WWII Vets Slam US 'Torture' Techniques

Vet says chess, ping-pong were old grilling tricks

By Wesley Oliver, Newser Staff

Posted Oct 6, 2007 4:05 PM CDT

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WWII Vets Slam US 'Torture' Techniques — Suspected insurgents sit blindfolded and awaiting interrogation at the Iraqi police counterterrorism unit in Mosul, Iraq on Monday, Sept. 17, 2007. Violence is on the decline in northern Iraq, U.S. officials say. But the Americans believe key lasting peace is to resolve the region's most vexing political... (Associated Press)

Silent for 60 years, a handful of WWII vets are admitting their old interrogation tricks — and slamming alleged torture techniques used by the US today. Almost two dozen ex-fighters met for a ceremony by the Potomac yesterday, the Washington Post reports, but one refused the award, protesting the Iraq war and the grilling methods used at Guantanamo Bay.

“The military is using us to say, ‘We did spooky stuff then, so it’s okay to do it now,’” said Arno Mayer, 81, who now teaches at Princeton. Another vet recalled their grilling tactics, saying they felt bad if they bugged cells or edited letters. “We got more information out of a German general with a game of chess or ping-pong than they do today, with their torture." (More CIA stories.)

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