Indonesia's rail sitters seek a cure for ailments

By Kate Lamb, Los Angeles Times

September 9, 2011, 5:44 p.m.

Reporting from Jakarta, Indonesia— Each afternoon, Abdul Rachman indulges in his favorite way to reduce the stresses of the working world: He sits on the railway tracks not far from home.

Rachman, a 32-year-old security guard, says the unorthodox practice is intended to prolong his life, not end it. "Many people say I want to kill myself because I do this," said the stocky man with a thick mustache, who has suffered from rheumatism and fatigue. "People can say what they want. I do it because I want to be cured."

Rachman is among scores of advocates of railway "electric therapy," a treatment some Indonesians believe cures such ailments as strokes, asthma, high blood pressure and rheumatism, not to mention a hard day at the office.

The practice took off last year after a man suffering from the effects of a stroke reportedly lay down on the track in an attempt to commit suicide but jumped off after feeling rejuvenated by the oncoming train's electric current.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-indonesia-rail-sitters-20110910,0,6236300.story?trac=lat-pick

Not the rails?

Anyway, how is playing chicken with trains better than cortisone?