platform and a set of stocks in order to punish dishonest dope dealers in a proper public fashion." In Mario Puzo's novel of The Godfather, three corrupt home-repair workers are "thoroughly bastinadoed" by Sonny Corleone. Methods The prisoner is barefooted and restrained in such manner that the feet cannot be shifted out of position. The intention is to avert serious injuries of the forefoot by stray hitting, especially of the fracturable toes. The energy of the stroke impacts is typically meant to be absorbed by the muscular tissue inside the vaults of the feet. In the Middle Eastern falaka method, the victim is forced to lie on his or her back while the feet are elevated and bound. The beating is generally performed with a rigid wooden stick, a club or a truncheon. The term falaka describes the wooden plank used to tie up the ankles; however, different items are used for this purpose. This approach is very painful to the bare ankles. The Middle Eastern falaka method can cause more serious injuries, such as bone fractures and nerve damage, than the German method, since the person undergoing falaka can, to a certain degree, move their body and feet; as a result, strokes land more or less randomly and injury-prone areas are frequently affected. As falaka is usually carried out with a rigid and often heavy stick, it accordingly causes blunt trauma leaving the person unable to walk and often impeded for life. In the German method, the prisoner was principally unable to move and the beatings were performed with more lightweight objects, thinner in diameter and usually slightly flexible. The physical aftereffects of the procedure were mostly superficial and unwanted injuries were relatively rare. Therefore, the person usually was able to walk immediately following punishment. Nonetheless, the German form of bastinado caused severe levels of pain and suffering for the victim. An alternative form of the torture is inflicted in Saudi Arabia as a penalty for, among other offenses, selling alcohol to Muslims. After the naked feet are immobilized, their soles are repeatedly struck with a heavy leather bullwhip. The whip is wielded by an expert who can cause the tip to crack so that bleeding wounds are inflicted and the feet are paralyzed with agony. Twenty to fifty lashes on the naked soles is a typical duration for the torture. Effects The beatings usually aim at the tender