Torture -- Not Again!

Whatever we call it, “enhanced interrogation techniques,” or “harsh interrogation methods,” we all know deep in our gut what torture is. We do not require a legal opinion or a morality lesson to know that it is wrong. But perhaps we could do with a refresher course, because former members of the George W. Bush Administration, like Mr. Jose A. Rodriguez Jr. (Washington Post, 4/30/2012) will surface from the dark to convince us that torture works -- the end justifies the means. In the case of Mr. Rodriguez, his purpose is two-fold, to credit Bush for the intelligence leading to the killing of Osama Bin-Laden, and to justify his own role in this dismal chapter in America’s history. What may be more revealing than Mr. Rodriguez’s article, or his upcoming book, is the fact that former intelligence officials point to Rodriguez as the person who, in 2005, ordered the destruction of at least two videotapes documenting the interrogation of Al-Qaeda operatives, because if made public they, “would provoke a strong reaction.” Unfortunately for Mr. Rodriguez at least, the infamous photos of Abu Ghraib are still available on the Internet for anyone with the stomach to view them.