The first half of you post sounds reasonable- do it to save lives, but the second half sound like revenge.

America has to be very careful of who it tortures. Leave civilians out of it. It needs to be reserved for rare occasions, i.e. you have an Al Qaeda terrorist who you are certain knows something about an attack that will kill thousands. And then, I feel that any torture should be a humane as possible. There should be no physical pain or harm. Mental torture can be just as effective.

We are the worlds greatest superpower that started and spread human rights all over the globe. We need to act as such. We are strong enough that we do not have to act like animals.

If torture is used, it should never be about revenge. It should be about getting important information from the enemy that will save innocent lives.

Here is another option, getting the person of question to switch sides. Treat them well and work 24/7 to turn them too our side (yes, you could call it brainwashing).

Final word on the topic. Torture is nasty work. It should only be used in rare doses and it should be done professionally under scrutiny and never for revenge.