# musical torture in iraq **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 22, 2003, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832 "2003-05-22T15:53:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Francis\_E\_Dec\_Esq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/48db29/32.png) [@Francis\_E\_Dec\_Esq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_E_Dec_Esq)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/1 "2003-05-22T15:53:48Z")
[http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=3503290&msg=emaillink](http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=3503290&msg=emaillink) > [@](#): > > United States interrogators in Baghdad are using heavy metal songs and the Sesame Street theme tune to break Iraqi captives. > > American officials said subjecting prisoners to long sessions of the “culturally offensive” music encouraged them to talk. > > “These people haven’t heard heavy metal before,” Sergeant Mark Hadsell told Newsweek magazine. “They can’t take it.” > > The interrogators’ favoured tracks include Metallica’s Enter Sandman and the Drowning Pool song Bodies, from the Vin Diesel action film XXX. Now _that’s_ torture! ---
**Author:** ![UnwrittenNocturne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/6de8d8/32.png) [@UnwrittenNocturne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UnwrittenNocturne)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/2 "2003-05-22T17:02:24Z")
Ouch, oughta use top40 manufactured pop hits. Now that would get them talking ---
**Author:** ![NameAlreadyTaken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/97f17d/32.png) [@NameAlreadyTaken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NameAlreadyTaken)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/3 "2003-05-22T17:25:16Z")
Modern music is ok for amatures. But if you want to really mess up someone’s mind, go with the classical lineup from [Eric Flint’s 1632](http://http://www.baen.com/library/0671319728/0671319728.htm): Wozzeck - Berg Night on Bald Moutain - Mussorgsky Pictures at an Exhibition “Bydlo” - Mussorgsky Peer Gynt “In the Hall of the Mountain King” - Greig Alexander Nevsky “Arise, ye Russian People” - Prokofiev Piano Concert #3 - Prokofiev The Rite of Spring - Stravinsky Tristan & ISolde’s “Liebestod” - Wagner Der Ring “Entry of the Gods Into Valhalla” - Wagner Der Ring “Ride of the Valkyries” - Wagner Der Ring “Wotan’s Farewell” - Wagner Der Ring “Siegried’s Funeral March” - Wagner Der Ring “Immolation of the Gods” - Wagner Symphony #8 - Shostakovich Some of this list is absolutely awesome music, but if you play it in the middle of the night to someone who doesn’t come from a western musical tradition, it would be truely terrifying. ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_E\_Dec\_Esq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/48db29/32.png) [@Francis\_E\_Dec\_Esq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_E_Dec_Esq)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/4 "2003-05-22T19:03:57Z")
I think you’ve got something there, NAT. ---
**Author:** ![Opengrave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/919ad9/32.png) [@Opengrave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Opengrave)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/5 "2003-05-22T19:35:51Z")
[Nile](http://www.relapse.com/high/relapse/nile/nephrenka.html) would be nice. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/6 "2003-05-22T19:45:08Z")
Typical. Just typical of anti-American bias. When Iraqis have to listen to it, it’s inhumane torture. But when this stuff gets played to millions of Americans every day on the radio, nobody says a thing despite the potential for long-term damage. Where’s the outrage? 😛 😛 😛 😉 ---
**Author:** ![frithrah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ad7895/32.png) [@frithrah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/frithrah)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2003, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/7 "2003-05-22T21:21:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Marley23 \* > \*\*Typical. Just typical of anti-American bias. When Iraqis have to listen to it, it’s inhumane torture. > \*\* This makes me question: Do the Iraqis have better music? Are we just accustomed to greater diversity? Or are we imposing our own bias, even here in this thread? I can think of several Middle-Eastern influenced works that I would not consider torture even when played loudly and repeatedly. Consider Page/Plant, Garcia/ Grishom, or Fripp/Belew. The Iraqis might have a tough time breaking me. It’s a catchy sound. So what would drive you truly Bonkers? You know, like “Billy don’t be a hero” on bagpipe, accordian, and ukelele. Thoughts? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/8 "2003-05-23T02:20:21Z")
Well, it’s not bias, it’s that they’d be unaccustomed to the loud and blustery music (i.e. Metallica) or the unbelievably irritating, cloying stuff (Barney). And hey, even when they’re not POWs, you can hurt people with that stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Badtz\_Maru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e36b37/32.png) [@Badtz\_Maru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Badtz_Maru)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/9 "2003-05-23T02:38:12Z")
I think some loud techno music that repeated the exact same two second sequence for about an hour and a half, then played a somewhat different two second break, and went back to the original part would drive me nuts. It would get stuck in your head, and you would keep waiting and waiting for the different part, I doubt you’d ever be able to fall asleep. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/10 "2003-05-23T16:09:03Z")
Reminds me of the use of loud rock music to drive Manuel Antonio Noreiga (supposedly) from his refuge in the Papal Nuciatura (briefly known as the “Hard Rock Cafe - Panama.” ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/11 "2003-05-23T17:14:03Z")
I personally would give up government secrets if I had to listen to Whitney Houston screech “I Will Always Love You.” Very effective torture. Of course, once they get used to it, and once the prisoners are ever released, we can look forward to going to the Baghdad Hilton and hearing an Arabic Metallica revival band in the lounge. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/12 "2003-05-23T19:26:12Z")
Hell, that ain’t torture! Play “Culture Club” at 140db for a few hours, then slap on some Slim Whitman. After their ears start to bleed, hit 'em with “N’Sync”, Kelly Osborn, and Tiffany in rapid succesion. Lay into them with some “Lemonheads”. Slay them with “Captain and Tennile”. Buck Owens for breakfast. Bryan Adams for lunch. Don’t make us serve supper!! OK, you asked for it! Cue the “Bee Gees”! Helen Reddy, hell yeah! _Lovin’ You_ by Minnie Riperton ought to do it. Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys might be a bit too harsh, and would probably violate some sort of UN resolution. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2003, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/musical-torture-in-iraq/176832/13 "2003-05-23T21:01:11Z")
Since Muslims don’t eat pork, how about the Oscar Meyer and/or Armour hotdog songs? Or an ice cream truck playing the jingle?