The whole reason behind a debate like this proves why countries have to have a leader. We all will have differing opinions. Those opinions are shaped by our experiences and lives. No two people are going to have EXACTLY the same opinion. We can only attempt to trust that our leaders will do what is fundamentally right.
Every person in the world has rights. Even if it's the slimiest shithead in the world who DESERVE to die, he has the right not to. Should he have information about something that will harm America, and if we could not get the information through other means of investigation, then some forms or torture may have to be employed.
The problem with torture, as well as passing laws against a certain group (ex. my argument about Cheney's views of homosexuals' and women's rights), is that you are dealing with harming someone else's freedom and rights. Sometimes that is necessary; however, it should NEVER be the first option.
I do think in America we take a LOT of freedoms for granted. We should help to spread the positive thought of freedom. We can't do that by taking away others and causing harm when it is not necessary.
Sometimes foreign people you would think have an ill will may surprise you. Hell when I was living in China I was arrested (a story I don't usually tell). I was arrested for supposedly robbing this one store. The shop owner's only description was "She was white with blonde hair" (my hair was blonde at the time). And after all the horror stories about China, I expected the worst from them since hey, i'm white and i'm in a small town. What do they care if they wrongly charge me? They did yell at me a bit and verbally harassed me and berated me until I plead with them that I didn't do anything, I wasn't even near the store at the time it happened. The shop owner managed to track down a couple of customers who helped him give a better description. They looked into it and arrested the right woman and I was released with a heavy apology. Hell, they even paid for my taxi cab back to my house.
That's how it should be. They did your typical "ALRIGHT WHY'D YA DO IT WHITEY!" But they never touched me. Now I can only imagine what they did to the REAL culprit. But it's a fact of their method. They were wise to not touch me until they knew they had the right person and had what they needed. That's the kind of principles we need to employ; not to lay our hands on someone until it's a last resort.
Just my opinion, again, shaped by my life and my experiences. And yes, I've had friends tortured in Iraq. And you know what THEY'RE response was? "They were doing what they thought was right." Of course my friends were mad, but they were civilized enough to understand why they did it, and it didn't make them want to turn around and torture Iraqis. That's what separates us from some pond scum out there
