i thank the committee for the valuable public service. i have long believed some of these practices have amounted to torture and especially but not only the practice of waterboarding, which is a mock execution and an exquisite form of torture. its use was shameful and unnecessary and, contrary to assertions made by some of it is defenders and as the committee report makes clear, it produced little useful intelligence to help us track down the perpetrators of 9/11 or prevent new attacks and atrocities. i know from personal experience that the abuse of prisoners will produce more bad than good intelligence. i know that victims of torture will offer intentionally misleading information if they