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John McCain CIA Torture Report Senate Speech

Misterveritis said:
As a side question, what does Feinstein giving aid and comfort to our enemies in wartime have to do with establishing policy?

Do you believe Washington's words kept the infantryman from occasionally clubbing a wounded enemy or giving him just one more jab with his bayonet?

Do you believe Washington's policy, in enemy hands would cause them to attack Americans with greater fury?
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I believe that our treatment of POW's gives the enemy the excuse to treat our troops the same way. They can also use it as propaganda.
 
Jack Hays said:
In war a government's solemn duty is to victory, by any means necessary, and to nothing else. It is impossible to imagine any government anywhere conceding defeat and then announcing to its people that although victory had been possible it was eschewed because questionable means would have been required to achieve it.
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Like I said, perhaps one could argue that torture is necessary or even morally permissible. It is, however, a step much too far to call the decision to torture people honorable. There is no honor in such disregard for human life even when it is necessary.
 
Hatuey said:
Do you realize that the allegations in this report go far beyond making someone feel uncomfortable? Is your normal MO to downplay the severity of things if they don't fit your narrative? It's getting getting laughably predictable.
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I have not read the report yet. Given that it was written by Democrats I am sure it is largely lies with an occasional moment of truth where it harms the nation the most. By and large that is exactly what enhanced interrogation does. It makes the subject so uncomfortable he is willing to cooperate, even if only a little to reduce his discomfort.

If one or two die along the way it is not a big deal. They are enemy unlawful combatants. They have been waging war against us for a long time and continue to do so today. So let's be harsh with the ones who appear to have information useful to us.
 
ThePlayDrive said:
Like I said, perhaps one could argue that torture is necessary or even morally permissible. It is, however, a step much too far to call the decision to torture people honorable. There is no honor in such disregard for human life even when it is necessary.
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The performance of solemn duty is always honorable.
 
Jack Hays said:
On that score the report is false. The CIA's public rebuttal deconstructs that falsehood in some detail.
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Yes, of course the CIA is saying it's false. Facts don't lie, though... this report is based on millions of documented facts that took more than 5 years to complete.
 
ThePlayDrive said:
As an American, I would prefer that my country not define honor in terms of hurting other people. Perhaps you could argue that torture is necessary or even morally permissible, but to call the decision to order and allow torture honorable shows a reverence for sadism that should not be present in any society that values human life.
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I consider the steady, firm leadership of President Bush following 9/11 to be some of the most honorable leadership in American history. I'm Canadian, but I was damn proud of him and I thanked whatever god there is that he was President at the time. You are entitled to view that as sadism if you choose.
 
Amadeus said:
Bin Laden truly did win. With a single attack, he got the US entangled in the Middle East for over a decade, spending trillions of dollars and thousands of lives fighting pointless wars, and reduced America's moral authority to nothing.
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So....we should have just sit back and absorbed the attacks and done nothing? Or should we have just said: "Please don't do that again?" Should we have done the same when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941? How many Americans getting murdered would it take for you to feel a response is warranted?

The right-wing fell for it and pulled the rest of the country into the gutter with them.
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Baloney. The democrats including all the usual suspects, Bill Clinton, Hillary, Biden, Gore, Allbright, Reid, Pelosi were all sounding the drums of war dating all the way back to 1991 and up to 2003. And they were just as gung ho about going to war in Afghanistan as the republicans were.
 
ThePlayDrive said:
Like I said, perhaps one could argue that torture is necessary or even morally permissible. It is, however, a step much too far to call the decision to torture people honorable. There is no honor in such disregard for human life even when it is necessary.
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It is honorable to be willing to step up to do the hard jobs, including making one's enemies so uncomfortable they cooperate with us.
 
Middleground said:
Yes, of course the CIA is saying it's false. Facts don't lie, though... this report is based on millions of documented facts that took more than 5 years to complete.
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Neither time nor page count can change the underlying facts. The authors of the report spoke to no one involved.
 
CanadaJohn said:
I consider the steady, firm leadership of President Bush following 9/11 to be some of the most honorable leadership in American history. I'm Canadian, but I was damn proud of him and I thanked whatever god there is that he was President at the time. You are entitled to view that as sadism if you choose.
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I could barely hold back my vomit after reading that.
 
Middleground said:
Yes, of course the CIA is saying it's false. Facts don't lie, though... this report is based on millions of documented facts that took more than 5 years to complete.
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Of course you meant to say it took five years to fabricate. Facts might not lie but that does not make the Democrats any less treasonous.
 
Misterveritis said:
I have not read the report yet.
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Wait until you get it! Then you'll really get a chance to downplay it!

Given that it was written by Democrats I am sure it is largely lies with an occasional moment of truth where it harms the nation the most. By and large that is exactly what enhanced interrogation does. It makes the subject so uncomfortable he is willing to cooperate, even if only a little to reduce his discomfort.

If one or two die along the way it is not a big deal. They are enemy unlawful combatants. They have been waging war against us for a long time and continue to do so today. So let's be harsh with the ones who appear to have information useful to us.
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Good to know inalienable rights is just a shtick. Please don't tell us about Obama's unconstitutional actions anymore?
 
ObamacareFail said:
With all due respect to McCain, the enhanced interrogations of terrorists by the CIA was nothing compared to the torture McCain faced in Vietnam.
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No, but this isn't the suffering olympics. I have never understood the attitude "It is fine if we do this bad thing because others have done worse."
 
Jack Hays said:
Neither time nor page count can change the underlying facts. The authors of the report spoke to no one involved.
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Does not matter. They had the documents needed to make their assessment.
 
pbrauer said:
I believe that our treatment of POW's gives the enemy the excuse to treat our troops the same way. They can also use it as propaganda.
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Do you believe that all prisoners of war experience enhanced interrogation techniques?

We put ours in Club Med, give them a Koran, a prayer rug, fatten them up and then, well rested and revitalized we return them to battlefields where they can kill more of us.

Try not to conflate what happens to high value detainees and the typical captured unlawful enemy combatant.
 
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Hatuey said:
Wait until you get it! Then you'll really get a chance to downplay it!

Good to know inalienable rights is just a shtick. Please don't tell us about Obama's unconstitutional actions anymore?
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What? Why not? Obama has damaged the nation. And now his tool, Feinstein has done even more damage. Are you unable to hold both thoughts in your head at the same time?
 
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