Reply #5: This is at the heart of everything, maybe.

[Orsino]

How we treat helpless prisoners tells the world who we really are. If we could divine what's in the mind of the torturer, that might explain much of the wingnut sense of entitlement that's been so damaging to the nation and world.

Given that gentle persuasion can accomplish everything (useful) that torture can, I suspect that we're dealing with the macho fear of being seen as weak. Negotiating with a captive enemy must appear as lowering oneself to that level of helplessness, triggering the usual misogynistic, homophobic alarm bells. We can't forgive that enemy for our need, so to speak, and must ensure that part of the deal is punishment.

Or something.