Just poking my head up to quibble over a few points. I'm not sure Lex temporarily denying A.C. water constitutes torture so much as it does understandable caution; Lex clearly stated his suspicions that A.C. would be able to escape if he were to get water (which was, in fact, later proven true). Yes, Lex did taunt the guy a little, but not only had A.C. been insulting to Lex first, but A.C. was also an eco-terrorist out to destroy millions of dollars' worth of equipment that rightfully belonged to Lex and his company; I can't really see that Lex was all that terribly wrong to lock him up, if only as a prelude to calling in the authorities. And Lex did NOT torture Victor -- he saved Victor's life in the only way it was possible to save it. True, he forcibly kept Victor from throwing that life away, but so would the U.S. legal system have done, if it had had the chance; I personally do believe in the right to die, but suicide is currently illegal in almost every state. I do not see examining the results of Duncan's treatments as evil; knowledge is never inherently evil, although the misuse of that knowledge can be. The only Amanda I can think of committed suicide, which was not remotely Lex's fault. And Lex did not sabotage his relationship with Clark (if that's the one you're thinking of); Clark THREW THEIR RELATIONSHIP AWAY with his myriad lies and betrayals.