Ticking time bomb scenario

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The ticking time bomb scenario is a thought experiment that has been used in the debate over whether torture can ever be justified in the War on Terrorism.

Simply stated, the argument is that nations, even those such as the United States that legally disallow torture, can justify its use if they have a suspect in custody whom they feel sure possesses critical knowledge, such as the location of a time bomb that would soon explode and cause great loss of life.

1 Background
2 Effect of fiction
3 References
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] Background

The concept was first introduced during the 1960s in the novel Les Centurions by Jean Lartéguy which revolves around the French occupation of Algeria. This provided the French a more acceptable explanation to commit torture.^[1]

Alan Dershowitz, a prominent American defense attorney, surprised some observers by giving limited support to the idea that torture could be justified. He argued that human nature (see: Stanford prison experiment) can lead to unregulated torture and abuse "off the books." Therefore, it would be better if there were a regulated procedure through which an interrogator could request a "torture warrant," and that requiring a warrant would establish a paper trail of accountability. Torturers, and those who authorize torture, could be held to account for excesses. Dershowitz's suggested torture warrants, similar to search warrants and phone tap warrants, would spell out the limits on the techniques that interrogators may use, and the extent to which they may abridge a suspect's rights.

Critics of torture state that no such scenario has ever occurred and that such a situation is highly unlikely. Every case resembling this thought experiment has been resolved without torture. Furthermore, it is asked whether torture would be limited to suspects, or whether one could torture the family and friends of a suspect to make him compliant. According to John Yoo, this would be legally permissible. Another point is the notorious unreliability of the information gathered, e.g. Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi. The biggest objection is the notion that innocent suspects could be subjected to torture as a result of this "the end justifies the means" debate.

The German sociologist Niklas Luhmann mooted the ticking bomb scenario in the early 1990s^[2].

[edit] Effect of fiction

Starting with Les Centurions, fictional stories have had the effect of making torture pallatable to the general public and it perpetrators. Works of fiction, such as the television series 24, often rely on ticking time bomb scenarios for dramatic effect. One of the shows' creators stated according to Jane Mayer:

“Most terrorism experts will tell you that the ‘ticking time bomb’ situation never occurs in real life, or very rarely. But on our show it happens every week.”^[1]

Also, the show uses the same questionable techniques that are used by the US against alleged Al-Qaeda suspects. U.S. Army Brigadier General Patrick Finnegan, the dean of the United States Military Academy at West Point, and others, objected to the central theme of the show -that the letter of American law must be sacrificed for the country’s security- as it had an adverse effect on the training of actual American soldiers by advocating unethical and illegal behavior. As Finnegan said:

“The kids see it, and say, ‘If torture is wrong, what about “24”?’ ”

He continued,

“The disturbing thing is that although torture may cause Jack Bauer some angst, it is always the patriotic thing to do.”^[1]

Joe Navarro, one of the F.B.I.’s top experts in questioning techniques, told Mayer,

“Only a psychopath can torture and be unaffected. You don’t want people like that in your organization. They are untrustworthy, and tend to have grotesque other problems.”^[1]^[3]