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Written by Andrew Olson - View Profile
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Sunday, 03 December 2006 |
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The Abu Ghraib prison scandal left a sulfuric bitterness trailing behind the Afganhistan invasion. We've all heard of the shady 'interrogation' tactics, like water boarding, at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. It seems that the Powers at be have discoverd, and employed, a rather modern 'interrogation' tactic. According to SPIN magazine, prisoners at Guantanamo Bay were repeatedly exposed to blaring music at harmful decibels in order to weaken and disorient its victims.
The music came from quite a broad spectrum, surprisingly enough, being comprised of everything from Marilyn Manson to Christina Aguilera. But some genres were more popular than others. Metal and Hard Rock were/are fequently used, along with rap. For instance, one detainee described being shackled to a floor in a room with frigid tempatures while Eminem's "Kim" sat on repeat. Another was exposed to Metallica's "Enter Sandman" for a 24 hour period.
According to SPIN's article, the interrogation methods seemed to be effective, although the interrogation agents interviewed in the article seemed to be split both on the efficiency and the purpose of this unique method; whom some call torture.
Unbelievably, one of the artists stated by SPIN as being used in this new methodology is the group Rage Against the Machine (RATM). If you are unfamiliar with RATM, some of their favorite venues include Democratic Conventions, and their lyrical subjects range from Empirialism to consumerism, but all with American as its central hub. "Land of the Free/ Whoever told you that is your enemy", from "No Shelter" to "Your Anger is a Gift" from the song "Freedom", RATM message is laced with Liberatarian ideals. Anyone familiar with RATM onstage antics would not gawk at the fact American flags are only waved in joy before being lit on fire.
I find it highly ironic that the government, or military, is employing such music as RATM in the fight against terror. Tom Morello, the iconoclast guitarist of the former RATM, and now Audioslave, says: "The fact that our music has been co-opted in this barbaric way is really disgusting."
I wonder what Anthony Burgess would have said about the matter at hand were he still alive. Burgess who penned some of the best novels of the last century, wrote of a very similiar situation in his novel "A Clockwork Orange" Perhaps many of you are familiar of the Stanley Kubrick film of the same title. In it, the main character undergoes a experimental rehabilitation; in the process he is exposed to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony while undergoing the rehabilitation, and consequnetly, after the fact, cannot stomach hearing Beethoven after the procedure.
Theoretics aside, I am of the opinion that chaining a human to a floor in shackles in a figidly cold room enclosed with large speakers spitting out Drowning Pool's "Bodies" repeatedly for hours on end should be constituted as torture, not interrogation techniques.
--Drew
The article, entitled WAR IS LOUD, can be found in the December issue of SPIN magazine. | Only registered users can write comments.
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Ravings, rantings, and gibberish. (36)
writen by: Drew
What is up FoCo?
I am a recent college graduate of Minnesota State University Moorhead. After recieving my B.A. in English and Mass Communications this past August I moved down to Colorado.
I enjoy long walks on the beach, candlelight dinners, and heavy metal. My hobbies include reading and writing, music, movies, and getting drunk. Some of my favorite contemporary authors include Bret Easton Ellis, Chuck Palahniuk, and Kurt Vonnegut. My top movies are anything directed by Kubrick. I enjoy listening to anything that rocks.
Right now I am just trying to get to know Colorado and FoCo better. Mostly in order to find the best drink specials on each day that ends in Y. So if you know where I can get a cheap drunk on, let me know!
--Drew |
|  | "Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is Alchemy's first law of Equivalent Exchange. In those days, we really believed that to be the world's one, and only truth." | |
|  | We're not that bright, even though in our own little world, we're geniuses. We like 80s hair bands and one-hit wonders, but among us we have respectable tastes, too. Metallica, Iron Maiden, U2. Pursuit of all things trivial is a lifestyle, not just a game. We like some sports, love other sports, and can find something to say about anything. We watch TV and movies and we've read a book or two, even a few classics (Yes, Classic Comics count!)
We call it insight, you call it what you will. | |
|  | Felix Wong is an outdoor enthusiast living in Fort Collins. A mechanical engineer by day, he is especially passionate about bicycling, running, and backpacking. | |
|  | Hola Amigos! I'm Sandra. I like to believe that people are 70 percent good and 30 percent dumb. I'm stickin to that story. Reading this blog might make you want to be good, but probably just dumb. | |
|  | Donovan Henderson is editor of NEXTnc. | |
|  | Here at Nextnc we have some characters. Get a sneak peak behind the curtain and find out what amusing antics our staffers get themselves into on a weekly basis. | |
| | What is up FoCo?
I am a recent college graduate of Minnesota State University Moorhead. After recieving my B.A. in English and Mass Communications this past August I moved down to Colorado.
I enjoy long walks on the beach, candlelight dinners, and heavy metal. My hobbies include reading and writing, music, movies, and getting drunk. Some of my favorite contemporary authors include Bret Easton Ellis, Chuck Palahniuk, and Kurt Vonnegut. My top movies are anything directed by Kubrick. I enjoy listening to anything that rocks.
Right now I am just trying to get to know Colorado and FoCo better. Mostly in order to find the best drink specials on each day that ends in Y. So if you know where I can get a cheap drunk on, let me know!
--Drew | |
|  | Life's little morsels of inspiration, observation and encouragement seen through the eyes of the Nextnc reporter.
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|  | Ms. Giles currently lives in Colorado where she stars in her own private reality show. She writes aphoristic accounts of her life, taken completely out of context, and embellished with characters and situations disguised to resemble something close to interesting. | |
|  | over and out | |
| | My name is Michelle Turley and I'm 28 years old. I live in Severance with my hubbie, Brandon. We have 2 dogs and a cat. We enjoy camping, four-wheeling, and just being in the mountains. I like to cook, clean (go figure), flea market, and play poker. I have so much to say about poker... | |
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