The biggest difference I can see, between you, and a prisoner of My Own Country, the Bastion of Democracy, and Freedom is:
You know you are never ever going to do that again.
Tris
I did read up quite a bit before I tried it. The main danger is cardiac arrest. It will take you three to four minutes to asphyxiate. Waterboarding will take you about ten seconds before total surrender. Just long enough for your lungs empty, and begin to draw water.
From my understanding, you are in no physiological danger (besides the cardiac arrest thing) as long as you keep your lungs above the water line. You won’t actually drown.
The problem is that your body doesn’t know this and your reaction is completely involuntary.
So, I have no doubt that it can be done safely.
Which has nothing to do with the fact that as far as I’m concerned it is the worst torture imaginable.
I understand the CIAs point, or anybody who might defend it.
“Hey, it’s easy. It’s safe. They give up instantly. There’s no physiological damage. It gets total capitulation.”
I believe those points are true and valid.
My merest taste simply suggests that by any definition of torture this is as bad as it gets. You can’t do this to another human being and stay human and remain moral.
While on the surface, it doesn’t seem that bad, it is worse than you can imagine.
Daniel Levin, at the time acting head of the Office of Legal Counsel at the Justice Department volunteered to be waterboarded to judge for himself. Afterwards, he wrote a legal opinion opposing torture, was tossed out and replaced with someone who did support torture.
Thanks for the answer. A few more questions, if you don’t mind:
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What did you think US policy regarding waterboarding should be before you tried this?
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Did this experience change your mind as to what US policy should be?
Thanks.
Bingo! This is exactly the point. Idiots like Sen. Kit Bond of Missouri who compare waterboarding to swimming have no idea what they are talking about. Maybe you could repeat your experiment on him?
The OP nearly gave me a panic attack.
I apparently have a phobia of drowning that I didn’t know about until this thread. Holy cow.
In view of of your commitment to find out the truth by yourself, please pardon the snarkiness but…
Waddaya know?, bad you say?
Of course its bad, you dont think theyd be doing stuff like that to break prisoners will if its merely a passing discomfort . Its the surreality of the "it isnt so bad" camp, if its not such a horrible experience it wouldnt be, ejem, *effective* at turning men into blubbering masses of defeated humanity.* Of course its terrible, but it doesn`t look so, you have to keep the appearances, you know?
- Which is what probably does best, but I don`t see how it necessary translates into a benefit for the torturer.
This is really remarkable. Truly above and beyond the call of fighting ignorance.
Why? Seriously, why would you do that to yourself? 
And yes.
Scylla, thanks for sharing your experience.
Waterboarding is torture. The detainees subjected to waterboarding have usually been previously subjected to other forms of *strong interrogation * techniques (torture) like sleep and sensory deprivation, not to mention humiliation, sexual abuse, and other heinous acts. The U.S. use of torture is an embarrassment, unconscionable, and downright frightening.
I’m confused (and have been for a while) about something.
How is waterboarding (what you describe) simulated drowning and not just plain drowning?
-FrL-
But since you haven’t had someone do it to you where you didn’t know whether you would live or die, or when it would stop, if ever, you don’t actually know what’s past 1,000 on your scale. So if that’s 1,000, it’s probably about TEN thousand when it’s for real. I know you keep saying it’s the same, but it’s not. You knew intellectually, at least on some level, that you were in control. At any rate, I just can’t believe that there are such assholes in the world who actually want to debate whether it’s torture.
It was dangerous and stupid, and if you kill yourself trying to do another harebrained stunt like this again, I’ll have your ass banned for life.
All kidding aside, I don’t ever want to hear about you, or anyone else, trying something of this nature. People have died accidentally when professionals have been in charge.
This is really fascinating. I don’t have anything to add except that I appreciate you sharing your experience and helping me understand exactly how this-all works- it’s much easier to understand the issue in with a better understanding of what’s going on.
Hey, Scylla, If you knew I had the ability to enforce the choice, which would you choose, having someone else waterboard you, or Campaign, and vote Democratic in every election you can for the rest of your life.
Let’s say you knew it would mean a trip back to the waterboard every time a Democrat lost an election you could have voted in. Would you become a Democratic campaigner? Would you try to be an effective one?
Just wondering.
Tris
In local news, record tides have been reported due to the gravitational influnece of Scylla’s massive balls.
Seriously, giving props in joke form is the only way I can wrap my brain around this.
I still don’t quite understand what Scylla must have been feeling, and I don’t think I’ll be able to really understand unless I try it as well. Which I have no intention of doing, especially since I am afraid of drowning. But if someone ever tortures me in this way and I survive to talk about it, I’ll start a thread discussing my experience.
It IS just plain drowning. It’s called ‘simulated drowning’ for the same reason it’s called interrogation instead of torture. Because we are too gutless as a culture to admit what we are doing, but not good enough people to stop.
CMC +fnord!
Don’t do that. My intent was not to single anyone out by my remark, and I don’t think it’s appropriate to make such an implication.