History Links Bushes, Nazis, and Homeland Torture Programs

One of the interesting things about history is that it shows the links between things that appear, at first glance, to be unconnected. The Men Who Stare At Goats, written by British journalist Jon Ronson, is a great example of how historical investigations can reveal such links.

Who would have thought, for example, that George W. Bush’s involvement in the Homeland Security abuses of today can be traced back to similar abuses by the Nazis during World War II? Well, with Jon Ronson’s research, plus one more link that he doesn’t mention in his book, that connection can be made.

Link 1: The Nazis and Allen Dulles

Much has been made of the work of Allen Dulles in the gathering intelligence against the Nazis during World War II. The full story of Allen Dulles and the Nazis is more complex, however. Before World War II, the founders of the Bush political family, George Herbert Walker and Prescott Bush, worked to bring American money into Nazi Germany. (See Fortunate Son by J. H. Hatfield, as one of many sources) Some of these financial connections persisted through World War II (New Hampshire Gazette, Vol. 248, No. 3, November 7, 2003). Allen Dulles was a family lawyer for the Bushes (see The Men Who Stare At Goats) and worked to help bring financial backing to the Nazi regime, even helping the Bushes conceal their financial ties to the Nazis.

Of course, we all know about the Nazis, and their hideous treatment of prisoners. But how can that be linked to the current American regime of Homeland Security?

Link 2: Allen Dulles and Project Artichoke

Project Artichoke sounds like joke, but it was far from it. As Jon Ronson shows in The Men Who Stare At Goats, and documented by the Frank Olson Legacy Project, Project Artichoke was engaged in finding new ways to coerce prisoners into giving information that they did not want to give. These tactics included, but were not limited to, the use of drugs like LSD and heroin. The idea was to use not just traditional torture tactics, but also profound mental manipulation, to force prisoners to incriminate themselves.

Allen Dulles was the director of the CIA during Project Artichoke, and oversaw the project himself.

Link 3: Project Artichoke and Homeland Security Tactics

Project Artichoke was exposed and stopped. Its tactics live on, however. In the year 2001, Project Artichoke links back to the Bushes.

Now we have, in Guantanamo Bay, in Abu Ghraib, and in other secret prisons around the world, tactics inspired by the work of Allen Dulles in Project Artichoke being used all over again. The tactics have been developed, enhanced, and expanded, but the idea is the same. Jon Ronson’s book even suggests that psychoactive drugs are being used in the interrogation of prisoners, just as in Project Artichoke.

From Fatherland to Homeland, there’s a common thread that runs from the 1930s through to today: The use of pain to gain power.