More "torture"

Via Andrew, I see that the authorities at Gitmo are segregating violent criminals in small solitary cells. As Mr. Sullivan would have it,

The use of extremely restrictive boxes to torture prisoners is, of course, well documented. Abu Zubayda was put in a “tiny coffin”.

Yeah, that’s great, except for the fact that it’s not at all torture. Segregating violent criminals from the rest of the prison population–for the safety of other prisoners, guards, and those committing the violent acts–is a very common practice in prisons across the country. For a pop culture dramatization, I’d point to the HBO series “Oz” (currently airing at 11 p.m. every weekday on HBO Zone); almost every episode, someone gets thrown into “the hole” for dealing drugs or killing someone or getting into a fight or whatever.

Now, is it pleasant? No. But that’s the point. After enough time in the hole, maybe they’ll start behaving themselves. And if they’re not going to behave themselves, it’s better that they’re kept away from the general population so they don’t hurt anyone.