Re: Idaho Killer Holds Encryption Key to Laptop Mystery

["Dennis Henderson" <hendomatic () gmail com>]

> Remember - if the guy you're torturing *has* the useful information, they
> *also* know that they just have to hold out until 5:03PM Tuesday.  Torture
> is
> *notoriously* unreliable as a method of extracting correct factual
> information.
> It's *much* better at coercing a person to agree to some result you
> previously wanted.
>
> How many of the people the Spanish Inquisition tortured were *really*
> guilty,
> and how many just cracked and agreed to anything the torturer wanted?  How
> many
> of our soldiers in Vietnam cracked and divulged secret info, and how many
> just
> cracked and "confessed" for a Viet Cong photo op?



On torture i'll refine my comments and stick to very tactical situations,
like preventing the end of the earth or slightly less.

And then agree with you more so on the strategic views that you reference
like the Inquisition and Salem Witch trials etc... toture is not a very
reliable way to gain primary information from a prisoner.


But then, a firing squad is not a task usually used to extract information
supported by the blank cartridge comment you make. Its a penalty that is
paid to society based on some law. I totally agree that not many people can
come to grips with shooting someone to death for no more than an
administrative reason.

I do believe however that most people could bring themselves to cause
whatever injury necessary to keep themselves or other people from being
killed.

My only purpose was to fault the comparison of torture and capital
punishment. I'll try harder next time to be more concise.

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