Don't know why, but recently I've spun into a long, slow stall over the early Middle Ages, from Clovis and Clothilda at one end, to the Goliards and the Abbe Suger at the other end. No doubt, it takes my mind off the curriculum in torture, ancient and modern, that I've set myself, while at the same time it affords a logical, historical perspective on the dreadful topic. After all, having read a fairly particular account of the last years of Gyorgy Dozsa, as well as much of the trial testimony of Giles de Rais and his servant/accomplices, I've got a pretty fair general notion of what, really, the CIA, NSA, and FBI are up to.