Vol. 6, No. 1 - Psychiatric Survivor Archives of Toronto

More documents

Recommendations

Info

were fully acquainted with theproblems and were carefullyselected to provide a balance ofscientific competence to thediscussions. (name deleted) inparticular, indicated a keenunderstanding of the "Bluebird"problem, and was obviouslyinterested in conducting researchprograms in connection with it.With the backing of ORB (namesof institutions deleted) shouldprovide a center of interest andactivity which will be of utmostvalue in the testing of varioushypotheses as to control of thehuman mind.'" U.S. interests can best beserved by channeling our contactthrough the DRB ... 3These notes make it clear thatCanada was to be a majorbrainwashing and mind-controlresearch centre for the CIA, and thatthe Canadian research was to becarried out under the cover of theCanadian military, specifically theORB or the Defence Department.To ensure secrecy, the CIA wouldset up two distinct but related mindcontrolprojects: "BLUEBIRD" (or"ARTICHOKE") and "MK-ULTRA."The need for such strict secrecy wasdiscussed at length, as well as thepossibility of cooperation with otherforeign intelligence agencies.Less than two months later, onJuly 23, 1951, another secretmeeting was held; names, as well asother identifying information, weredeleted or barely legible in the notes.But the goals and objectives of theprojects were beginning to come intofocus, including studies of "theavailability of the individual and thedetection of an amenable type," andthe "physiological and psychologicalreactions" to the "interrogation."Techniques - specifically, drugs andhypnosis - were also discussed.And the notes reiterate the1a Phoenix RisingCanadian commitment to CIAresearch and secrecy:There is no existing program inCanada at the present time.There will be one.We may expect inquiries from theCanadians as to our progress ...any connection with CIA is notrevealed.4Yet another secret meeting on"ARTICHOKE" was held on Dec. 3,1951. Again, all names and otheridentifying information were deleted,and it's doubtful that any Canadiansattended. However, the use ofelectroshock as a significanttechnique in brainwashing wasdiscussed extensively, and anunnamed shock expert - a"psychiatrist of considerable note ...a fully cleared Agency consultant" was mentioned:The writer asked whether or not inthe "groggy" condition following aconvulsion by the electro-shockmachine anyone had attempted toobtain hypnotic control over thepatients, since it could be a goodtime to obtain hypnotic control .(Doctor's name deleted) stated .it had never been done, but hecould make this attempt in thenear future at the (name ofinstitution deleted) and seewhether or not this could be done.It was (name deleted) opinion thatan individual could be graduallyreduced through the use ofelectro-shock treatment to thevegetable level amnesia couldbe guaranteed 5This insensitive hypothesis was soontested by Cameron and hispsychiatric colleagues who reducedmany psychiatric inmates to this"vegetable level" by usingelectroshock and other brainwashingtechniques.But first, let us turn our attention toHebb and his experiments at McGill.Hebb and the SensoryDeprivation ExperimentsShortly after he returned from theCIA meeting of June 1, 1951, Hebbsubmitted one of several grantapplications to the Department ofNational Defence; specifically, to theORB. Hebb's name did not appearon the first application; instead, theresearch project was simply assignedto McGill.The sensory deprivation researchhe undertook was always classifiedas "psychological warfare" and"Human Resources and MilitaryPsychology," but his 1951application to the ORB, innocentlytitled, "Conditions of AttitudeChange In Individuals," coveredwhat were the first brainwashingstudies conducted at McGill.In this application, Hebb requesteda one-year grant of $5,000 "todetermine the specific conditions oflimitation of subject's field ofperception and action which whencoupled with subsequent suggestionwill effect persistent changes inattitudes of some fundamentalimportance."also believedTo make sure the ORBthis research was "ofsome fundamental importance," hewrote, under the heading,"Requirement"A hostile power may attemptconversion of attitudes, togetherwith behaviour appropriate tothese, of our nationals who fallinto their hands. This may includethe use of psychological, asopposed to essentially physical,means. It is desirable to determinethe feasibility of such attempts,with a view to ascertaining whatdefensive action would be taken.6In this exploratory study, animalsand "paid human subjects" (McGillstudent volunteers) would besubjected to a prolonged,_ •••••w •••• ~.~~ ••••w •••~.~.~ --------
monotonous environment "comparable to "White Noise" - forup to three or four days at a time.The ORB quickly approved theapplication.In his December, 1952 progressreport to the ORB, Hebb reported onhis initial results:Experimentation to date has beenexploratory. Tolerance for theconditions of perceptual isolationvaries in subjects ... from 0-60hours. The motivationaldisturbance is great and theintellectual efficiency is impaired.Despite these disturbingpreliminary findings, the ORBapproved Hebb's request for anadditional $10,000 to continue hisresearch - and no questions wereasked.A year later, in his December,1953 progress report, Hebb reportedeven more disturbing results:One study demonstrated (i) theincapacity of college students totolerate a severe perceptuallimitation, and, as a result, theireagerness to listen to almost anyverbal material offered them, and(ii) that propaganda for an absurdpoint of view becomes significantlymore effective under thesecircumstances than for controlsubjects. Another effect was asignificant lowering of intellectualefficiency during and immediatelyafter the period of perceptualdeprivation, and that during thedeprivation period, the subjectdeveloped hallucinations. 8In short, the sensory deprivationexperiments were causing manyhealthy students to break down orhallucinate; under this stress, theywere becoming amenable to theresearchers' suggestions. Except forthe hallucinations - which interferedwith the process - the brainwashingwas proving effective.Over the following two years,Hebb was awarded $18,000 ingrants.By the time he submitted his finalreport, in December, 1955, Hebbhad completed two majorexperiments, which he described:... the experimental subjects showa deterioration in problemsolving ability both during the ...isolation, and for several hoursafter emergence ... when thetests actually were presented, thesubjects would frequently not tryvery hard to get the correctanswer, and complain abouthaving to do them. Again, aftera few days in isolation ... therewas some disturbance of normalmotivational patterns. 9After completing 48 to 72 hours ofisolation, five of the 65 students"A hostile power may attemptconversion of attitudes ... Thismay include the use ofpsychological, as opposed toessentially physical, means. It isdesirable to determine the"feasibility of such attempts.- Grant application to Defence Department by Professor Donald Hebb, Montreal. 1951.experienced "attacks of acuteanxiety." One became hysterical.One suffered an epileptic attack. Anda majority of these students, and theothers, described the experience as"a form of torture."l0Few of the young people. couldtolerate the isolation for more thanthree or four days, despite the factthat they were being paid $20 a day- a considerable sum in the mid1950s.The details of these experimentswere first published in 1954 in ascientific report by threepsychologists working for Hebb inthe psychology department atMcGill. 11 A similar study, publishedin 1956, confirmed all the majorresults of the 1954 study. 12During the experiments, thestudents spent 24 hours a day aloneon a comfortable bed in a soundproofcubicle; meals and trips to thetoilet were the only respite. Theirvision, hearing and touch wereseverely restricted; for example, theywore goggles eliminating patternvision, and special gloves whichcovered their arms and hands. Aswell, they listened to a continuoushum, or "white noise," throughearphones imbedded in a pillow.And to increase their sense ofisolation, researchers rarely talkedwith them.In a 1961 summary of theseexperiments, psychologistWoodburn Heron reported thatalmost all 29 students in one studygroup suffered some serious sensory,emotional and intellectualdisturbances within the first two daysof isolation. 13 The disturbances weretemporary, but the experienceproved so overwhelming that withinthe first two days, a majority of thestudents experienced vivid visual,auditory and tactile hallucinations, aswell as difficulties in concentrationand problem-solving. During andimmediately after the isolation, manyof them also complained of dizziness,confusion, nausea, fatigue,headaches, and, because of theterrifying nature of thehallucinations, insomnia.A sub-study involving 12 of thesestudents also revealed a markedslowing in Alpha-wave activity - thebrain's arousal system - for as manyas three days after isolation. Thisneurological disturbance formed anideal base for brainwashing: since thePhoenix Rising 11
Page 1: .pnoenlx$2.50RISIOTHE VOICE OF THE
Page 5 and 6: An anguishedquestionsDear Editorsfa
Page 7 and 8: .-t.III'I'IIII .•'I' ,allt ,f""De
Page 9 and 10: InstitutionalanguishEach time I cor
Page 14 and 15: students' brains weren'l receivinge
Page 16: 14 Phoenix Risingsuffered from depr
Page 19: FOR ALL THE FLAILING BROKEN ONESI h
Page 22 and 23: couldn't go out anyway because I'm
Page 24 and 25: 22 Phoenix Risingimpossible. They g
Page 26 and 27: 'P "~ .•~••: "'''''~'l\~'\o~t
Page 28 and 29: It hurts so bad beingalone in this
Page 32 and 33: 1~JThis book, long awaited by theps
Page 35 and 36: provincial election. In 1986, wecan
Page 37 and 38: dPharmaceuticals haveproduced a pro
Page 39 and 40: ppermanent brain damage caused byth
Page 41 and 42: sensory deprivation experiments.12.
Page 43 and 44: PHOENIXWestRISINGBilly's News, Calg

Vol. 6, No. 1 - Psychiatric Survivor Archives of Toronto

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?