The Washington Post reported today that the CIA has released some long-awaited historical documents [aka “The Family Jewels”] that reveal some of the Agency’s darkest secret activites during the 1950s, 60s and 70s. These activities included domestic spying, secret experimentation on unwitting US citizens, break-ins and theft, and manipulation of the media.

Given the resources and support availble to the CIA during the Cold War and complicity from the Legislative and Executive branches of the US Government, who knows what the CIA could have been responsible for or at least involved with given a free hand for 25 or 30 years?

We here at the 10thcircle have been given a list of activites and experiments that the CIA is reputed to have had involvement in but were somehow not amongst the Jewels. Whether they , or may exist in redacted sections, and we share that partial list here:

- The publication of L. Ron Hubbard’s “Dianetics” in 1950, a foundation for the Church of Scientology. Unfortunately, our document does not show if the CIA were for or against it. Perhaps it is simply an experiment that is still running today.

- The introduction of Cheez Whiz in 1953.

- The CIA orchestrated the importation of Gerbils into the US from Mongolia in 1954. Reason unknown.

- A CIA experiment to control and direct extraterrestrial objects results in Alabama resident Ann Hodges being struck by a meteorite that fell through the roof of her home in 1954. The CIA regarded this as an unqualified success.

- A program to secretly finance and manage Ray Kroc’s expansion of the McDonald’s corporation during the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Not an experiment, but a Grand Plan that worked. 

- Wham-0 Corporation takes secret funding and support from the CIA for the development of the Frisbee as part of a three-pronged program with the toy company. This experiment is declared a success during the 1960s, as it is determined that the presence of Frisbees on college campuses and at music festivals prevents the Counterculture from becoming a full-fledged Civil War or revolution. They supported developement of the Hula Hoop and Lawn Darts (aka “Jarts”) as well, but for reasons that remain classified.

- Financed and provided development assistance and marketing of Milton Bradley’s children’s games “Mystery Date” and “Operation.”

- The CIA secretly produced, promoted and developed the TV shows, “Gilligan’s Island” and “Time Tunnel” as a means of gauging public reaction to technologies and protocols in development at the time. They also secretly developed “The Monkees,” “The Beverly Hillbillies,” and “The Munsters” in order to generate xenophobia and paranoia against Communism. The CIA goals for development and marketing of “Love Boat” and “Fantasy Island” remain a mystery.

- An aerosol spray experiment over New York City in 1969 which resulted in the Mets and Jets winning World Championships in baseball and American football, respectively. Unfortunately, when this aerosol was deployed over US troops in Vietnam, a stray wind carried it to Cambodia.

- Charles Nelson Reilly. No explanation needed.

- 70’s Disco. No explanation needed here, either.

- Jimmy Hoffa’s disappearance. We would like an explanation, don’t know if we really want to hear it.

- Experiments to develop aurally triggered drug responses in test subjects. Subjects were citizens of the US and other western countries, secretly exposed to the test drug. The auditory triggers were reputed to be the pop songs “Surfin’ Bird,” “Wooly Bully,” many comedy routines by “Master of Malaprop” Norm Crosby and most of the ABBA catalog.

- Pet Rocks and Mood Rings, which are more than they seem.

- The infamous Ten Cent Beer Night on June 4, 1974 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, nominally as a promotional event for a Major League Baseball game between the Cleveland Indians and the Texas Rangers. On the surface, this looked like an experiement to determine what would happen if a stadium of 25,000 people were given unlimited access to beer for only ten cents a cup. Again, on the surface, it was no surprise that the game was periodically interrupted when fans took the field to flash, moon, streak, and finally ended when hordes of drunken fans stormed the field, clashing with players, coaches, managers, and umpires in a scene of complete and utter chaos, with the Cleveland Indians having to forefit as it was their home field. It is thought that the experiment had a deeper purpose of researching the implications of ARPANET - a precursor to today’s Internet - regarding what would happen to a nation that had very cheap and unlimited access to media and information online, 24 hours a day. The experiment was declared inconclusive.

- Contrary to much speculation, there is nothing in the documentation whatsoever linking Hunter S Thompson to the CIA. Or Chuck Barris, for that matter.

Given this manifestation of paranoid fantasy, one cannot help but wonder what documents will be released 30 or 40 years from now, revealing secret activites of government and/or military agencies under the Bush Administration and the Republican Congress from 2000-2006.

There are a lot of really good, honest, hardworking people who work - heck, they serve - in the CIA. Unfortunately, the leadership of the current White House Administration will probably try put the legacies of the Iraq war at their feet.

Perhaps 40 years from now, we’ll look through that newly-released evidence for some indication that Dick Cheney was a bizarre biotech experiment gone horribly awry. We cannot think of any other explanation.

bc

[Thanks to db, ml, and LiT for ideas and input to this item. But don’t blame them for this, it’s all my fault.

-bc]

Copyright by the author and his merry band of helpers and friends 2007, all rights reserved.