re: #407 Walter L. Newton

And? That makes it like Room 101 in 1984? Really. Show me the totalitarian organization behind “our Room 101?” Show me how “”our Room 101” is supported by a system like that shown in 1984? Show me all the trappings of a totalitarian government that make “our Room 101” possible?

If you are going to use the “Room 101” from 1984 as a metaphor for some contemporary incident that you feel is the same or similar, you can’t just take the concept out of the book and rip away the whole underpinnings of the novel just to make a point.

That’s dishonest and hyperbole. You know that.

In 1984 the protagonist is taken to a room by Government agents where he is tortured with the one thing that he fears most. Rats.

In real life, Abu Zubaydah was taken into a prison by Government agents, where he was tortured by the one thing that he fears most. Bugs.

What other fucking parallels do you need? We created a real-life room 101, and with it we tortured suspected terrorists using their worst fears against them. What else does the analogy need? The fact that in 1984 it’s a totalitarian government is irrelevant. The methods of torture are completely analogous.