Waterboarding: Torture and ... Tourist Attraction?
Travel Blog • Valerie Conners • 08.06.08 | 4:33 PM ET
As if Christopher Hitchens’ delving into the matter firsthand wasn’t enough for the commoner’s curiosity, now visitors to New York’s Coney Island can drop a dollar in a slot and watch animatronic figures simulate a Guantanamo-esque waterboarding scenario—complete with a figure convulsing for 15 seconds and a sign that reads, “It don’t Gitmo better!”
The so-called “thrill ride”-cum-art installation is the brainchild of artist and Fulbright grant winner Steve Powers, who argues the work is intentionally provocative, and asks the New York Times, “What’s more obscene, the official position that waterboarding is not torture, or our official position that it’s a thrill ride?”
I suppose tourists, er, the public will decide.
Related on World Hum:
* Hey, Let’s Turn Gitmo Into a Cruise Ship Terminal!
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Valerie Conners is the senior producer and editor at World Hum.
TambourineMan 08.06.08 | 11:08 PM ET
I think this would make a lovely addition to Disneyland’s “It’s A Small World” ride, which is currently undergoing renovation. Bob Iger, are you listening?
Nicaragua Surf 08.07.08 | 11:49 AM ET
haha…this is crazy :) this should be at every theme park