Preliminary Notes on The Physics of Modern Torture

The Rabbit in Your Ear Lina Khattab and 5 court dates later

Preliminary Notes on The Physics of Modern Torture

1. Time bends in an unpredictable manner

when twisted around a human body

using easily obtainable tools such as wires,

water, ducting tape, cigarettes, dogs, words,

silence, . . .

2. Varying sounds emanate from most orifices

depending on instruments applied.

Some sounds resemble broken words

that are often unverifiable.

Other sounds are highly similar

to those heard in abattoirs.

3. Each human body has its unique threshold.

The expected words may be extracted at different points

or not at all. Thus, another subject must always be at hand

in order for these tests to continue.

July 2008

-o-

With the release of some official information on the extent of the use of torture by the CIA, I thought it might be a good time to share this old poem of mine.

Torture is actually nothing new in the American way of dealing with anyone they want to squeeze (mis)information from. As early as 1902, the American public has heard of torture done by its soldiers stationed on the other side of the world. This New Yorker article revisits such horrors from over a century ago.

My poem first appeared in Alien to Any Skin. The book contains many poems on human rights and international politics.