Case Study Liberal Democracies Go To War   Instructions: Enter your answers into the boxes below. If you'd like a print-out of your responses, click on the Submit button at the bottom of the page, and you will be taken to a printer-friendly page. If you have been instructed to submit your exercise online, enter both your and your instructor's name and e-mail address, then click the Email button at the bottom of the page. Your answers will be e-mailed immediately.   …Same As the Old Boss :: Was Abu Ghraib a Big Deal? :: To Be Noble Or To Be Victorious?   Was Abu Ghraib a Big Deal? Much of the world looks at the photographs emerging from Abu Ghraib and sees wholesale violation of the most basic rules of the civilized conduct of war. They contend that the actions at Abu Ghraib put us in the same category as Iraq, at a point at which we are desperately attempting to distinguish ourselves from this outlaw regime. In addition, they argue that if we act in total disregard of the rights of the enemy, it is likely that the enemy will treat our captives in a similarly despicable manner. Therefore, it is in our interest to regard Abu Ghraib as a big deal and to prevent it from happening again. Others respond that we are at war with the most brutal of enemies. All bets are off. Information is important in any endeavor. In war it is essential. For many, the idea that our forces would engage in an attempt to gain information from enemy captives without using every method at our disposal to be successful is ludicrous. The information must be obtained. All is else is secondary to this fact. As a consequence they can look at Abu Ghraib and dismiss it as no big deal. From this perspective, embarrassing photographs are nothing. True barbarism lies in the beheading of American Nicholas Berg, not in the attachment of a leash to a prisoner. Should there be limits on efforts to perform successful interrogations during a war? Would you be willing to sanction the use of torture, rape, even murder, in an attempt to discover essential information? If the information to be gained in an interrogation can be characterized as vital, can it be said that anything goes in the attempt to acquire this information? Can we be certain that our enemies will employ humane and limited techniques while engaging in the process of interrogation? If we can’t trust our enemies to confine themselves to the rules of ethical interrogation, why should we? Do you see the events at Abu Ghraib as a big deal?     Student Name:* Student Email:*   Professor Name:*   Professor Email:*         *required