The incident offers an indication of just how desperate the U.S. command in Afghanistan is to spin American civilian leaders into supporting an increasingly unpopular war. According to the Defense Department's own definition, psy-ops -- the use of propaganda and psychological tactics to influence emotions and behaviors -- are supposed to be used exclusively on "hostile foreign groups." Federal law forbids the military from practicing psy-ops on Americans, and each defense authorization bill comes with a "propaganda rider" that also prohibits such manipulation. "Everyone in the psy-ops, intel, and IO community knows you're not supposed to target Americans," says a veteran member of another psy-ops team who has run operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. "It's what you learn on day one."
Claims that US officials were victims of mind control techniques to lend support to the Afghanistan war. The alleged secretive activities-- revealed in a recent Rolling Stone magazine article.
The article was written by Michael Hastings who penned the controversial story about General Stanley McChrystal that led to his ouster. He writes that trained operatives persuaded US officials to fund and support the US-led war effort--such as Senators John McCain and Joe Lieberman and Adm. Michael G. Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Peter Ernst, a former head of CIA Clandestine Operations and now in charge of the International Spy Museum explains why these charges may be overblown.
analysts look at this revelation say this may not be about mind manipulation but more like the power of persuasion, not unlike putting on a suit for a job interview or trying to make a good first impression with the in-laws.
Military personnel were under pressure to sell the Afghanistan war despite skepticism from congressmembers and an increasingly doubtful American public. The accuser Lt. Colonel Michael Holmes says he was ordered to gather information on US diplomatic targets.
Paul Martin who leads Peace Action says the allegations show the great lengths the US government would go to gather support for Afghanistan.
A Pentagon spokesman said the investigation into Rolling Stone's latest findings would examine "what actions took place and if any of them were inappropriate or illegal." But he didn't say who would lead the investigation.
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