FBI considers torture as suspects stay silent

[measl at mfn.org]

On Mon, 22 Oct 2001, Tim May wrote:

> If the U.S. abandons the standard that no person shall be compelled to 
> be a witness against himself--something the "truth serum" drugging 
> option would of course imply just as surely as torture would--the end 
> times will be upon us.

I submit that this has already been long abandoned, however, I am more
interested at the moment in the "truth serum" premise.  My understanding
(from questioning on this topic in the distant past with an
MD/"shrink") is that the sodium thiopental/pentobarbital/etc. "truth
serum" is an urban legend.  He was quite specific that the drug was a
definite aid to relaxing patients, and "allowing" them to go where they
_wanted_ to (psychiatrically speaking) with much less "work", but that
"pentothal interviews" were very much not free-will altering devices.

At the risk of being told to go google (which I guess I'll do in a
moment), does anyone have any information either contrary to this, or
possibly of another "truth serum" that would fit the stated bill?  

I really suspect this truth serum business is just psywar in action... 

-- 
Yours, 
J.A. Terranson
sysadmin at mfn.org

If Governments really want us to behave like civilized human beings, they
should give serious consideration towards setting a better example:
Ruling by force, rather than consensus; the unrestrained application of
unjust laws (which the victim-populations were never allowed input on in
the first place); the State policy of justice only for the rich and 
elected; the intentional abuse and occassionally destruction of entire
populations merely to distract an already apathetic and numb electorate...
This type of demogoguery must surely wipe out the fascist United States
as surely as it wiped out the fascist Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

The views expressed here are mine, and NOT those of my employers,
associates, or others.  Besides, if it *were* the opinion of all of
those people, I doubt there would be a problem to bitch about in the
first place...
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