Conspiracy theories have plagued the minds of many individuals since the dawn of time, and various mysterious and unexplained events have been labeled as conspiracies by both contemporary and modern-day thinkers and analysts. These events range from the assassination of the American John F. Kennedy and the baffling death of Edgar Allan Poe, to the prestigious Rockefeller family and the secretive Freemasons.
As you can see, even the mighty US has its share of scheming incidents that have stirred broad speculation about the motives and techniques of those involved. While most are the result of blind guesswork and conclusion-jumping, some plots have actually been proven and admitted to being genuine conspiracies. These events continue to challenge the integrity and purpose of influential persons and institutions.
Project MK-ULTRA was the code name for a secret CIA mind-control and chemical interrogation research program. This secret government initiative began in the 1950s and continued at least to the late 1960s and involved the surreptitious testing of numerous drugs, stimulants, and other methods to manipulate mental states and brain function. The CIA used US citizens as voluntary or involuntary test subjects, and the existence of such a program has been in the public view since 1975. The project was revealed by the US Congress and a presidential commission known as the Rockefeller Commission. Investigative efforts were hampered by the fact that CIA Director Richard Helms ordered all MK-ULTRA files destroyed in 1973; the Congress and the Rockefeller Commission investigations relied on the sworn testimony of participants and on the extremely small amount of documents that survived.
The CIA poured millions of dollars into mind-control research. The project included the study of the following: (taken from a 1955 MK-ULTRA document)
- "Substances which will promote illogical thinking and impulsiveness to the point where the recipient would be discredited in public."
- "Substances which increase the efficiency of experimentation and perception."
- "Materials which will prevent or counteract the intoxicating effect of alcohol."
- "Materials which will promote the intoxicating effect of alcohol."
- "Materials which will produce the signs and symptoms of recognized diseases in a reversible way so that they may be used for malingering, etc. "
- "Materials which will render the induction of hypnosis easier or otherwise enhance its usefulness."
- "Substances which will enhance the ability of individuals to withstand privation, torture and coercion during interrogation and so-called 'brain-washing'."
- "Materials and physical methods which will produce amnesia for events preceding and during their use."
- "Physical methods of producing shock and confusion over extended periods of time and capable of surreptitious use."
- "Substances which produce physical disablement such as paralysis of the legs, acute anemia, etc."
- "Substances which will produce "pure" euphoria with no subsequent let-down."
- "Substances which alter personality structure in such a way that the tendency of the recipient to become dependent upon another person is enhanced."
- "A material which will cause mental confusion of such a type that the individual under its influence will find it difficult to maintain a fabrication under questioning.
Substances which will lower the ambition and general working efficiency of men when administered in undetectable amounts." - "Substances which promote weakness or distortion of the eyesight or hearing faculties, preferably without permanent effects."
- "A knockout pill which can surreptitiously be administered in drinks, food, cigarettes, as an aerosol, etc., which will be safe to use, provide a maximum of amnesia, and be suitable for use by agent types on an ad hoc basis."
- "A material which can be surreptitiously administered by the above routes and which in very small amounts will make it impossible for a man to perform any physical activity whatsoever."
One of the ultimate goals involved the creation of a Manchurian Candidate - an unwitting agent for the CIA - that would have participated in actions of espionage, sabotage, and assassination against governments whose interests conflicted with those of the US.
The very nature of MK-ULTRA required the circumvention of legal issues involving informed consent. Supreme Court Justice William Brennan declared that the need to preserve military discipline should not protect the government from liability and punishment for serious violations of constitutional rights. The project was also in violation of the Nuremberg Code, which came into existence as a response to the Nazi medical experiments done on concentration camp prisoners, as the US had agreed to follow the code after World War II.
Although the CIA insists that the project experiments have been abandoned, many insist that CIA mind-control research continued and that the Agency's acknowledgement of MK-ULTRA was simply the cover-up for a larger, more momentous, and more heavily-guarded government program.
It is important that governments remain as truthful as they can possibly be with their citizens. Some secrets must be kept in order to ensure the security of the people, but a government whose programs break the civil rights guaranteed by its constitution fails to provide adequate and effective protection of its citizens.
At least two test subjects died as a result of the CIA experiments.
Most information regarding the absolute specifics Project MK-ULTRA remains highly classified to this day.
You'd better be careful with all this information and what you do with it...anyone could be CIA or a government agent nowadays. You never know...though I’m sure you can handle it...hehehe.
False.
Mr. Johnson, what are you talking about?
Dillon,
Where might I find more documents or evidence about this alleged mind control reasearch? On the one hand, I know very well (from the fate of my family's country) that the United States government (particularly during the Cold War) was only too willing to squander vast sums of money in futile and ultimately counterproductive efforts to manipulate the politics and politicians of other nations rather than, say, learning how to negotiate and compromise. On the other hand, I have absolutely no confidence in the science skills of Americans.
Fascinating. I've never heard of MK-ULTRA before. Out of all the conspiracy theories that have been cooked up, this one has to be one of the most interesting theories I've ever come across, factual or not. The use of substances and drugs to manipulate subjects' mental states and physical capabilities actually seems kind of credible. I mean, the side effects of some prescription drugs are bad enough! Just look at the risks of some medicines and I think you might find one or two of the things on that list you included in your blog...