Page 25 - 200810 - The 'X' Chronicles Newspaper - October 2008

Project MKULTRA & Ewen Cameron 25 Project MKULTRA & Ewen Cameron 25 Ewen Cameron and The Allan Psychic Driving, Ewen Cameron, and LSD - without the patients’ consent - to Ewen Cameron and The Allan Psychic Driving, Ewen Cameron, Memorial Psychiatric and the Allan Memorial disorganize the patient and thus allow the and the Allan Memorial Memorial Psychiatric driving technique full access to the patient’s Psychiatric Institute Institute: A Study in Psychiatric Institute psyche. Collins (1988) explains that Cameron, Institute: A Study in Research and Treatment Dr. Ewen Cameron was a very well keeping with the climate of the day, referred to Research and Treatment Ethics known psychiatrist who worked for 21 years at his treatment as brainwashing; this term was en Ethics vogue in the 1950s, with the Cold War and the Allan Memorial Psychiatric Institute in Korean War fresh in everyone’s minds. Montreal, Quebec. He was highly esteemed The term "brainwashing" caught the eye among his colleagues and his peers; Gillmor of members of the American Central (1987) suggests that Cameron was, when he Intelligence Agency (CIA). During the Korean died in 1967, "one of the most respected War, 70% of the 7,190 American prisoners of psychiatrists in the world" (p.1). At different war "either made confessions or signed times, he was head of the Quebec, Canadian, petitions calling for an end to the American and American Psychiatric Associations, and he presence in Asia" (Gillmor, 1987, p. 78), and the was a co-founder and the first president of the CIA believed that the only possible explanation World Psychiatric Association (Gillmor, 1987). for this was that the Chinese had brainwashed He became the head of the Allan Memorial the American prisoners. As such, the CIA upon its opening in 1944, and made it famous wanted to study brainwashing. Rather than for his stance that "no doors in the Allan would directly fund research, the CIA funded cover be locked . . . [for] even if one ward was locked, organizations who would not be scrutinized as society would judge the institution by that the CIA would be (Collins, 1988). One of these ward" (Gillmor, 1987, p. 1). He believed that cover organizations was the Society for the by Michael Charron, "madness" - his own term - was something that Investigation of Human Ecology (SIHE); this by Michael Charron, Simon Fraser University needed to be treated rather than feared, and that group funded Cameron’s research into psychic Simon Fraser University patients could not be locked up if they were to driving from 1957 to 1960 (Collins, 1988). realize that they still belonged to society "Psychic driving is a potent procedure - it (Collins, 1988). Cameron, then, was very invariably produces responses in the patient, humane in his treatment of patients - at least Continued on Page 28 and often intense responses" (Cameron, 1956, early on - and, as we shall see later, very p. 508) progressive in his views regarding the mentally ill, both when compared to other members of With these words, Dr. Ewen Cameron society and other health professionals. began the summary to Psychic Driving, the Cameron was an ambitious man. As paper that introduced his treatment of the same Collins (1988) points out, he saw what was name to the world. Cameron’s remark was a going on with the soldiers who were returning drastic understatement; for the psychiatric from the Second World War, and he wanted to patients at the Allan Memorial Psychiatric be able to ease the stress and anxiety from Institute, whom he treated with psychic driving which they were suffering. A loftier goal of and its adjuncts, had their lives were changed Cameron’s was to conquer the process of aging. forever. This paper will provide background In time, he set up different research programs at about went on at the Allan Memorial Institute in the Allan Memorial. Of special interest to the 1950s and 1960s, as Dr. Cameron performed Cameron was the idea of sleep teaching. He had brainwashing experiments that were funded by been in correspondence with Max Sherover, an the American CIA. I will examine Cameron’s American who had conquered his patients nail- In Ottawa, Ontario, Canada use of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) along biting habits by continuously playing a tape In Ottawa, Ontario, Canada with psychic driving, in a historical context, in recording to them while they slept (Collins, People Listen To People Listen To an attempt to understand why he went to the 1988).Cameron began to experiment with the The ‘X’ Zone Radio Show The ‘X’ Zone Radio Show extremes that he did. Finally, I will look at idea himself. He would, during a normal with attitudes toward mental patients - lest they be therapy session, record what he thought was a with Rob McConnell forgotten among all this - and how these key statement that one of his patients had made Rob McConnell attitudes have changed in the last 30 to 40 years. (Gillmor, 1987). Later, Cameron would replay on on In doing so, I will examine the thin line between the statement repeatedly to the patient, in an AM 580 CFRA research and experimentation. attempt to break down the patient’s defense AM 580 CFRA As an aside, on the surface it may not mechanisms and reach deeper material. Over appear that this topic relates to the history of time, Cameron developed this technique into a psychology in Canada. Dr. Cameron was a therapy that he called psychic driving. He psychiatrist, and the Allan Memorial was a introduced his form of therapy in a paper psychiatric institution. Cameron, himself, was published in the American Journal of Psychiatry not even a Canadian; he was born in Scotland in January, 1956.As he explained it, psychic and later immigrated to the United States. driving allowed for "the penetration of defenses, Despite working for 28 years in Canada, he the elicitation of hitherto inaccessible material, never became Canadian and even maintained and setting up of a dynamic implant" (Cameron, his residence south of the border in Lake Placid, 1956, p. 503) or recurring thought that New York (Collins, 1988). However, this topic influenced the patient’s behaviour even after bears on the discussion of the history of playback of the key statement had been stopped psychology in Canada because it looks at how for some time. Cameron also reported that at modes of treatment have changed, how attitudes times, the patient resisted listening to the toward patients have changed, and, most repetition of the statement; this was handled by importantly, because it was Canadians who administering sodium amytal, a disinhibitant or were affected by what went on at the Allan "truth drug" (Collins, 1988), or by exposing the Memorial. patient to the repetition during a period of prolonged sleep (Cameron, 1956). In his article, THE ‘X’ ZONE TV SHOW THE ‘X’ ZONE TV SHOW Cameron also admits to using stimulant drugs www.xzonetv.com www.xzonetv.com