A question for Vox Nova <\/em>readers and bloggers:\u00a0 What is <\/em>\u201ctorture\u201d?\u00a0 Let\u2019s put aside, for present purposes, any definitions of the term that might be provided in particular legal texts.\u00a0 I can look those up.\u00a0 What I want to know is, if the question is posed, \u201cis ____ torture?\u201d, what would be the characteristics of \u201c____\u201d that would indicate that it is, or is not, \u201ctorture\u201d?<\/p>\n In asking this, I am assuming (and, of course, believe) that \u201ctorture\u201d is immoral (i.e., not morally justifiable on consequentialist grounds).\u00a0 I am also assuming\u00a0(hoping?) that\u00a0readers understand and\u00a0believe that\u00a0I have no partisan or snarky purpose in asking the question.\u00a0 I really<\/em> want to know what people think it is that distinguishes \u201ctorture\u201d from\u00a0permissible ways of getting people to\u00a0do or say things that they would not otherwise want to do or say (e.g., \u201cunless you tell us who your accomplice was, we will prosecute you for a higher-grade offense\u201d).<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A question for Vox Nova readers and bloggers:\u00a0 What is \u201ctorture\u201d?\u00a0 Let\u2019s put aside, for present purposes, any definitions of the term that might be provided in particular legal texts.\u00a0 I can look those up.\u00a0 What I want to know is, if the question is posed, \u201cis ____ torture?\u201d, what would be the characteristics of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2958,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1539","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n