Terrorism, Ticking Time Bomb, and Torture

• Author: Fred L. Borch III
• Position: Regimental Historian and Archivist for the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's Corps
• Pages: 255-263

2013] BOOK REVIEWS 255

TERRORISM, TICKING TIME-BOMBS, AND TORTURE1

REVIEWED BY FRED L. BORCH III*

Does the end sometimes justify the means? May the United States

torture a terrorist in order to save lives? May U.S. agents even torture an

innocent man, woman or child to save other innocent lives? The answers

to these questions—and more—are in this compelling book, which

argues that it is morally permissible for a state to torture an individual in

order to save innocent lives, albeit only in exceptional circumstances.

Precisely because the intellectual arguments in Terrorism, Ticking Time-

Bombs, and Torture are seductive, this also is a dangerous book, because

it fails to provide real-world solutions to issues that arise from the use of

torture. Additionally, it provides a philosophical basis for disregarding

the basic moral norms that have made the United States “the greatest

force for freedom and security that the world has ever known.”2

Judge advocates should read this book for both personal and

professional reasons: for personal reasons because all American citizens

should understand that a cogent, rational argument exists for using

interrogational torture; for professional reasons because as long as the

military is involved in counter-terrorism operations, Army lawyers will

be asked about the legality of alternative interrogation techniques.

* Mr. Borch is the Regimental Historian and Archivist for the U.S. Army Judge Advocate

General’s Corps. He graduated from Davidson College (A.B., 1976), from the University

of North Carolina (J.D., 1979), and from the University of Brussels, Belgium (LL.M,

magna cum laude, International and Comparative Law, 1980). Mr. Borch also has

advanced degrees in military law (LL.M, The Judge Advocate General's School, 1988),

National Security Studies (M.A., highest distinction, Naval War College, 2001), and

history (M.A., University of Virginia, 2007). From 2012 to 2013, Mr. Borch was a

Fulbright Scholar in the Netherlands, where he was a Visiting Professor at the University

of Leiden and a Visiting Researcher at the Netherlands Institute of Military History.

Fred Borch is the author of a number of books and articles on legal and non-legal

topics, including Judge Advocates in Combat: Army Lawyers in Military Operations from

Vietnam to Haiti (2001), and Judge Advocates in Vietnam: Army Lawyers in Southeast

Asia (2004). His latest book, Medals for Soldiers and Airmen: Awards and Decorations

of the United States Army and Air Force was published by McFarland Press in 2013.

1 FRITZ ALLHOF, TERRORISM, TICKING TIME-BOMBS, AND TORTURE (2012).

2 Presidential Statement on Sustaining U.S. Global Leadership: Perspectives for the 21st

Century Defense, DEP’T OF DEF.GOV. (Jan. 3, 2012), http://www.defense.gov/news/

Defense_Strategic_Guidance.pdf (last visited Aug. 21, 2013).