[meyer]

That battery might have simply been used to power a radio. Just because it is next to a bed means nothing.

That would be my guess - a 12-volt car battery isn't very useful as a torture device unless you either pour the acid on someone or beat them with it. I'd think that the clamps on jumper cables would be more irritating.

That said, it is interesting that a battery stating "France" on it was used as a prop. Perhaps Saddam (or his replacement) is trying to make us angry. Like N. Korea, they seem to want to provoke us into going Nuclear. It isn't going to work.

[lonewacko_dot_com]

I guess you could convert the 12VDC into a high AC voltage fairly easily, and that might hurt a bit.

[Naplm]

a 500 amp car battery could be used to inflict extreme pain, you ever cross the terminals on a car battery?

[Fzob]

a 12-volt car battery isn't very useful as a torture device unless you either pour the acid on someone or beat them with it. I'd think that the clamps on jumper cables would be more irritating.

I don't know what the battery was used for, but a 12 volt car battery can pack a wallop of a shock if done "correctly". Think cold crack amps.

[virgil]

A battery is a power source. It can be boosted with a coil. Basic electriciy 101. It can hurt. But the chemical suits...I think they were planted to play with our minds.

[piasa]

It's not the volts, it's the amps. Car batteries have been used to torture people all over the globe.

Some have used them in conjuction with conductive rods or other devices, on the genitals, or in the case of female victims, internally.

Just because you can't think of ways to inflict pain with everyday doo-dads, don't think people in a really sick, oppressive regime cannot.

[SGCOS]

...a 12-volt car battery isn't very useful as a torture device unless you either pour the acid on someone or beat them with it.

The Cold Cranking Amps (CCA) of an auto battery is the amount of current a given battery can deliver for 30 seconds at 0 °F (-18 °C) without dropping below 7.2 volts for a 12 volt battery.

With todays batteries sustaining 400-1000 Cold Cranking Amps, I think that would be pretty irritating.

[Puppage]

a 12-volt car battery isn't very useful as a torture device

Why don't ya hook up your scroat to the family car battery & come back & tell us that it isn't a very useful tool of persuasion, hmm?

[fatrat]

it has been almost 30 years since i examined a Navy field hospital's mount out gear but the last time i looked there were several pieces of equipment in there that required 12 volts to operate. for instance, a 12 volt jeep headlight was a standard item. it would be used as an operating light where 110v electricity was not available.