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- Tuesday, 2 July 2002 -

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BOMBING THE MIND
The Pentagon's Program for Psychopharmalogical Warfare
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by Edward Hammond
http://www.counterpunch.org/hammond0702.html

In The Futurological Congress (1971), Polish writer Stanislaw Lem portrayed
a future in which disobedience is controlled with hypothetical
mind-altering chemicals dubbed "benignimizers". Lem's fictional work opens
with the frightening story of a police and military biochemical attack on
protesters outside of an international scientific convention. As the
environment becomes saturated with hallucinogenic agents, in Lem's tale the
protesters (and bystanders) descend into chaos, overcome by delusions and
feelings of complacency, self-doubt, and even love.

If the Pentagon's Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate (JNLWD) has its way,
Lem may be remembered as a prophet.

The Advantages and Limitations of Calmatives for Use as a Non-Lethal
Technique, a 49 page report obtained last week by the Sunshine Project
under US information freedom law, has revealed a shocking Pentagon program
that is researching psychopharmacological weapons. Based on "extensive
review conducted on the medical literature and new developments in the
pharmaceutical industry", the report concludes that "the development and
use of [psychopharmacological weapons] is achievable and desirable." These
mind-altering weapons violate international agreements on chemical and
biological warfare as well as human rights. Some of the techniques
discussed in the report have already been used by the US in the "War on
Terrorism".

The team, which is based at the Applied Research Laboratory of Pennsylvania
State University, is assessing weaponization of a number of psychiatric and
anesthetic pharmaceuticals as well as "club drugs" (such as the "date rape
drug" GHB). According to the report, "the choice administration route,
whether application to drinking water, topical administration to the skin,
an aerosol spray inhalation route, or a drug filled rubber bullet, among
others, will depend on the environment." The environments identified are
specific military and civil situations, including "hungry refugees that are
excited over the distribution of food", "a prison setting", an "agitated
population" and "hostage situations". At times, the JNLWD team's report
veers very close to defining dissent as a psychological disorder.

The drugs that Lem called "benignimizers" are called "calmatives" by the
military. Some calmatives were weaponized by the Cold War adversaries,
including BZ, described by those who have used it as "the ultimate bad
trip". Calmatives were supposed to have been deleted from military
stockpiles following the adoption of the Chemical Weapons Convention in
1993, which bans any chemical weapon that can cause death, temporary
incapacitation, or permanent harm to humans or animals.

Calmative is military, not medical, terminology. In more familiar medical
language, most of the drugs under consideration are central nervous system
depressants. Most are synthetic, some are natural. They include opiates
(morphine-type drugs) and benzodiazpines, such as Valium (diazepam).
Antidepressants are also of great interest to the research team, which is
looking for drugs like Prozac (fluoxetine) and Zoloft (sertraline) that are
faster acting.

Biochemicals and Treaties: Many of the proposed drugs can be considered
both chemical and biological weapons banned by the Biological and Toxin
Weapons Convention (BTWC), and the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). As a
practical matter, biological and chemical "calmatives" must be addressed
together. As the agents are explicitly intended for military use, and are
intended to incapacitate their victims, they do not fall under the CWC's
domestic riot control agent exemption. Toxic products of living agents -
such as the neurotoxin botulinum - are considered both chemical and
biological agents. Any weapons use of neurotransmitters or substances
mimicking their action is similarly covered by both arms control treaties.
The researchers have developed a massive calmatives database and are
following biomedical research on mechanisms of drug addiction, pain relief,
and other areas of research on cognition-altering biochemicals. For
example, the JNLWD team is tracking research on cholecystokinin, a
neurotransmitter that causes panic attacks in healthy people and is linked
to psychiatric disorders.

Powerful Drugs: The drugs have hallucinogenic and other effects, including
apnea (stopped breathing), coma, and death. One class of drugs under
consideration are fentanyls. The report's cover features a diagram of
fentanyl. According to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the
biological effects of fentanyls "are indistinguishable from those of
heroin, with the exception that the fentanyls may be hundreds of times more
potent." The report says that the drugs' profound effects may make it
necessary to "check for the occasional person who may stop breathing (many
medical reasons in the unhealthy, the elderly, and very young...", as well
as victims who "'go to sleep' in positions that obstruct their airway".

Failed Drugs: The report points out that pharmaceutical candidates that
fail because of excessive side-effects might be desirable for use as
weapons: "Often, an unwanted side-effect... will terminate the development
of a promising new pharmaceutical compound. However, in the variety of
situations in which non-lethal techniques are used, there may be less need
to be concerned with unattractive side-effects... Perhaps, the ideal
calmative has already been synthesized and is awaiting renewed interest
from its manufacturer."

Chemical Cocktails: As of March 2002, the team was researching a mix of
pepper spray ("OC") and an unidentified calmative agent. Pepper spray is
the most powerful chemical crowd control agent in use, and has been
associated with numerous deaths. Adding a pharmacological "calmative" to OC
would create a hideous concoction. The report prioritizes Valium and
Precedex (dexmeditomidine) for weaponization, and it is possible that these
are the agents that could be mixed with OC. The researchers also suggest
mixing ketamine with other drugs (see below). The chemical cocktail
proposals bear a resemblance to South Africa's apartheid-era weapons
research, whose director claimed under oath to have attempted to develop a
BZ and cocaine mixture for use on government enemies.

Torture: Precedex is sedative approved for use in the US on patients
hospitalized in intensive care units. The report draws attention to an
"interesting phenomenon" related to Precedex use - the drug increases
patients' reaction to electrical shock. The researchers suggest sensitizing
people by using Precedex on them, followed by use of electromagnetic
weapons to "address effects on the few individuals where an average dose of
the pharmacological agent did not have the desired effect." Obviously, such
a technique might be considered torture, and certainly could be used to
torture. To add to hypnotic and delusional properties, the researchers
suggest that psychopharmaceutical agents could be designed to have physical
effects including headache and nausea, adding to their torture potential.

The researchers suggest that transdermal patches and transmucosal (through
mucous membranes) formulations of Buspar (buspirone) under development by
Bristol-Myers Squibb and TheraTech, Inc. "may be effective in a prison
setting where there may have been a recent anxiety-provoking incident or
confrontation."

Use in the War on Terrorism: Of course, uncooperative or rioting prisoners
would be extraordinarily unlikely to accept being drugged with a
transdermal patch or most conventional means. Any such application of a
"calmative" would likely be on individuals in shackles or a straightjacket.
The US has admitted that it forcibly sedates Al-Qaida "detainees" held at
the US base in Guantanamo, Cuba. Former JNLWD commander and retired Col.
Andy Mazzara, who directs the Penn State team, says has he sent a "Science
Advisor" to the US Navy to assist the War on Terrorism.

Modes of Delivery: A number of weaponization modes are discussed in the
report. These include aerosol sprays, microencapsulation, and insidious
methods such as introduction into potable water supplies and psychoactive
chewing gum. JNLWD is investing in the development of microencapsulation
technology, which involves creating granules of a minute quantity of agent
coated with a hardened shell. Distributed on the ground, the shell breaks
under foot and the agent is released. A new mortar round being developed
could deliver thousands of the minute granules per round. The team
concludes that new delivery methods under development by the pharmaceutical
industry will be of great weapons value. These include new transdermal,
transmucosal, and aerosol delivery methods. The report cites the relevance
of a lollipop containing fentanyl used to treat children in severe pain,
and notes that "the development of new pain-relieving opiate drugs capable
of being administered via several routes is at the forefront of drug
discovery", concluding that new weapons could be developed from this
pharmaceutical research.

Dart Guns: The researchers express specific interest shooting humans with
guns loaded with carfentanil darts. Carfentanil is a veterinary narcotic
used to tranquilize large, dangerous animals such as bears and tigers.
Anyone who has watched wildlife shows on television is familiar with the
procedure. In the US, carfentanil is not approved for any use on human
beings. It is an abused drug and a controlled substance. Under US law,
first time offenders convicted of unlicensed possession of carfentanil can
be punished by up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

Club Drugs: Most of the JNLWD team's weapon candidates are controlled
substances in most countries. Some are widely used legitimate
pharmaceuticals that are also drugs of abuse, such as Valium and opiates.
The Pentagon team advocates more research into the weapons potential of
convulsants (which provoke seizures) and "club drugs", the generally
illegal substances used by some at "rave" and dance clubs. Among those in
the military spotlight are ketamine ("Special K"), GHB
(Gamma-hydroxybutrate, "liquid ecstasy"), and rohypnol ("Roofies"). The
latter two in particular are called "date rape drugs" because of incidences
of their use on victims of sexual and other crimes. Most are DEA Schedule I
or II narcotics that provoke hallucinations and can carry a sentence of
life imprisonment. For example, according to the DEA, "Use of ketamine as a
general anesthetic for humans has been limited due to adverse effects
including delirium and hallucinations... Low doses produce vertigo, ataxia,
slurred speech, slow reaction time, and euphoria. Intermediate doses
produce disorganized thinking, altered body image, and a feeling of
unreality with vivid visual hallucinations. High doses produce analgesia,
amnesia, and coma."

Edward Hammond is director of The Sunshine Project, based in Austin, Texas.
He can be reached at: [log in to unmask]

Additional information, on relationships between these weapons and
protection human rights, medical ethics, and drug research is forthcoming.
A summary of the report is available on the Sunshine Project website,
http://www.sunshine-project.org.

Copyright 2002. All rights reserved. CounterPunch is a project of the
Institute for the Advancement of Journalistic Clarity.

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