The torture issue (or should I say embarassment) seems to be coming to a head in the US Senate.  Happily, several Republican Senators have staked out a position that would limit the Bush Administrations desire to use "alternate means" – i.e. torture – in the interrogation of "enemy combatants."   John McCain is central to these efforts:

But Senators Warner, McCain and Graham say the Bush proposal would send
a signal that the United States has abandoned its commitment to human
rights, and invite other nations to reinterpret the Geneva Conventions
as they see fit, eliminating protections for American troops seized in
future conflicts.

    The two central arguments – that others will torture Americans if Americans torture detainees, and that the moral basis of US foreign policy will (already has been!!) undermined – can be expanded to include a third: it is good strategy to treat prisoners well.  That, in any event, if Sun Tzu’s position:

…Treat the captives well, and care for them.  This is called "winning a battle and becoming stronger." (2.19,20).

     He includes other actions in "winning a battle and becoming stronger" – such as using captured equipment and flying your flag where the enemies once stood.  But humane treatment of prisoners is key, as pointed out by the ancient commentator Chang Yu:

All soldiers taken must be cared for with magnanimity and sinerity so that they may be used by us.

     OK, it is impossible that hard-core al-Qeada types are going to flip.  But they can be used without them being used directly and personally.  They can be used to create a broader sense of political legitimacy for the on-going effort against terrorist networks.  Pictures and stories of torture undermine those political efforts.  The best way to proceed is to show the world that the US sincerely and genuinely upholds humane standards of government, even under the duress of war.  Then, perhaps, we might start "winning a battle and becoming stronger."   If it is not too late already...