As I’ve said here before, the main reason I don’t vote is that I’m certain I don’t have enough information to make informed decisions. I suppose that if one of the two candidates for President was fond of swastikas, I might get involved. (I’d vote for the other candidate, you stupid lemon-eater.) But on most questions, the media refuses to tell me what I need to know. Let me give you an example.

There’s a lot of talk about whether The United States should torture terrorists. Those opposed to torture say it doesn’t work. That includes people who should know, like John McCain.

Now, if torture doesn’t work, and it makes the rest of the world hate the United States, that seems like a no-brainer. But I can’t help thinking there are three bits of information I need to know before making up my mind.

First, why is torture so widely used if it doesn’t work? I mean, seriously, a lot of professional torturers are putting a lot of effort into it. Has the CIA really never looked into it? Is it like astrology, where people believe it without the benefit of any science?

Second, is torture ineffective for EVERY type of question, or just the kind where you can’t tell if the guy is lying? I can see how it wouldn’t work for questions like, “What is Osama thinking now?” It’s too easy to lie. But is it also ineffective when you say, “I’m going to keep torturing you until we find the guy that you say has the nuclear suitcase bomb. We’ll stop as soon as we find him. No rush.”

Third, apparently we are successfully getting information from captured terror suspects. Are they giving us this stuff because we played annoying music near them and made them stand up for a long time? Has doing a “little extra” ever speeded things up?

Perhaps you know the answer to those questions. I’m sure you will tell me.