Detainees were not allowed to talk to each other, but we enjoyed looking at each other. The punishment for talking was hanging the detainee by his hands with the feet barely touching the ground.
Interpretation
The quote reflects on the human desire for connection even in oppressive circumstances.
In this quote, Mohamedou Ould Slahi conveys the deep-seated need for interaction and connection among individuals, even when they are under severe restrictions. The harsh punishment for talking among detainees highlights the oppressive nature of their situation, yet the act of simply looking at each other suggests a shared humanity that persists despite confinement and suffering. It underscores the resilience of the human spirit and the importance of companionship in the face of adversity.
In practice
This quote could be used in a discussion about the importance of camaraderie in difficult times.
Everything a detainee says is classified. Detainees cannot talk to you. They cannot talk to anyone. They cannot challenge, in a meaningful way, their detention. All that is left is for people who survived Guantanamo Bay to speak for people who are left behind, and speak for those who are in so many Guantanamos, plural, in my part of the world.
I have never felt as violated in myself as I had since the DoD team started to torture me to get me admit to things I haven't done.
Religious creeds encourage some of the craziest kinds of thoughts, emotions, and behaviors and favor severe manifestations of neurosis, borderline personality states, and sometimes even psychosis.
If you wish to upset the law that all crows are black, you mustn't seek to show that no crows are; it is enough if you prove one single crow to be white.
Dealing with complexity is an inefficient and unnecessary waste of time, attention and mental energy. There is never any justification for things being complex when they could be simple.
I was thinking of my patients, and how the worst moment for them was when they discovered they were masters of their own fate. It was not a matter of bad or good luck. When they could no longer blame fate, they were in despair.
I am like a machine being driven to excessive rotations: the bearings are incandescing and, in a minute, melted metal will begin to drip and everything will turn to nothing. Quick: get cold water, logic. I am pouring it over myself by the bucketload but the logic sizzles on the hot bearings and dissipates elusive white steam into the air.
He learned that when people are very poor they still have something to give and the impulse to give it.
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