Against Their Will

                                

A new book, Against Their Will: The Secret History of Medical Experimentation on Children in Cold War America, is a thoroughly researched study on a topic that is not really new or even truly secret: the use of human subjects for medical experimentation, against their will and often even unwittingly, by the U.S. government in the mid-20th century. There has already been much documentation on the subject; here is a link, from the excellent website resource http://www.wanttoknow.info,  to a summary of stories that are in the public domain, reported by mainstream sources, about our government, military and intelligence establishments using human beings as unwilling research subjects in gruesome "scientific" medical studies:

http://www.wanttoknow.info/humanguineapigs

The difference this time is the focus on children as the victims of horrible, unethical experimentation by doctors and scientists from America's most prestigious hospitals and universities, with the full support and participation of the CIA and other U.S. government agencies. No exaggeration, no conspiracy theories; it is simply a matter of historical record.

What exactly are we talking about? It is really too sickening to go into detail about it. The blurb from Amazon.com includes this brief description:

They were drafted as "volunteers" to test vaccines, doused with ringworm, subjected to electric shock, and given lobotomies. They were also fed radioactive isotopes and exposed to chemical warfare agents.

And that barely scratches the surface.

CONTEXT and HISTORY

The context is important to the understanding of this, and why it is relevant today. This activity is known to have exploded and flourished during the Cold War, especially in the late 1040's - early 1950's, when fear of Communism was used to justify a wave of deeply unethical and criminal activity by our government.

In addition, at that time period in the middle of the 20th century, the concept of "eugenics" was still a powerful force behind a lot of scientific and medical activity. What is eugenics? Let's start with a simple online dictionary definition:

"the study of or belief in the possibility of improving the qualities of the human species or a human population, especially by such means as discouraging reproduction by persons having genetic defects or presumed to have inheritable undesirable traits (negative eugenics) or encouraging reproduction by persons presumed to have inheritable desirable traits (positive eugenics)"

In case you're not getting the point, here's this helpful line from Wikipedia:

Early proponents of eugenics believed that, through selective breeding, the human species should direct its own evolution.  They tended to believe in the genetic superiority of Nordic, Germanic and Anglo-Saxon peoples; supported strict immigration and anti-miscegenation laws; and supported the forcible sterilization of the poor, disabled and "immoral."

Link to the full entry:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugenics_in_the_United_States

The Wiki article is disturbing but essential to begin to understand the scope of the eugenics movement in the U.S.as it rose to prominence in the early 20th century. Lest you think this was just some small fringe group of radical nutcases, the article makes clear that this movement was populated by a large swath of the scientific community, funded by the biggest corporate foundations like Rockefeller and Carnegie, and codified into law in the form of segregation, immigration restrictions, and the most hideous of all, compulsory sterilization enforced by law in 30 states. Only after Hitler was revealed to have carried eugenics to its most horrifying extreme did the movement fade in the U.S., but it didn't go away. During the Cold War era of the late 40's and 50's, the fear of Communism was hyped up to a level of hysteria that made it possible to revive the blatantly inhuman concept of eugenics, in order to justify the abuse of not just racial and ethnic minorities but also mentally challenged, physically disabled, sick and poor children. Again, just history.

What you have here is a perfect example of the muddy waters of human motivation, where genuine commitment to a mission, perceived as important and virtuous, coexists with a ruthless detachment and a lust for power and control, unrestricted by any sense of ethics or morality. I wrote a blog post on that subject I hope you'll go back and check out, called "True Believers and Manipulators:"

http://truth-dots.blogspot.com/2012/12/true-believers-and-manipulators.html

I'm sure many of the players involved in the experimentation on children were motivated by a passionate belief that extreme measures were necessary to save us from the even worse fate of being overrun by a Communist military dictatorship. That belief, and the fear and paranoia it generated, made it easy for them to put their faith in a junk science that assured them it was OK to experiment on these kids because they were genetically inferior. Meanwhile, others were just happy to take government or foundation money for their universities, hospitals and labs.

But all of them were manipulated by those who organized, funded and directed this activity, who themselves held irrational and conflicting motivations. I quote myself here, from my other blog post:

Mark Crispin Miller, in his introduction to a recent reprint of Edward Bernays Propaganda, points to an answer, as he discusses the dual nature of the minds of demagogues such as Hitler, Mussolini, McCarthy and others.  While on the one hand, they appear to be radically committed to their mission, on the other they are detached and manipulative.  Miller proposes that it is actually both - they are "fanatical and cynical at once, neither wholly in control nor wholly ecstatic.  Such agitators work within a certain mental borderland, where one can never clearly see conviction as distinct from calculation.  Indeed, that inner murkiness appears itself to be the very source or basis of the mass manipulator's enigmatic power, and so we cannot comprehend it through schematic dualistic formulas."

CONNECT THE DOTS

Many will often dismiss warnings about the slippery slope we are currently on in the U.S.: warnings like the constant invocations of national security being used to justify endless military actions abroad, increasing militarization of the police at home, increasing government surveillance of the public, increasing operation of government in secret, etc, all promoted by nationalistic propaganda pretending to be news. I have written about this several times now:

http://truth-dots.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-slippery-slope-surveillance.html

http://truth-dots.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-slippery-slope-continues.html

http://truth-dots.blogspot.com/2013/05/boston-further-along-wrong-path.html

So I ask you: is the propaganda, the misinformation, the stirring up of fear and paranoia posing as patriotism any different today than it was then? Are government leaders any less prone to the corrupting influence of money and power? Is one's racial or ethnic identity or economic status any less of a factor in one's being considered an equal member of society? Are scientific and medical institutions any less interested in cashing in on the expansion of government programs driven by fear and paranoia? Are corporations any less ruthless than they were before in their pursuit of economic enrichment at any price? Are the elites in the upper echelons of government and finance any less disdainful of the other 99.99% of humans in this world?

The book Against Their Will provides its own answer to that question by exposing the fact that the experimentation on children never actually stopped, it has just been moved off-shore, away from prying eyes. As one reviewer on Amazon says:

If you thought that at the beginning of the 21st century things like the ones described before stopped, you are wrong.  As the authors point out, American institutions have been replaced by China, India, Tunisia and Nigeria as sites for Phase One drug studies.  Drug firms now travel to "places where regulation is virtually nonexistent, the FDA does not reach, and the mistakes can end up in pauper's graves."

So since the answer to all the above questions is so obviously no, then why shouldn't we be concerned, no, disturbed, no make that outraged, at the direction our society is going?

RITE OF PASSAGE

It is not pleasant to have to look upon the dark side of human nature; much easier to look away, avoid the issue, and live in willful ignorance, especially when the evil is found to be embedded in our most revered cultural institutions: government, science, medicine. But such knowledge is inescapable. Indeed, awareness of the past, and putting current events in the context of history, are necessary steps on the path to a more peaceful and compassionate future. So don't run and hide; look it in the eye. Weep, puke, rage if you have to. It is a rite of passage. Let it propel you forward into doing whatever you can do to shift the balance of power in the "real" world from fear over to love.



I have offered my thoughts on this before, and will continue to do so. Please read my posts, "The Absence of the Light," and "Solutions," for my perspectives on the crucial importance of bringing love, compassion, humility and forgiveness into our lives, as a serious, practical approach to countering the negative influences in the world.

http://truth-dots.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-absence-of-light.html

http://truth-dots.blogspot.com/2012/11/solutions.html

This is where our true power lies, and we must learn to wake up to it, own it, and use it. As I said in Absence of the Light:

And to anyone who finds this naive or can see no practical value in focusing on these concepts, we must thank them and continue on our way.  We have seen countless examples, time after time, how the actions of one person can make a difference to many others.  The simple act of extending humble generosity, compassion and forgiveness to another can have powerfully positive ramifications.

As I also suggested in that blog, it is the children that often end up being the ones who show us the way. We have so much to learn from them. We should sign up for the course.



Links to reviews and commentaries on the book:

http://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/books/2013/07/07/book-review-against-their-will-dober-secret-history-medical-experimentation-children-cold-war-america-allen-hornblum-judith-newman-and-gregory/mvRMIO8Zt7HakY7HWSLESO/story.html

http://my.firedoglake.com/valtin/2013/07/17/book-review-against-their-willthe-secret-history-of-medical-experimentation-on-children-in-cold-war-america/

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/allen-m-hornblum/against-their-will/

http://www.amazon.com/Against-Their-Will-Experimentation-Children/dp/0230341713

http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/36151/title/Capsule-Reviews/

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Earth Day Distractions

Earth Day appears as an opportunity for people with caring hearts and the best intentions to do a little bit of good for our planet. Raising awareness is good; every little bit helps, right?

But when I look at the promo being generated by the Earth Day Network and their multitude of corporate partners, I find that it's what is not being said that is really the point.

Again, I see nothing wrong with pursuing alternative energy sources, recycling, or planting trees. But is it really so hard to see the lies and deception behind the PR?

The world's biggest corporate polluters and despoilers of the environment love to add green logos and put out warm-fuzzy commercials to let us know they are all for "going green," when their actual policies and activities prove the exact opposite.



This has been true for decades. The environmental movement has time and again been co-opted and hijacked by corporate PR green-washing machines, their clear aim to distract us from their culpability, and dump the responsibility onto us, the consumer.

Earth Day is every day for NASCAR industry
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/earth-day-every-day-nascar-120000760--nascar.html

I am all for each of us taking responsibility for what we can do. But as a wise man once said, "don't piss on my head and tell me it's rain." We should all be tired of mega-polluting industries telling us how responsible they are, when in fact every day they are doing their best to trample on not just the law but on any sense of decency and ethical responsibility. And expecting our government to provide any sort of effective control over this is useless.

Where, in any of the Earth Day promo, do you see any of the biggest industrial polluters being called to account for the horrific damage done to our land, air and water, at great cost to our economy, and our health? Where do we see any discussion of the environmental consequences of failed and damaged nuclear reactors? Does anyone want to talk about one of the biggest polluters in the world, the U.S. military? Anything at all about our dangerously misguided way of eating in this country, and the disastrous effect on the environment inflicted by industrial agriculture? The serious risks posed by the increasing presence of genetically modified foods?

No, I didn't think so. Here's a typical bit of fluff from CNN:

Hey Earthling, it's Earth Day; time for a quiz
http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/22/world/earth-day/index.html

So by all means, do recycle, do plant a tree, do turn off the lights, do buy an electric car, but please look deeper. Stop buying the green-washing bullshit. Seek alternatives to the corporate-industrial paradigm that keeps a few thousand people incredibly wealthy while the rest of us are left barely hanging on.

If that sounds overblown and unrealistic, you owe it to yourself to look into this further. Fortunately I can recommend a great resource for you with lots of links and references to set you on the path.

Take Action

I am of course referring to The Queen's Table, the most comprehensive, informative and entertaining resource archive you could possibly ask for. This blog has many pages that cover a wide range of aspects relating to food and health. They are all good, but I urge you to spend some time on the "Action" page. She poses the question "What Can We Do?" and answers it on the intellectual, emotional and spiritual levels, all of which are critical before you can expect to make any lasting change in your physical world. And if you are ready for more practical information, try the Links page, with an abundance of references and links to info about organic food, best farming practices, nutrition, toxins and a lot more. If that's not enough, check out the GMO info page, the Rabbit Hole, and Inspiration to Begin. There is a lot to absorb, but as another wise man said...

True Believers and Manipulators

                   
As more and more facts come to light about the stunningly immoral behavior of the superclass which seeks to control every aspect of our lives, we keep asking ourselves, what motivates these people?

Mark Crispin Miller, in his introduction to a recent reprint of Edward Bernays Propaganda, points to an answer, as he discusses the dual nature of the minds of demagogues such as Hitler, Mussolini, McCarthy and others. While on the one hand, they appear to be radically committed to their mission, on the other they are detached and manipulative. Miller proposes that it is actually both - they are "fanatical and cynical at once, neither wholly in control nor wholly ecstatic. Such agitators work within a certain mental borderland, where one can never clearly see conviction as distinct from calculation. Indeed, that inner murkiness appears itself to be the very source or basis of the mass manipulator's enigmatic power, and so we cannot comprehend it through schematic dualistic formulas."
(By the way, this is a very valuable book to read, and Miller's excellent introduction makes it doubly so.)

I think this idea goes a long way to explaining the actions of all the megalomaniacs running rampant over our democracy, our economy, our media, our civil liberties, our education system, our privacy, our environment, our food, our water, you name it. And of course, waging wars around the world. They always come up with a rationale to justify what they do, and perhaps they even believe it is a righteous, virtuous cause. But that doesn't stop them from engaging in the most blatantly unethical, manipulative, and usually criminal behavior in pursuit of their goals.

The powerful manipulators seem to have two underlying attitudes. One goes something like: "I think you are inferior, therefore I have no reason to treat you with any respect, compassion or humanity. I can exploit you and do whatever I want to you with no concern. The only things of importance are the increase of my own wealth and power." The other would be: "I think you are inferior, therefore I must use my vast superiority to do whatever is necessary to protect and improve the world as I see fit. Because you are inferior you are incapable of deciding for yourselves what is best for you. I, in my superiority,  must make those judgements - for the greater good of all." As Miller suggests, both of these attitudes may exist simultaneously in their minds.

As you explore this topic you find there are many levels as the elites manipulate those below them, who in turn manipulate those below them. The plight and peril of anyone who has genuine passion and commitment is that he is susceptible to being used by someone who knows how to manipulate his passion. Thus the revolutionaries in the Arab Spring uprisings in Egypt and Libya are in danger of being manipulated by Western covert forces who only view their countries as pieces on the global chessboard. NGO's and charitable foundations, staffed by hard-working, smart, sincere, committed individuals, unwittingly provide cover and credibility, disguising the true objectives of the mega-billioinaires who finance them. Honorable young men and women with noble ideals, equipped with great intelligence, skills, and bravery, become the public face of a military that, just below the surface, is rife with corruption and senseless brutality.

Perhaps the true believer's passion is actually nothing more than bigotry, or simple hatred of the poor, the foreign, the dark-skinned. He can be used by the elites to engage in the most heinous, in-humane actions - which also happen to serve the long-term agendas of the elites. That person may eventually be exposed as a racist or extremist, but his manipulators remain obscured.The recent coverage of the sordid history of forced sterilizations in the U.S for most of the 20th century is but one example:

http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/15/health/california-forced-sterilizations/index.html
http://rockcenter.nbcnews.com/_news/2011/11/07/8640744-victims-speak-out-about-north-carolina-sterilization-program-which-targeted-women-young-girls-and-blacks

We have some contemporary examples in which it is hard to tell whether one is a true believer, or a cynical manipulator. Take for example Duane Clarridge, a CIA officer who became notorious in the 80's for his role in the Iran-Contra scandal.  He is a perfect example of someone so wrapped up (apparently) in the myth of American exceptionalism that he is convinced that any level of brutality is allowable, as long as it is in the cause of defending and promoting American interests. Note how insistent he is on selling us on the righteousness and importance of what are clearly violent, inhumane acts.



And his present-day counterpart, Jose Rodriguez, virtually identical in his tone and intent:



Do they really believe what they're saying? If so, whose agenda are they serving so willingly? Or are they just cynically spouting the words that they know will inflame the passions of those who respond more to appeals to emotion than to reason? Or is it all of the above?

In political rhetoric, there is always some invocation of a "greater good" to justify actions that are clearly, obviously uncompassionate, inhumane and destructive. Cut social spending to save the economy. Fight endless wars to achieve peace. Support a dictator to help spread democracy. The illogic of such double-speak is usually so transparent one wonders how they carry it off. Then we remember: they are experts at that.

In a world of such insane contradictions, it helps to recognize that this is actually the elites' weakness: the inherent irrationality of their actions. By being so utterly obsessed with personal gain and the exercise of control, they are forced to produce a rationale for public consumption that simply doesn't hold up. They are aware of it; that is why they engage in so much propagandizing, media manipulation and cultural conditioning. What we need is for people to reawaken their common sense and capacity for critical thinking, in order to break through all that, and realize we need to stand up and refuse to tolerate it.

It also calls for us to re-connect to our core sense of compassion and empathy for others, in order to grasp the basic, simple ethical flaw in the mindset of the manipulator: that the lack of caring for others is, in reality, destructive to themselves and to the greater good they claim to serve.


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