Is Torture Ever Ok?
Thomas Erb
Is Torture Ever Ok? As a I discussed in my third essay, there are many disputes between people on whether or not torture should ever be allowed. I am writing my opinion on this heated issue and explaining why torture should be allowed under extreme circumstances. Extreme instances that should allocate torture are: times of war, a terrorist attack, or high profile criminal activity. If lives are at stake in these circumstances than I believe torturing someone is permissible. Torturing can be a way of defending those people, but should be the last option. A lot of times in these scenarios there are no other options and torturing someone is the only way to get fast results before it is too late. I am a utilitarian thinker and I believe in the greatest good for the most people. If a lot of people 's lives are at stake in a situation and can be saved because of one criminal 's pain then torturing is the way to go. I believe that torture can be morally justified in many extreme circumstances and by regulating torture by law then it could benefit our society. My first argument will show how torture can be used to help stop a bank robber who has many hostages. Suppose, the authorities arrested one of the conspirators of the bank robber and they weren 't getting anything out of him. The bank robber told the authorities that if they didn 't get him a plane out of the country then he would start killing hostages. The authorities don 't know where the bank robber is or the hostages. The bank robber says they only have fifteen minutes to arrange him a plane before he starts killing the hostages. The authorities could torture the conspirators and get the information they need to save the hostages and arrest the bank robber or they could let the hostages die. This is why in my opinion torture is morally justified in this situation. The first argument I used shows a real example of how torturing can save people lives, arrest a criminal, and
Is Torture Ever Ok? As a I discussed in my third essay, there are many disputes between people on whether or not torture should ever be allowed. I am writing my opinion on this heated issue and explaining why torture should be allowed under extreme circumstances. Extreme instances that should allocate torture are: times of war, a terrorist attack, or high profile criminal activity. If lives are at stake in these circumstances than I believe torturing someone is permissible. Torturing can be a way of defending those people, but should be the last option. A lot of times in these scenarios there are no other options and torturing someone is the only way to get fast results before it is too late. I am a utilitarian thinker and I believe in the greatest good for the most people. If a lot of people 's lives are at stake in a situation and can be saved because of one criminal 's pain then torturing is the way to go. I believe that torture can be morally justified in many extreme circumstances and by regulating torture by law then it could benefit our society. My first argument will show how torture can be used to help stop a bank robber who has many hostages. Suppose, the authorities arrested one of the conspirators of the bank robber and they weren 't getting anything out of him. The bank robber told the authorities that if they didn 't get him a plane out of the country then he would start killing hostages. The authorities don 't know where the bank robber is or the hostages. The bank robber says they only have fifteen minutes to arrange him a plane before he starts killing the hostages. The authorities could torture the conspirators and get the information they need to save the hostages and arrest the bank robber or they could let the hostages die. This is why in my opinion torture is morally justified in this situation. The first argument I used shows a real example of how torturing can save people lives, arrest a criminal, and
Cited: "A New Muslim Statement Against Torture | Religion Dispatches." ReligionDispatches. 08 Apr. 2012 Bagaric, Mirko. "Is Torture Ever Justified?" Taking Sides. Stephan A. Satris. New York: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc, 2010. 266-274. Boss, Judith. "Utilitarianism." Ethics For Life. Comp. Laserwords Private Limited. New York. McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2011. 268-270. Cox, John (n.d.) Cohn, Marjorie. (2005, April 8). Torture of Prisoners in U.S. Custody. Marjorie Cohn. Retrieved March 31, 2012, from http://marjoriecohn.com/2005/04/torture-of-prisoners-in-us- custody.html Devine, Philip. Is Torture Ever Justified?" Taking Sides. Stephan A. Satris. New York: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc, 2010 Satris, Stephen. "Is Torture Ever Justified?" Taking Sides Clashing Views on Moral Issues. Comp. MPS Limited. New York: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2012. 264-287. "Six Arguments against Torture « the Human Province." The Human Province