A war interrogator racked by conscience

 Kael Weston

Eric Fair was a civilian interrogator for the U.S. military for several months in Iraq in 2004 and ever since has felt haunted by his inexcusable behavior.

In his important memoir, “Consequence,” Fair confronts his demons. He recognizes the “things that can’t be undone” and writes about them with painful clarity: “This is the first detainee I lay hands on. I grab him by his clothing and drag him out of his chair . . . I shove him into the wall . . . it feels good.” He describes a joint interrogation of an Iraqi boy. The goal: to wrest a confession out of him. “I scare him. I shout,” he writes. “I throw a chair. It ricochets off the wall. I call the MP [military policeman] inside and he handcuffs the boy to the iron loop in the floor. . . . He suffers. He cries.” . .  . [Full text]