"DSK" wrote
Ever heard of "Behavioral psychology"? What you are describing is a sort
of rudimentary behaviorism. It is indeed a "tried & proven technique"
and one that can be vastly improved & made more effective by a little
study.

Yes! Professional interrogators have done more than a little study and are
still honing skills.

I think you have a bizarre idea of what "hurt" consists of. Please
describe in detail exactly how you trip a horse to the ground, tie it
up, and sit on it, without inflicting any pain.

It's called a "running W". Soft latigo leather straps are put just above
the rear hooves and a 2" thick (so it don't cut) rope collar around the
neck. A rope (ok "line") is run from the collar to the right hoof, back up
between the forelegs to the collar then to the left rear and finally back to
the collar in a W fashion. You hold the horses halter in your left hand and
pull the W rope with your right gradually drawing the horses rear legs under
him til he nearly sits. Then you simply push his shoulder with yours to
gently topple him over, holding his head off the ground with the halter.
Finally, tie the end of the W line to the halter to assure he doesn't rub
his eye struggling.


BTW pain is an excellent tool for modifying behavior. ....

Sure, as in spanking a kid. But not to extract truthful information. Thus a
guard may beat up a prisoner to 'modify his behavior' but never to get info.
The prisoner controls that situation - the beating stops when the bad
behavior stops.

What would you call it when an interrogator stubs out a cigarrette on
the eyelids of the person being questioned? When the person being
questioned is tied up, and has his head forecfully held under water
until he is unconsious? When he has his arms tied behind his back and
has his full weight suspeneded from his wrists until his elbows and
shoulders are not only dislocated but suffer permanent injury? When a
person being questioned is tied up and has an attack loosed upon him, so
that he suffers serious bite wounds on his head and other places?

Held back-down on a table while water is poured up his nose. Hands & feet
duct taped they tossed in a swimming pool (or cess pool)? Blindfolded then
tossed out of a helo.

I call this "torture" and it is documented to have been performed by
U.S. personnel. ....

When? These once common tortures have been abandoned for decades because
they yield *unreliable* info. I have seen no evidence that US interogators
are doing any of these things and I doubt they do so because they are
counter productive in that they harden the prisoners resolve to be
uncooperative. He may tell you anything to stop the pain - anything but the
truth.

.. We are dealing with very dangerous and committed people here, people
who will *eagerly* kill themselves in order to kill an enemies women and
children. I see nothing wrong with depriving them of sleep, insulting
the
religion that drives them to these outrages, and otherwise offending and
degrading them until, like a bad horse, they begin to doubt first
themselves
then their conditioning and finally realise their captors are in
control.

.... sleep deprivation .... if taken to
an extreme would definitely be a torture on par with that listed above.

I disagree - unless pain is used to keep them awake.

Is the U.S. an evil despotism that tortures prisoners? Or is it a
civilized & moral nation that obeys international laws?

Again, AFAIK it is not US policy to torture anybody. In fact even relatively
minor excursions over the line are routinely punished. We are obeying
international law. The relatively few held at Gitmo are not POWs.
International law says we can shoot them. It doesn't limit how long we hold
them before doing so.

admitting ...that the Bush Administration has set this policy from the
highest levels...


On the contrary. I have yet to see evidence that Bush, Chaney, Rummy,
et
al, ever made it US policy to inflict physical pain or torture (ie break
anybodys legs) on anybody.

Oh? Maybe you should go and find that patch of sand that Dave has his
head buried in... I'm sure he'll move over for you...

Better yet, why not provide us the evidence that makes you think otherwise.