Defense bigs ask '24' to cool it on torture

[MacOSXMan]

Defense bigs ask '24' to cool it on torture

NY Daily News | February 12, 2007

OWEN MORITZ

The grossly graphic torture scenes in Fox's highly rated series "24" are encouraging abuses in Iraq, a brigadier general and three top military and FBI interrogators claim.

The four flew to Los Angeles in November to meet with the staff of the show. They said it is hurting efforts to train recruits in effective interrogation techniques and is damaging the image of the U.S. around the world, according The New Yorker.

"I'd like them to stop," Army Brig. Gen. Patrick Finnegan, dean of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, told the magazine.

Finnegan and others told the show's creative team that the torture depicted in "24" never works in real life, and by airing such scenes, they're encouraging military personnel to act illegally.

"People watch the shows, and then walk into the interrogation booths and do the same things they've just seen," said Tony Lagouranis, who was a U.S. Army interrogator in Iraq and attended the meeting.

"The kids see it, and say, 'If torture is wrong, what about '24'?" Finnegan said.

The show's co-creator and executive director, Joel Surnow, 52, a self-described "right-wing nut," seemed stunned by the complaints, but gave no hint that the torture scenes would be toned down - or shown not to work. "We've had all of these torture experts come by recently, and they say, 'You don't realize how many people are affected by this. Be careful,'" Surnow conceded. "But I don't believe that."

Kiefer Sutherland, who is reportedly paid $10 million a year to play agent Jack Bauer, admits to being "anti-torture" and "leaning toward the left." He says he tries to tell people the show "is just entertainment."

Joe Navarro, an FBI interrogation expert who was at the meeting, said he wouldn't want anyone like Bauer on his team. "Only a psychopath can torture and be unaffected," he said. "You don't want people like that in your organization. They are untrustworthy, and tend to have grotesque other problems."

Bauer, as a counterterrorism agent, has just 24 hours to stop a terrorist plot endangering the U.S. and invariably chooses torture to force suspects to divulge critical secrets.

[Neo003]

WTF, it's a damn tv show. If people in charge of introgation are doing what they see on tv then I think they don't deserve the post they are on. I seen the scene where they drill the guys left sholder, that's no nearly what they do in middle east (much worse). I am happy that Joel Surnow is not taking this seriouly.

[p858snake]

its a action tv show, its ment to have stuff like this.

What do they want instead.

let me guess they want someone like this

<Jack>omg thats such a nice pony tail

<Jack>now tell me where the ducking bomb is or i will chop it off

<person b> no never

<jack> *cuts the persons ponytail off*

[samg]

its a action tv show, its ment to have stuff like this.

What do they want instead.

let me guess they want someone like this

<Jack>omg thats such a nice pony tail

<Jack>now tell me where the ducking bomb is or i will chop it off

<person b> no never

<jack> *cuts the persons ponytail off*

Are you discriminating against people with long hair? Might have to talk to my lawyer about this.

(i dont have long hair)

[p858snake]

<opps double post>

[Ji@nBing]

Well, I guess we need to take shows like House and ER off the air because they will give doctors the wrong idea of their abilities and they will try too many "miracle" surgeries.

Seriously, these guys are supposed to be professionals. If they can't tell the difference between real life and TV, they probably shouldn't have the job. The military should also look at themselves. Aren't the supposed to be the ones training these guys proper interrogation techniques? Obviously their current program is a failure and they need to make some changes if these guys are using methods they saw on a TV show. Instead of blaming a TV show they should blame themselves.

With morons like this from top to bottom (Generals asking the show to change, interrogators using methods they saw on a TV show) it's no wonder the US is getting their ass handed to them in Iraq. They are obviously clueless. I'm surprised some of these guys can tie their own boots. So the next question is, did the military develop velcro combat boots, or are a bunch or interrogators and generals running around with their boots constantly falling off?

[Dick Montage]

So basically this dude is saying that it's not just kids who copy TV, but rather the people they have selected for armed duty.

Is he not completely undermining any kind of "freedom of will" of the armed forces staff?