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Torture effectiveness - mistaking semantics for syntax

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There are some very weird semantics associated with the question ' Does Torture Work ?', to wit " Yes It Does. I Have Proof " - The Dick (Cheney) " No It Doesn't. People Will Say Anything " - Most Everyone Else " It Works Sometimes " - The Remaining Few Who is correct? Whose theories reign supreme? Getting back to semantics, the issue ends up being, "W hat exactly do we mean by 'Work'"?  and " Will you get the answer you need"?  I suspect pretty much everyone agrees that If you have the correct person, and If you know the correct question, and If you torture the crap out of the person Then, you will get the correct answer.  Simple no? The underlying problem is, of course, how one separates the wheat from the chaff. The above assumptions also result in the following problems Problem A (aka "The Szell Issue'):  If you don't have the correct person, but you torture the cra

Hypocrites - the lot of them

When it comes down to it, getting universal health-care is really not all that difficult. Mind you, I'm not going down the road of whether we should have universal health-care or not. If you want to debate that, go find some luddite that you can talk to - preferably while you are sipping a lychee martini in your 'Rich People Only' country club. So, how do we get there? Easy, everybody in the country gets to participate in the same health-plan that Federal Government employees have. Not for free - they have to pay exactly what the federal government employees do. In fact, lets take it one step further - everybody gets to pick whether they want to be in the Federal Health program, or the one that their State Government employees have. Bingo - instant competition! And finally, for all those of you who are convinced that the federal government (or state!) should not open up their rolls to other (I'm looking at you oh all you Senators and Congresspeople!), I have