torture works

Some are insisting that "torture works". This line is being presented as an argument for the techniques referenced in the torture memos being acceptable. No one should argue that torture cannot work is some cases. It does. It has. I cede this point entirely to those who argue for some torture. (For the record: it seems not to work in most cases.)

If one wants to silence a witness murdering said witness also "works". The human experience is nothing but a series of "choices" that people believe "work" toward an end.

The fact that some torture may "work" some times is a distraction from the issue at hand: What are the acceptable limits of our behavior? Ours, not theirs. The phrase "fight fire with fire" is invoked all the time in situations like this. But the truth is that 95% of the time the best way to fight fire is with water.

What are the acceptable limits of our behavior?- is not an easy question and may have some flexibility over time. But it must be asked.