Fear and Loathing in Baker's Dozen

We at HTP feel responsible for the articles we print, and in order to protect our readers, while at the same time allowing freedom of the press to continue, I was asked to write a sort of "counterpoint" article to the one written and printed in this issue regarding LSD.

The inference in the previously mentioned article that LSD is relatively harmless, and that flashbacks are caused by traumatic events rather than by acid is a dangerous one to make. Even though I too used sources from the internet, it is important to remember how unaccountable a lot of web sites are to the general public.

With all that out of the way, let me tell you kids about the sixties…sorry, which side am I on, anyway? The topic at hand is acid/LSD, and the effects of said drug. LSD is classified under the (U.S.) Controlled Substances Act as a class one drug, because it has absolutely no medical use. It was discovered in 1938, and subsequently used in an obscene amount of government experiments which will be examined later.

Contrary to the pro-acid article's claim that flashbacks are caused by traumatic incidents like car accidents, the Partnership for a Drug-free America make it quite clear that "bad trips" are the cause of flashbacks, which can strike at any time, even years after one has stopped dropping acid. Such "acute adverse reactions" can cause panic, confusion, anxiety, suspicion and loss of control, and are also known as "chronic recurring hallucinations". Thanks to West Coast rap and Dr. Dre, we all know how bad something including the word "chronic" in it's title is, and acid is no exception. While it may be true that traumatic events could cause flashbacks, the medically accepted cause is consumption of LSD.

The reasons for taking drugs are as various as the drugs themselves, but we can't all live like Keanu Reeves, and maybe the following history lesson will help all you crazy kids do something excellent, like "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure", and not bogus, like "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey".

Contrary to the idea that drugs are a way of rebelling, governments have been using LSD (not to mention marijuana and barbituates) in experiments dealing with brainwashing and mind control ever since LSD's discovery. Starting in World War Two, the American C.I.A.'s now infamous MK Ultra (the "MK" is for "mind kontrol") experiments sought out ways of creating secret agents who could be brainwashed not to reveal their missions, even if tortured. The Office of Strategic Services (O.S.S.) also experimented with acid in 1942, claiming that it "appears to relax all inhibitions and to deaden the areas of the brain which governs the individual's discretion and caution." The report also stated that subjects sometimes acted "as two different individuals", which reminds me of several cases I have personally heard, including a person I know, who may have become schizophrenic thanks to LSD.

MK Ultra was officially launched in November, 1953, but other similar projects which preceded it had shocking results to say the least. One experiment conducted by Swiss Neurologists featured acid being secretly administered to a small, French village. The experiment came into effect when hundreds of seemingly normal citizens began jumping through the windows of their houses into the Rhone River, or screaming through the streets, claiming to be chased by lions and tigers. MK Ultra had its own casualties, however. The first to participate were C.I.A. agents at a Maryland hunting lodge, who were given LSD-spiked cocktails. Many went berserk while under the influence, while one agent fell into a deep depression. Perhaps the saddest case of all was that of Dr. Frank Oilstone, an agent who became so paranoid that fellow agents were slipping acid into his coffee that he stopped sleeping almost entirely for several weeks. After being checked into a hotel room with another agent placed there to watch him, Dr. Oilstone threw himself out of a tenth floor window early one morning. His family, who is now suing the C.I.A., were not informed of this until twenty years later. Another case involved a soldier named James Thornhill, who was arrested on suspicion of stealing government documents. During interrogation, Thornhill was given LSD, and subsequently developed epilepsy.

Other negative effects of LSD include "devastating psychiatric effects", elevated blood and body temperatures, insomnia, and tremors. So in conclusion, if you like licking stamps, start a chain letter, because acid will have a stronger effect on your body than if you flew over Cheech & Chong's house while it was on fire, and you'll end up with more problems than Charlie Sheen after a bender.

Sources: Partnership for a Drug-free America, and http://www.thegrid.net/clear/cia.htm#cia