Three of the Craziest Government Drug Experiments Ever
Over the years, the U.S. CIA has completed many drug experiments for use in special ops missions, and it has done some strange experiments to see how a drug affects a user over time. These three experiments focus on the use of LSD and methamphetamines and are some of the most unusual tests you’ve ever heard. From tasing sheep that are high on meth to trying to brainwash a CIA operative, these experiments served a purpose at the time.
The first experiment was created by the CIA in the era of spies and espionage. After a double agent was tried for treason in Russia, the CIA launched an extensive program focused on LSD for those retiring from the secret service in the 1950s. The trial showed the agent testifying as high as you can get, and American agents determined he had been doped before the trial. After this interesting development, the CIA started to plan experiments for the purpose of understanding how LSD could be used for mind control.
The project, named Project MK-ULTRA, had many subprojects, including drugging agents to the point of memory loss. The CIA’s hope with this experiment was to find a way to wipe an agent’s memory upon retirement, ensuring the safety of agency secrets and making sure that no information was leaked to those who would oppose the United States’ plans. This, when done with LSD, was supposed to destroy any classified memories, but it apparently doesn’t work as well as it does in “Men in Black.”
Another amusing CIA experiment came in the form of a government-funded brothel. The goal of this subproject in MK-ULTRA was to hire prostitutes who would pick up important men or women and take them back to CIA safe houses. There, the CIA could drug them without their knowledge, watch them, and record their reactions to questioning and different situations. The CIA’s hope was that these men and women would spill any knowledge they had about the situations the CIA was investigating. Because the dose of LSD was so high, the hope was that the people who were drugged would have no recollection of going to the safe houses or what happened during the night. These houses were closed by the middle of the 1960s.
There were also experiments that centered around meth. Researchers in the government wanted to know the effects of Tasers on those targets who were on meth. This project was important because those who take meth are more likely to be tased than users of other drugs. Because human testing is unheard of in current times, scientists gathered sixteen sheep for the experiment. The animals were given powerful sedatives along with the methamphetamines, creating a dangerous combination.
The scientists then proceeded to tase the sheep at rates determined by the experiment. Fortunately, no sheep were killed during this process, and even though the mixture of drugs and electricity would cause a human to be seriously injured, none of the animals showed signs of fatal or abnormal heart rhythms.
These were some of the strangest experiments created by the government in the last fifty years. Although they may seem odd to us today, they served a purpose. The CIA is always looking for ways to help eliminate the memories of those who stumble upon secret operations, and being able to extract information from a suspect by giving him or her a pill could be the key to solving a murder or mysterious disappearance quickly.
As for the sheep, animal experimentation is not normally condoned, but this one shows scientists’ are interested in how the items and weapons law enforcement agents use affect those who may be on drugs. If it had been found that a Taser killed every animal, it is very likely that the weapon would be restricted in drug-related situations. Using electricity to disable a person is normally a last resort, but knowing that the odds of killing someone are low is vital to ensuring Tasers are safe to use in emergency situations.
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