What is Waterboarding?

We hear a lot these days about water boarding. It's often called a torture method - but our own special forces undergo it as a part of their training. It's terrifying - but not deadly. The implication is that it's dangerous - but no one has died from it, and indeed there have not been any reports of serious injury. So what is it?

Waterboarding entails pouring water over a person in such a way that they feel as if they're drowning. Done properly, waterboarding does not put most people at any real risk, but it is terrifying.

The administrator of the process starts by strapping the subject to a long board or platform. This platform is tilted so that the head is lower than the feet. A cover of some sort is put over the subject's nose and mouth to prevent water from getting in, and then water is sprayed or poured in copious amounts over that person's upper body, in such a way that the water rushes over the subject's face.

This process can last for up to a minute, during which the subject's nose and mouth are kept covered and protected so water cannot get inside. With the cessation of each water dumping, the subject is questioned.

American special forces members who have undergone this report that it is a terrifying experience - that even though they knew they were in no danger, after a couple of dunkings they were ready to talk about anything the administrator of the process wanted to ask. This makes it, in the eyes of interrogators, a very effective process.

Is It Torture?

Whether or not waterboarding is torture is debatable, and heavily debated. If it isn't torture, it probably brushes as close to it as possible. If it is torture, it is probably one of the most gentle forms, as it rarely leads to real injury, only emotional responses.

Because it skirts so close to the edge, it's nearly impossible to discuss it without having an emotional reaction to it. Everyone who talks about it says that they really do think they're going to die during the process, even when well-briefed beforehand and completely aware that they are safe. And those who use it say that they get some very good information from it.

Does the end justify the means in this case? It's a hard question to answer. We need to catch terrorists, and we need to get the information from them necessary to prevent further acts of terror. But we don't want to become the terrorists. And though we don't cut off fingers or beat people for information, it's certainly arguable that terrifying subjects instead may be in the same ballpark of evil.

Yet - if you don't use weapons the enemy is willing to use, they may win, and then all your high ideals and purposes are for nothing. If you do use them, you lose your high ideals and purposes as well - and the enemy wins anyway.

It comes down to a devil's choice, in the end.