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can't even find a title for this
- Thread starter Don't panic
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The link doesn't work in Safari as listed, but does if you edit it to remove the "/index.htm" at the end.
Bizarre story, indeed.
Bizarre story, indeed.
Don't panic said:
Well, I wouldn't say your getting old, but suspension liek this is relatively common and not unusual at all. For the authorities to be shocked by it surprisees me more than the actual occurence itself. I'm sure they've come across it plenty of times. Shoot, go see the movie "the cell". its a bad movie, but its got suspension as a major part of it. Its a pretty well documented fetish. There are cultures where its an important thing.
At first, I thought that the girl in the article was hanging from a hook (ie: she placed her underarm area in the bend of the hook. But after reading on a bit longer, it sounds as if they're actually placing the hooks into their bodies. Doesn't their body weight cause a tear in their tissue or something?
No, human skin is quite strong (since they're inserting the hooks through a rather large chunk of shoulder-flesh), and there's little pain or blood so long as the object passes between the outer layer of skin and the muscle beneath.Abstract said:
Hanging people from hooks like that (or, more commonly, dragging heavy things like a jeep in neutral gear) is a staple of circus freak-show type things, so it's physically not a big deal.
Going out to the beach and doing it on a self-constructed bamboo frame just for fun, though, is pretty weird.
Makosuke said:
the big oddity is doing it in public. There are a lot of cultures where such things are done as part of religious ceremonies. Some hindus do it, it wouldn't surprise me if some shiites did it. There are catholics in the Philippines and in latin america who crucify themselves for easter, complete with nails.
there is a guy who does that as an art form. i remember learning about him in my cyber-theory class in college.
we saw these pictures where he'd suspended himself from a ceiling using these hooks, and his skin was stretched to a grotesque point. if i dig up my syllabus i'll repost with his name. i wish i could remember it now...
we saw these pictures where he'd suspended himself from a ceiling using these hooks, and his skin was stretched to a grotesque point. if i dig up my syllabus i'll repost with his name. i wish i could remember it now...
There are some Native American tribal vision quests that inflict the same sort of damage. 2 men are suspended from a "T" pole - the top of the T rotates. Each man is suspended from either end of the top of the T - by hooks that go through the pecs 
The pole is spun around until one of the men's pecs give way - flesh rips - man falls - bad pain. Saw the video of this long ago in an anthropology course.
The pole is spun around until one of the men's pecs give way - flesh rips - man falls - bad pain. Saw the video of this long ago in an anthropology course.
Bizzare? Yes.
But i guess oh well... though as soon as one person is hurt/killed doing this by amateurs in public, it will become an "issue".
But i guess oh well... though as soon as one person is hurt/killed doing this by amateurs in public, it will become an "issue".
my friend does this on occasion.. i forget what he calls it.. something like spiritual hanging or something, but he'll have 4 "hooks" (look more like giant safety pins) put into his back, and then he suspends himself for about 10-15 minutes. He told me human skin can handle about 70lbs/sq in, and he weighs around 150, so he says its completely safe as long as nothing breaks (safety lines, hook, harness). all the "hooks" are sterile, and there's EMT's always standing by.
