CAPT Bryce Lefever, pictured above smiling in his flight suit and currently stationed aboard USS Enterprise, spoke on National Public Radio's All Things Considered today. Listen to or read the story here. He offered a justification for military psychologists' involvement in the torture policies implemented by the Central Intelligence Agency. Recent news reports disclosed that military psychologists marketed a torture program to the CIA, which was approved by the Justice Department, then helped the CIA implement their techniques. He said that these military psychologists were patriots who had the best interests of the American people at heart. "I have no fondness for the enemy, and I don't feel like I need to take care of their mental health needs." CAPT Lefever pointed out that he did not take part in organizing or implementing the interrogation methods. But he did feel a need to defend them. It was chilling for me to listen to CAPT Lefever talk about the pride he took in torturing students at SERE school, in order to prepare them for potential torture by potential enemies. But for almost all of the students, the only person who ever tortured them was CAPT Lefever, all in their best interests and with no regrets.
What do you think? Did military psychologists cross the line? Psychologists do not take the Hippocratic Oath, which pledges first to do no harm. The NPR story confuses this and makes it appear that psychologists are bound by this pledge. They are not. Should psychiatrists be held to a higher standard than psychologists by virtue of their medical training? In his interview CAPT Lefever alluded to the idea that all of the tools we are taught to do good can be subverted to bad. We are taught to use our expertise for good, but it can easily be turned around in service of the dark side. If we, as psychiatrists, decide to enable torture, can we hide behind the curtain of patriotism or proclaim broadly that we did nothing wrong in the service of our country?
I would answer that if I used all the tools at my disposal, which are considerable, to intentionally harm someone, even in the interests of my country, then I am guilty. Guilt requires me to be forgiven or punished. So for the psychologists involved in these acts, should we forgive them or punish them?
CAPT Lefever's website, where he describes himself as an expert in treating Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, is
here. I have to wonder if being an active participant in creating PTSD helps make one an expert in treating it?
CAPT Bryce Lefever, pictured above smiling in his flight suit and currently stationed aboard USS Enterprise, spoke on National Public Radio's All Things Considered today. Listen to or read the story here. He offered a justification for military psychologists' involvement in the torture policies implemented by the Central Intelligence Agency. Recent news reports disclosed that military psychologists marketed a torture program to the CIA, which was approved by the Justice Department, then helped the CIA implement their techniques. He said that these military psychologists were patriots who had the best interests of the American people at heart. "I have no fondness for the enemy, and I don't feel like I need to take care of their mental health needs." CAPT Lefever pointed out that he did not take part in organizing or implementing the interrogation methods. But he did feel a need to defend them. It was chilling for me to listen to CAPT Lefever talk about the pride he took in torturing students at SERE school, in order to prepare them for potential torture by potential enemies. But for almost all of the students, the only person who ever tortured them was CAPT Lefever, all in their best interests and with no regrets.
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