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Why do you believe that giving the state these powers helps reduce the risk of terrorism? Can you point to an attack that has been prevented by information gain

Why do you believe that giving the state these powers helps reduce the risk of terrorism? Can you point to an attack that has been prevented by information gained through torture? Obviously since the number of deaths caused by terrorism thus far is tiny, for terrorism to justify these actions that you agree would otherwise be unconscionable, the only conclusion you could make is that the security apparatus must be supremely effective, and have thwarted thousands of otherwise successful attacks against the US alone. Am I correct in following that train of thought? Do you believe that a significant number of deaths have been prevented, say a number close to those killed by ATV's* in the US each year? What is the evidence for these thwarted attacks? * www.atvsafety.gov/stats.html

jonnybgood 11y ago
> Do you believe that a significant number of deaths have been prevented, say a number close to those killed by ATV's* in the US each year? I never understood these kind of questions. Don't you think there's a difference between premeditated murder and accidental death? You can't prevent people from accidentally doing stupid things and mishaps, you can only minimize it. Whereas premeditated murder can be prevented.
- leohutson 11y ago
  > You can't prevent people from accidentally doing stupid things and mishaps, you can only minimize it. Whereas premeditated murder can be prevented. Can you please clarify the meaning of these statements. 1) ATV deaths are preventable some of the time, but premeditated murder is preventable all of the time. 2) ATV deaths are never preventable, but premeditated murder is preventable some of the time. 3) ATV deaths are preventable some of the time. Premeditated murder is preventable some of the time. The only one that seems reasonable to me is option 3), which is not much of a distinction at all.
- dllthomas 11y ago
  "Whereas premeditated murder can be prevented." If you can prevent it at an acceptable cost, by all means prevent it. I'm skeptical that you'll hit you'll hit 100% regardless of what you do, and the cost can easily come too high for marginal reductions.

jonnybgood 11y ago

> Do you believe that a significant number of deaths have been prevented, say a number close to those killed by ATV's* in the US each year? I never understood these kind of questions. Don't you think there's a difference between premeditated murder and accidental death? You can't prevent people from accidentally doing stupid things and mishaps, you can only minimize it. Whereas premeditated murder can be prevented.

leohutson 11y ago
> You can't prevent people from accidentally doing stupid things and mishaps, you can only minimize it. Whereas premeditated murder can be prevented. Can you please clarify the meaning of these statements. 1) ATV deaths are preventable some of the time, but premeditated murder is preventable all of the time. 2) ATV deaths are never preventable, but premeditated murder is preventable some of the time. 3) ATV deaths are preventable some of the time. Premeditated murder is preventable some of the time. The only one that seems reasonable to me is option 3), which is not much of a distinction at all.
dllthomas 11y ago
"Whereas premeditated murder can be prevented." If you can prevent it at an acceptable cost, by all means prevent it. I'm skeptical that you'll hit you'll hit 100% regardless of what you do, and the cost can easily come too high for marginal reductions.