Proof The CIA Used Hypnosis To Extract Secrets - John Kiriakou

Chris Williamson

396 views • 21 hours ago Save 7 min 4 min read

Video Summary

Once hyped as a tool for remote control and mind manipulation, the concept of brainwashing has been largely debunked as ineffective, despite extensive, often deadly, CIA experiments like MKUltra. The CIA's pursuit of "brainwashing" began in the 1950s, fueled by a false report of Soviet capabilities, leading to the creation of MKUltra. This program, running from 1952 to 1975, involved dosing unwitting subjects, including CIA employees and the public, with LSD and even releasing germs to study infections. The operation was a catastrophic failure, causing deaths and achieving no discernible results, with an estimated 85% of its documents destroyed by order of CIA leadership.

However, the idea of controlling minds persists, with new technologies and a deeper understanding of human behavior potentially opening doors that historical attempts couldn't. A compelling anecdote from the 2000s illustrates the potential, albeit uncontrolled, power of altered states. A farmer, after witnessing a murder, was hypnotized by CIA and FBI agents. During the session, he provided a stolen license plate number that was later confirmed as accurate, a detail that baffled investigators and hinted at capabilities beyond ordinary recall, though the source's unreliability ultimately limited its usefulness.

Short Highlights

Brainwashing operations were pursued by the CIA, KGB, and Chinese intelligence starting in the 1950s.
The CIA's MKUltra program (1952-1975) was a complete failure, causing deaths and achieving no results.
MKUltra involved dosing subjects with LSD and testing germ warfare on the public.
An estimated 85% of MKUltra documents were destroyed by CIA order.
A farmer, hypnotized after witnessing a murder, provided accurate details, including a stolen license plate number.
The farmer's unreliability ultimately limited the usefulness of the hypnosis session.
New technologies and understanding of human behavior may offer future possibilities for mind manipulation.

Key Details

The Myth of Soviet Brainwashing [00:00:00]

The idea of brainwashing gained traction in the 1950s, partly due to a mistaken belief in Soviet capabilities.
A CIA recruit reported the KGB was developing remote mind control, causing panic.
This report was inaccurate; the KGB had no such operation, but the CIA felt compelled to catch up.

The CIA panicked at the notion.

MKUltra: A Failed Experiment [00:00:00]

The CIA launched MKUltra in response to perceived Soviet advancements, running from 1952 to 1975.
The program was a "complete and utter failure," resulting in an unknown number of deaths.
Subjects, including CIA employees and the public, were dosed with LSD.

It was a complete and utter failure.

LSD and Germ Warfare Experiments [00:00:00]

MKUltra involved widespread LSD testing, including in San Francisco.
The CIA also released germs into the air to observe upper respiratory infections.
In one incident, LSD was secretly added to flour in a French village bakery, causing widespread intoxication.

And everybody in the, literally everybody in the village when they ate their bread that morning went nuts on an LSD trip.

Document Destruction and Limited Knowledge [00:00:00]

Despite orders from Senator Church in 1975 not to destroy records, CIA leadership ordered documents shredded.
Only an estimated 15% of MKUltra documents survived, leaving much unknown.
Experts like John Lyle confirm the program's ineffectiveness and shame.

15% of the documents survived.

A Hypnosis Case Study [00:00:00]

In 2000, a British defense attaché was assassinated in Athens by the Revolutionary Organization 17 November.
Months later, a "walk-in" offered intelligence to the U.S. embassy, but was initially dismissed.
The source, a simple farmer with poor language skills, claimed to have witnessed events shortly after the assassination.

The British defense attache has just been assassinated and this guy may have seen the assassins, right?

The Hypnosis Session [00:00:00]

To extract information, the CIA decided to hypnotize the farmer, a procedure the narrator had never witnessed.
The farmer was hypnotized by a psychiatrist, and during the session, his arm remained elevated without strain for four and a half hours.
He provided details, including a license plate number from a van, which was later confirmed to be from a stolen police car.

I had never seen anything like it.

Unreliable Truths and Future Potential [00:00:00]

While everything the farmer said during the initial hypnosis session proved true, he became unreliable and began making things up.
The CIA eventually had to cut him off due to his untrustworthiness.
The experience suggests that while brainwashing might be limited, altered states of consciousness could yield useful, though potentially uncontrollable, information.

Can you get anything out of it? Maybe something limited?