 David
Blaine Staying Awake
for 11.5 Consecutive
Days: Bet on ItBodogLife on Tuesday released odds on whether magician David Blaine can stay awake for 11.5 consecutive days. Odds are 1/3 NO, 2/1 YES. It should be noted that odds opened at 1/16 NO and 8/1 YES, but were reduced due to betting. David Blaine will attempt to stay awake for longer than anyone has before in his latest record-breaking stunt, it was claimed today. The death defying trick won't be attempted until next May.
Celebrity columnist
Cindy Adams
reported: “He’ll
break the world
record for staying
awake. “Understand,
David neither
confirmed nor denied
his coming feat.
But, trust me. I
mean, trust me. I
mean, who do you
believe? David
Blaine Himself - or
me!” Sleep Deprivation as Torture Sleep deprivation is used as an interrogation technique (for example, in Pinochet-era Chile, the Soviet Union, and by coalition forces in Afghanistan and Iraq). Interrogation victims are kept awake for several days; when they are finally allowed to fall asleep, they are suddenly awakened and questioned. Menachem Begin, the Israeli prime minister from 1977-83 described his experience of sleep deprivation when a prisoner of the KGB in Russia as follows, "In the head of the interrogated prisoner, a haze begins to form. His spirit is wearied to death, his legs are unsteady, and he has one sole desire: to sleep... Anyone who has experienced this desire knows that not even hunger and thirst are comparable with it." In 2006, Australian Federal Attorney-General Philip Ruddock argued that sleep deprivation does not constitute torture. In rats, prolonged, complete sleep deprivation increases both food intake and energy expenditure, leading to weight loss and, ultimately, death. Nicole Bieske, a spokeswoman for Amnesty International Australia, has stated, "At the very least, [sleep deprivation] is cruel, inhumane and degrading. If used for prolonged periods of time it is torture." --- Jordan Bach, Gambling911.com Originally published December 11, 2007 5:23 pm EST
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