[overcast]

What's the alternative? I'm generally curious as to what would be considered more effective.

[naasking]

"We got more information out of a German general with a game of chess or Ping-Pong than they do today, with their torture," said Kolm, 90, an MIT physicist who had been assigned to play chess in Germany with Hitler's deputy, Rudolf Hess [1].

Also: Why Torture Doesn't Work: The Neuroscience of Interrogation [2]

[1] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10...

[2] http://www.amazon.com/Why-Torture-Doesnt-Work-Interrogation/...

[chishaku]

The alternative is to operate within the law and international convention.

[peejaybee]

From the sound of it, "do nothing" would be no less effective, and a bit cheaper.

[overcast]

Have you quantified the times when it has been effective though?

[dragontamer]

If you can't tell the difference between when its effective and when its ineffective, then the technique is worthless.