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From: TEDtalksDirector
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  • yep... 12 minutes lost to a stupid fucking moron with no sense of how the world works. I bet the dumb bitch doesnt even know about 9/11/ wat a moron. LOL

  • i have a feeling im going to want me 12 minutes back...

  • What a beautiful person in touch with emotions changing them in others for the better. I find this very rich, thank you for sharing the perception and making me aware.

  • Before the developed world can take a stance on torture, we need to prosecute those responsible for torturing prisoners of the American government. George Bush Junior comes to mind, and a few others in his administration.

  • Lofty goals.

    Reality?

    Not likely.

  • Easily the most inspiring video I've seen so far this year.

  • i have a better solution to you , eliminate the need for lawyers by educating the public on the laws that they are governed by , and eliminating the notion of precedence , that each case should be judged on its own merit and not how some other case that was kinda like your own but not quite. If everyone is a lawyer then its much more fair isnt it

  • @YodaMan19 TV isn't real. Please, find a grasp on reality.

  • @lightandbeautiful

    Agenda? To be accepted as PEOPLE?

    There have been many words that started out as a euphemism or pejorative which have been adopted by the people they were used against, and turned into something neutral or even positive. They wouldn't be using the term 'gay' if it wasn't first used by bigots like you apparently are.

  • @lightandbeautiful Do you want the word "Gay" back?

  • this is a world ran by psychopaths until we stop following them we are all torured, physically, mentally, spiritually etc etc -

  • Torture is inexcusable barbarism.

  • The CIA gave prisoners to Gaddafi so he would torture them and the West would have no blood on their hands.

  • Where can i E-vote ?

  • Torture can never be justified

  • wow what a great speaker, the emotions sounded really sincere

  • ok great..start with USA..others will follow. torture is practiced systematically in ALL countries but America and Israel do it viciously and publicly and yet they keep accusing other countries of violation of human rights. sigh

  • 0:45 including america

  • torture = :(

  • Yeah, hassle the "93 countries" because they're poor and stupid and need us to come in and tell them how to run things because we know better. How about cleaning up our own house first? The onus of proof is on defendants to show innocence beyond reasonable doubt rather than, as it should be, on the state to demonstrate guilt beyond reasonable doubt.

  • no lives,no problems

  • Torture is practiced by most countries in the world, maybe with the exception of nordic european countries. Before Bush torture was practiced by the US as is by most democratic countries in secret. Now the US practices torture in the open, and since Obama it also assassinates citizens, dismissing the rule of law and replacing it by the rule of exception making us all complicit of crimes against humanity.

  • @TheOzomahtli please explain the part about Obama, because many people are saying what you just said.

  • @mohamedgna The reason behind Obama ordering the assassination of US citizens is the logic of exception that Bush previously and Obama now promote, this logic dictates that under exceptional circumstances the rule of law can be sidestepped and the president can order the assassination of anyone he pleases. This development is in fact a betrayal of the social contract established between the individual and society in all democratic countries, to wit: the respect and protection of human dignity.

  • @TheOzomahtli so it's basically disregarding a system that works to a certain extent to increase the powers of the president. but aren't laws put for the same reason this idea is being promoted, I mean the patriot act shitty as it is in its disregard of human rights, it sets a standard by which human rights can be disregarded in the interest of defending the nation and its people from terrorism, but this is just giving the president absolute power which is even more unconstitutional.

  • If you want to stop torture then you need to stop the BIGGEST rogue state in the world , the USA !!

    because everybody else is doing on the ground that the "world cop" is doing it.

    it's such a shame that the nazis were tried for war crimes but the americans were not , and you still wonder why you've torture !!

  • I prefer the chaos...always amusing.

  • @dswellhauser and i prefer chaos when it hits scums like you !!

  • I find myself often getting overwhelmed with the numerous problems of the world, wishing there was some singular perfect solution to it all, and it often seems like there is because I can imagine a world without these problems. Of the notions of solutions which I can muster there is always a massive overturning of a complex system. This I find is a problem in of itself, because it prevents people from wanting to do the one thing they know they can do about a problem.

  • @dookiecheez "Complex systems" have been overturned many times, only to be replaced by another complex one. But I agree with your sentiment. I think this talk shows real change happens from the ground up, rather than the top down. And it will always be a work in progress. This is one of the best TED talks as well as Alberto Cairo's talk, very inspiring amazing people.

  • FACT: Prison itself is torture. Doesn't matter if prison guards never physically touch the prisoner: more than 10 years confined in prison is hell on earth. Soldiers in war are crybabies by comparison: a quick violent death is nothing compared to dragged out prison sentences.

  • @mphello

    Especially so when the prison term entails widespread physical and sexual abuse by fellow inmates with no effective intervention by guards. Or when no serious attempt is made to provide the education, counseling, and social work necessary to help the inmates avoid returning to prison after they are released.

  • Very interesting topic. horrible speaker and talk. People are getting overshadowed by the topic.

  • For the last damn time people: TORTURE IS COUNTERPRODUCTIVE AND INEFFECTIVE! Think about this for two seconds and its obvious. If you harm someone repeatedly, they will say whatever they have to to get you to stop, and whether or not what they say is true, accurate, etc is COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT. ALL THEY CARE ABOUT IS MAKING THE PAIN STOP.

  • 17 dislikes? Some Hannibal Lecters out there, or die-hard US machos!

  • Except the US will not be subject to the International Criminal Court ... we would see many of their 'statesmen' behind bars!!

  • tsetse fly

  • We should stop physical torture period.

  • To Vishna

  • Torture should be BANNED, everywhere!

    People like Karen Tse help helpless people.

  • What's easier torturing people or defending an torturee? Keep Rocking Karen Tse! MERRY CHRISTMAS

  • Do you have this in with Spanish subtitles? Thank you

  • A beautiful person with a beautiful heart.

  • The easiest solution to stop torture is to not buy from that country. A black list for those countries to think that is a losing issue to torture.

  • @ciplogic That's not an easy solution because very few governments lack the corruption to even do something like that. As for individuals themselves choosing not to trade with another country, it would be difficult to convince every individual to do such a thing, and a black market would surely occur if it was illegalized.

  • .....Hey, she's got cankles! So there's way she knows what she's talking about right?

  • That's the first phone I've heard in all the TED talks. Surprisingly late.

  • shes hot

  • Really? A four year old boy constructed that whole sentence at the end? Let me meet this child, I may change faith.

  • Stopping torture is a nice utopy but is as realistic as stopping wars or arms sales. It may be popular but it won't happen.

  • @Silmarieni

    That's why we still can't call ourselves a civilization. If we can't deal with these issues, might just as well leave everything for some Messiah to sort out? Fortunately, there are people out there that think differently and do what they can to make many things happen;-)

  • @Silmarieni so? does this mean we should do nothing?

  • how can people be so convinced that torturing people for a confession is reliable? wtf?

  • Truly one of TED's best talks. Great subject and she is a very gifted public speaker.

  • giving a torture talk dressed all in pink, that seems inappropriate

  • Jack Bauer hit the dislike button 15 times.

  • Scenario: There are ten people. Nine are innocent, one knows information. That information could save thousands of lives. You could get the information by torturing the ten people. What do you do? Does committing a lesser evil to prevent a greater one justify it? Or is principle more important than practicality?

  • @knucklez2 You get 9 people telling you anything they think will stop the torture, and one person lying. You've harmed 9 innocent people for no gain.

  • @Tyneras But there can be gain. They follow up on all of the leads and one of them ends up saving lives. This is just a hypothetical situation. Torture, like many things in the world, is never black and white. I'm not justifying torture or cruel and unusual punishments on any human beings, I just don't think you can quantify things so simply as some people think. So long as humans desire power, they will use the harm of others to solidify the foundations of their empires.

  • @knucklez2 Remember, you have 9 people who CANT tell the truth (because "I'm innocent!" is assumed to be a lie if you're torturing them) and one person who will be giving you false leads or wild stories. You're going to have to torture all 10 people for a long, long time, and may never actually get anything. You'd be better off buying more spy drones and drafting people to put more soldiers on the streets. You can be turned in as a terrorist because your neighbor doesn't like you.

  • @knucklez2 Why would someone tell you the truth because you're pouring water down their throat? Doesn't it make sense that they'd say what they think you want to hear so you'll stop hurting them? You make no sense. Beyond that, how is harming the other nine to supposedly get a confession out of number ten even remotely ethical?

  • @Raithulu Ethics are subjective. And you underestimate the power torture can have over someone's mind. Torturers don't simply harm someone and stop when information is given. It's a precise, systematic process to discover information from their prisoner. What about the torture of someone who is a known terrorist? Would you accept that? After all, to another person that terrorist may be their freedom fighter. There's a reason people are tortured today. It's because torture is effective.

  • @knucklez2

    The problem with the ticking time bomb scenario is that you already have to know the information you are trying to extract in order to know who to extract it from. It's logically absurd, and every attempt to defend it is morally repugnant.

  • how to get rid of torture...rename it "enhanced interrogation techniques."

  • TED has been putting out some lame speakers lately, might have to stop watching. Why support ignorance?

  • @eatchiles so stop watching.

  • bleeding hearts get no results - it's her own inner battle that wins.

  • 95% of statistics are bullshit

  • Get God to watch this video because the hell he created is getting full of "sinners" he knew would sin before the foundation of the world but blames them anyway because....he can. LOL.

  • @metalsusa1 omg thats so funny i almost lol'd too. you're such a funny, clever and relevant person to any conversation about this video.

  • @justforwatchingcraps Hey why don't you write for the Conan O'Brien show. Your about as funny. Does your mother let you on the computer unsupervised?

  • @metalsusa1 she does, any other relevant questions?

  • @justforwatchingcraps Wow. Did you spend your charm school money on booze?

  • @metalsusa1 yes....so are you like a baby boomer?

  • @justforwatchingcraps Your wit bores me.

  • @metalsusa1 i don't believe that...i think you're impressed.

  • If I was getting tourtured, I'd probably admit to anything as long as they stop... Give almost anyone enough pain, and they'd do exactly the same.

  • @MRL1985 Precisely. I'm at an utter loss why people can't comprehend this. Its simple logic. Its got nothing to do with being a bleeding heart liberal.

  • To all those who have commented about America and torture, torture is a global issue. Its eradication involves a worldwide initiative. We cannot fight violence with violence, because inevitably further violence ensues. This is an issue of justice and humanity, which was recognized by nations through the Geneva convention after WWII.

  • @sea2beefree two words for you "Guantanamo Bay"

  • @MrZxcasdqwe007 I condone all forms of torture, no matter where they occur. However the debate does not need to be confined to one region of the world.

  • Comment removed

  • @sea2beefree and yet you still continue to believe the complete and utter bullshit that the UN wasn't built to support a unipolar world with a single superpower. Furthermore you argue that the Geneva convention was recognized by nations after WWII, when the US has been in blatantly in breech of it most notably since the 2003 Iraq war and no one, not the UN or not one of its 4 other permanent members or the developing nations who provide the bulk of UN's peace keepers did anything.

  • @MrZxcasdqwe007 Did you even read what I wrote? I wrote about the Geneva convention, not the UN, don't put assertions about the UN in my mouth. Yes, nations did recognize the Geneva convention, I never mentioned which nations, or which breeched those obligations. I'm only trying to say that torture occurs worldwide. The Geneva convention has played a role in stopping torture in times of warfare and conflict, albeit none which the USA has been involved with. Examples, Chechnya and Yugoslavia.

  • @sea2beefree Or none which the USA instigated.

  • @sea2beefree also it worth mentioning that the 5 permanent members of the UN including the US reserve the power to veto any substantive resolution.Since 1989 the US has dissented against security council resolutions on 12 occasions out of 17 total instances when a permanent member vetoed. Of these 12 occasions, only two related to issues other than the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

  • @MrZxcasdqwe007 I am against veto power, it should never have been introduced. If you have any proposals to remove it, I'm open to suggestions. ;)

  • @sea2beefree In 2009 the US. abstained from Security Council Resolution 1860 which called for a halt to Israel's military response to Hamas rocket attacks and the opening of the border crossings into the Gaza Strip.

  • @sea2beefree Just to sum it all up people who are commenting on America and torture have GOOD reason's to do so.

  • @MrZxcasdqwe007 May I remind you that torture occurs by other nations. Injustice is a global issue, not an American issue.

    

  • @sea2beefree

    Don't you mean condemn?

  • @sea2beefree As you were writing your comment, the US congress was passing the NDAA 2012 (S. 1867) bill which in section 1031 brings torture home to US citizens. The US doesn't follow the Geneva conventions. There is no one big enough and good enough to stop them.

  • @LudicrousTachyon I am not defending what the United States of America do, I am only noting that torture is not confined to to one nation. I agree that torture should never occur under any circumstances by any country, including the United States of America. Too much of the debate on this comments page is about one country, when this video is about so much more. When people protest against torture they often forget that it occurs worldwide.

  • wow, a bunch of snowflakes just gayd up my screen. amazing the time we're in.

  • @AndreLeCoz weird...my screen got more strait...

  • If your awesome, you'll keep a snowflake in the air till the end of the video

  • or just stop 12 year olds stealing bikes

  • I'm insulted by this woman's crass naivete. What, more due process rights and earlier access to counsel will prevent unjust detention and torture? Is this woman kidding me? Has she at all been paying attention to defense and security acts that have been passed in the United States this past decade? Or recent drone executions of U.S. citizens by the U.S. government? If the fucking "shining beacon on a hill" is kills their own citizens with no due process, what the fuck does she think will happen?

  • @YawnGod Let alone collateral damage caused by bombing.

    Obviously what is happening in Syria, what's happening all over the world with unlawful killings, terrible prison conditions (which could be considered torturous), corrupt police and political officials is terrible, but come the fuck on, woman, and grow the fuck up. The only thing that will stop these primates from unleashing continuous atrocities would be mass extermination, and obviously that's off the table.

  • @PoooTeeWeet Give Ron Paul one term and we'll be a Third World country ourselves.

  • @acr08807 "Give Ron Paul one term and we'll be a Third World country ourselves." Please explain.

  • @acr08807 Ron Paul has no clue how to run an economy. The Federal Reserve, and to a lesser extent, deficit spending, kick in to limit the downside of recessions. The people who want the government out of the economic recovery business (including Paul) will cause housing prices to crash even further, which will crush the banks, cutting off loans to businesses, and we'll be back in 1930. The time for antigrowth policies is during a boom, not when you have 9% unemployment.

  • The problem isn't a dearth of lawyers, it's an excess of tin-pot dictators.

  • There will definitely always be injustice, as there will be famine, disease and poverty. But right now all we can do is reduce the numbers of injustices and reduce the number of people in poverty. The problem with most people is that they run around shouting how they think they can save the world but they are not being realistic. Stop trying to save everyone and save as many people as you can.

  • How to stop injustice: move to a better planet.

    We'll still have injustice long after I'm worm food...

  • How to stop torture: Eliminate Sovereign Immunity.

  • The US has set the worst example they could. First, redefining an using torture methods they'd traditionally been ... Second, advocating it publicly. Now the Republican candidates openly advocate waterboarding as an acceptable tool, to put it mildly.

    You begin setting standards against human rights violations by being an example and a role model.

    I found the video lacking in denouncing this.

  • Torture is cheap?

    No.

    It's only cheap if you look at it narrowly and don't consider the big picture ..and only look at things in the short term, while ignoring the long term.

    Sadly, narrow-minded ignorance of the big picture and short term thinking, is far too common.

    They're the main reasons for all the worlds evil and inequalities.

    ...and the only reasons for the recent financial crisis.

  • How to stop torture stop watching this video...

  • How to stop torture: Redefine torture, just like USA did with waterbording.

  • 9 people dig torture.

  • they should probably not run the snow machine on stage during ted talks.

  • Stop torture by voting Ron Paul

  • Cops are asses

  • @Typho0n86

    FUCK THE POLICE!!! Only good scene from the Hangover 2

  • Bradley Manning is being tortured

  • HOW CAN WE TELL OTHER COUNTRIES NOT TO TORTURE, WHEN THE USA PRACTICES TORTURE!!! MAYBE WE SHOULD GET THINGS RIGHT HERE FIRST, BEFORE WE GO FFFUUCCCKKKIIINNNGGG WITH OTHER COUNTRIES.

  • @masterkkoosh Let's start getting things right by hitting that cap lock key, cowboy.

  • @masterkkoosh How about we stop torture all together in all countries? Why wait for the US to get their act straight? Also, the caps lock has practically killed any credibility your comment had.

  • I think this was pretty weak for a TED Talk..

  • I like making towers with the snow

  • @asseeninYOURDREAMS Its pretty cool, and goes well with this video...she is such a giving person.

  • This woman is an angel. Torture benefits have been disproven over and over again. Rumsfeld/Cheney clan claimed it worked, but when pressed on methods/questions/etc...their PR guys say "oh, no no, thats a seeeeeeeeecret!" What a load of shit. Stop trying to convert the U.S. into another Iran!

  • Everyone I met who was pre-law said "I want to be a lawyer so I can help people..." But if they really wanted to help people, they'd practice law in Cambodia where people rot in jail without access to lawyers... really they just go where they get paid the most.

  • I have a better idea. Lets expand torture to apply to politicians. That would stop torture.

  • This is something you can take for granted living in the states, very nice message to pass on.

  • torture works... get over it liberals. "due process rights" are an arbitrary set of "rules" to acquire information. by any means necessary...

  • @Brianap21

    so if I tortured you via whatever means your twisted mind can come up with and told you "I won't stop until you tell me what I want to hear" and you made a confession to make it stop you think it's okay and actually right for you to spend your life in jail only to be tortured more everyday? alright, you're a dumbass or a troll, or both.

  • @stride7860 your example operates in a vacuum. life does not. not all circumstances are of equal stature and some scenarios absolutely require torture. you can choose to be close-minded and ignore the validity of torture and its purpose, or you can express you're ignorance by calling me a troll.

  • @Brianap21

    Sure some situations require torture, that doesn't mean torture needs to be legal in all situations just because it's necessary in a few. We make exceptions and break the law when times like that happen and the truth is in MOST circumstances it's NOT necessary and it's just a bunch of assholes in power abusing their power. Your inability to examine your own arguments is why I call you a troll, not because i'm ignorant. You're not a complete idiot just someone who doesn't think much

  • @Brianap21 But were you listening to the video? She talks about people in developing countries who are tortured for stealing bikes, or two diapers for their children. She talks about people who haven't done anything, but have confessed to escape pain. I'm pretty certain you're talking about an issue that is unrelated to hers; in which case, I may agree with you.

    This isn't a liberal vs. conservative issue - she did not mention America.

  • Take confessions out of the legal systems all together.

  • @GeneralGrove I'd say they should just rewrite it, not take it out completely. The first time we have someone who turns himself in, is all but guilty but for lack of concrete evidence, and we ultimately have to let him go, there would be twice as many people arguing for the system to go back.

    Though I do see where you're coming from. Confessions shouldn't be "concrete proof" of anything either, as anyone can confess to anything without merit (I'm just struggling to think of common reasons why).

  • How to stop torture? Maybe stop setting the bad example! Hypocrites...

  • this is fantastic

    

  • when are these talks recorded? Do they happen every day ?

  • Did anyone press the snowflake button? Because my screen began to snow

  • @TubingwithZiarie You do know that you can wipe them away with your cursor?

  • @TubingwithZiarie

    indeed pressed it as soon as I saw it not knowing what it does lol

  • @TubingwithZiarie Yes, me too. After half of the video she was hard to see on the window. Didn't really help the serious topic... ;)

  • @TubingwithZiarie Did you try moving the mouse over the video screen? It moves the snow away! :)

  • @TubingwithZiarie hahaha first time, and the snowflakes kinda distracted me from the troubled speaker.

  • @TubingwithZiarie if you move your mouse on the screen, the snowfalkes move:)

  • Humans Music And Art!

    /watch?v=nvFzV2PW4Eo

  • Easy, stop people from doing bad things. (Degrees of). No need for 12 minute video.

  • @WheresTheAnyKey1 wow, arent you a genius

  • @WheresTheAnyKey1 You're fine with someone coming into your home, detaining you without trial, and torture you to make sure you don't know anything -or- to make you saying something that's beneficial to the ones torturing? Please don't be a tool.

  • End torture as an investigative tool?

    Not until the US stop existing

  • @MCAMVP

    Not everything is the fault of the US. Torture has been used as an investigative tool at least since the emergence of the state, maybe even earlier. Such comments are not helpful. I in no way defend torture as a means to an end, however the US is actually fortunate to have some semblance of a peaceful democratic system albeit imperfect. You wont, as of yet, be seeing the same brutality other governments of developing us on their citizens. Just as any immigrant from one of those places.

  • @Moonanite

    Edit:seeing the same brutality other governments of developing nations use on their citizens.

  • @Moonanite Just because it is something that has been done since this nation was founded does not make it right.

    As an occupier I can tell you that the government IS showing the same brutality that many developing nations are. I have been on the street when the police round up and trash the belongings of entire camps of homeless people. I have been present for mass beatings and pepper spraying for refusal to give up our right to sleep in public space. They just aren't shooting us yet.

  • Not to mention the sleep deprivation tactics (kicking people in their sleep, yelling out in the middle of the night, running back and forth through camp for no reason...etc) they have been using on us and constant harassment (jeers, theft of individuals property, refusal to listen to us even after asking a question, they have been violating their own codes of conduct and standing orders to do so),

  • standing orders to NOT* do so.

  • @Moonanite the US aren't the reason torture exists but rather the reason it might persist as a valid investigative technique:

    The country likes to see(and project itself) as the moral arbiter of western society whilst it's politicians use the general term "national security" as an end to justify the means of limiting civil liberties.

    This does not mean that the US are solely responsible for "intense interrogation", yet one can assume that they'll budge only ever so grudgingly.

  • I think I like the girl.......

  • brilliant! very inspirational!

  • What if we didnt NEED lawyers to defend ourselves

  • @lothrazar astute call ...we have been used long enough ...the legal system is exploiting the very people it was designed to protect ...the innocent

  • i love the snowing function

  • So you're saying lawyers are the solution to torture?

    Something just sounds wrong to me about that. What if, instead, people were able to more reasonably defend themselves? Seems more scalable to me.

  • lol goddammit, i hit the snowflake button on a video about torture...