This Week's Top 3

I apologize there are only 3 this week, I know I have a few people who look forward to reading these every week. I will try my best to get 5 for next week.

Number 3: Waterboarding: This week we're going to start off with waterboarding, this week is also going to feature torture still used in current times or used in recent times. 

First thing, tie your victim down tightly onto a raised table. Then you wrap or hold down a piece of cloth on the person's face. Lastly, pour water onto the mouth and nasal cavities. Really this is a simple form of torture I can find the things I need for this one in a quick walk through of my home. However the damage it does is astounding. Basically it completely mimics the sensation of drowning. It will usually create brain damage, cause dry drowning (the lungs cannot extract oxygen from the air due to an outside purpose), or it may break the victim's bones due to them fighting the restraints. Another kind of damage this causes is mental damage. Dr. Allen Keller, the director of the Bellevue/ NYU Program for Survivors of Torture claims to have treated victims who had mental problems years after their torture. This included not being able to shower due to panic attacks and a severe fear of the rain.

Number 2: Tucker Telephone: This device I didn't believe was real until I did some research mainly based of its odd name. I wondered "How do you torture with a telephone?" well I was very happy to learn about this Tucker Telephone. The telephone got it's name because it was invented in Tucker State Prison Farm, Akransas. They have been reported to be used even in the Vietnam war on Viet Cong prisoners. 

The Tucker Telephone was built from old parts of crank phones. The telephone is wired to two dry cell batteries so it can administer shocks to another person. A prisoner would be brought to the room and strapped into a chair. The ground wire would be wrapped around the big toe, and the hot wire to the victim's genitalia. The phone would then be turned on and send shocks to the victim until they passed out. 

Number 1: Strappado: Also known as Reverse Hanging or Palestinian Hanging. This method of torture seemed extremely popular in 1692, the Salem Witch Trials. This was again made popular in a Nazi concentration camp.  The last known report of a Reverse Hanging was in 2008. I WAS going to provide a picture for this one, until I found out every picture on google no matter what I typed was A) indecent women B) really gorey or C) ...an exercise technique which is interesting because that could be considered torture to some of us less than fit people. Anyway the victim's hands are tied behind their back. Then they are suspended in the air via a rope tied from their wrists. This eventually leads to the dislocation of the shoulders. Weights were occasionally added to intensify pain and quicken torture. In the last decade other methods have also been added to the torture including: Shock torture, high pressure water blasting the victim, sexual assaults and even beatings.