Understanding Interrogation

"He doesn't understand how enhanced interrogation works. I mean, you break someone, and after they're broken, the become co-operative. See?"

"And what if you kill them while you're breaking them?"

I was having a discussion with my friend Rick, as we call him for short.

"Well, you don't," said Rick. "But if you do, what a lesson for them! And the next one in line knows you mean business, huh?"

"But he underwent that ... whatever-boarding stuff himself," I objected. "While you haven't, if I may point that out. How could he not understand, while you do?"

"No, no, no," replied Rick. "It's so obvious to a smart guy like me. The experience warped his judgement, while I, as a detached observer, maintain my objectivity. Anyway, that was torture, not enhanced interrogation."

"And ... the difference?" I asked.

"That's so simple!" he scoffed. "Torture is what bad people do to good people because bad people are bad and hate good people. Enhanced interrogation is how good people get important information from bad people because good people are good and bad people always lie unless they are enhancedly interrogated. It's entirely different."

"But this boarding stuff ... what do you call it?"

"T-boarding," explains Rick. "Because the subject is nailed up on two boards in the shape of 'T.'"

"So how can Jesus not understand this ... t-boarding, Rictus, old boy? Heck, I think he'd have trouble with your 'good guys vs bad guys' rationalization."

"My point exactly," says Rictus. "He doesn't understand how enhanced interrogation works. Case closed."