Upon arriving in Iraq, Dr James began observing the way the prison was run. The interrogations were done late at night. Dr. James felt he could get at the truth more quickly if his fist observations were made without the interrogators’ knowledge.. About midnight, he crept from his tent. The first thing he noticed was the oppressive heat. The desert didn’t cool rapidly. Heat has been known to cause violent behavior, and there was no air condition in the prison or the tents.

The second thing he noticed was the screaming coming from the prison. He crept up to one of the windows to listen and watch. The male prisoner was screaming at his female interrogator and she was screaming right back at him. That’s when Dr. James noticed the third thing. There was no superior officer in the room to help keep a lid on things.

Dr. James went to the rest of the windows. The same thing and more was occurring in the rest of the interrogation rooms. None of the superior officers were in sight. Questioning the interrogators, Dr. James found that the officers were always in their air conditioned quarters in Saddam Hussein’s former palace.

Fixing Hell is an important look at the psychology of being a soldier. It also deals with the responsibility of being an officer, as well as what happens when the officer fails in his or her duties. Listen to Fixing Hell. It will change your opinion of Abu Ghraib.