[mobglob-discuss] FW: Pentagon Program Promotes Psychopharmacological Warfare

[Graeme Bacque]

-----Original Message-----
 The Sunshine Project
News Release
1 July 2002

Pentagon Program Promotes Psychopharmacological Warfare
  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.

(Austin and Hamburg, 1 July 2002) - 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 also 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 a 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."

Action: The Sunshine Project is calling for immediate termination of this
research and urges Parties to both the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and
the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) to quickly condemn this
research and to approve decisions reiterating the ban on these weapons. For
the CWC, opportunities to act will arise at the Conference of the States
Parties, to be held in The Hague beginning on October 7th of this year, and
the 1st Review Conference of the CWC, to begin on April 28th 2003. For the
BTWC, Parties should make proposals at the 5th Review Conference, to begin
in Geneva this November, and place biological and toxin "calmatives" on the
agenda of the next Conference of States Parties or other multilateral
group(s) created at the Conference.

This news release is a first report on this disturbing research program.
Additional information, on relationships between these weapons and
protection of human rights, medical ethics, and drug research is
forthcoming. A summary of the report is available on the Sunshine Project
website (www.sunshine-project.org).

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