore. We were never perfect and always did bad things.

But the good we did for liberty and the world always outweighed the bad, even if only narrowly.

Not anymore.

Now we are indistinguishable in our objectives from Commie China or BushPutinist Russia here in BushPutinist Amerika.

Peas in a pod, though I am glad the wretched remnants of the Old American Republic still (for the moment) allow us to live lives in which the Totalitarianism isn't directly obvious.

It will probably remain so until the last geenration of Free American born and raised in the old USA die off finally.