The Real Stories Behind Speculation

 

Conspiracies That Turned Out to Be True: The Real Stories Behind Speculation.

Throughout history, conspiracy theories have captivated the public’s imagination and have put our minds to the test. Some theories are implausible and will never come to light, although some have. Have you ever sat and thought about the truth behind a conspiracy, what the answer could be, knowing it is unlikely to come out? Well, here are some conspiracies that have come to light.

      1. MKUltra: The Dark Side of Mind Control.

MKUltra was a covert project run by the CIA in the 1950s and 60s, which aimed to develop mind control techniques, often using drugs like LSD on their subjects, which was extremely unethical. The US government feared that Soviet, Chinese and North Korean agents were using mind control to brainwash US prisoners, and so in response, this project was developed to use against the Soviets to control human behaviour.

Evidence emerged in the 1970s when an investigation revealed the truth behind the CIA project. They had conducted numerous experiments on individuals, failing to get their consent. More than 150 human experiments were conducted, but a definite number is unknown due to notoriously poor records. Drugs that were used included LSD, MDMA (ecstasy), mescaline, heroine and methamphetamines.

The ramifications of MKUltra were profound, sparking outrage and calls for reform in medical ethics. People were appalled and called for more government transparency. It is now one of the darkest chapters in American history, and is a reminder of the lengths the authorities can potentially go to in order to gain control.

        2. The Tuskegee Syphilis Study 

This study ran from 1932-1972. The U.S. Public Health Service were supposedly studying African American men’s health, in particular they were told they were receiving treatment for syphilis. In reality, the U.S. Public Health Service were in fact not treating them, and instead they were just studying the disease’s progression. The participants were misled, and given false hope that they were recovering, when in actual fact they were just test subjects for a study on the progression of syphilis. It was a deliberate act of exploitation. However, this revelation led to significant changes in the ethical standards for research, emphasising informed consent and protecting vulnerable populations.

        3. Lead in Gasoline?

   There was a conspiracy back in the 1920s, were researchers were raising  concerns about the chemicals in gasoline. Rightfully so, lead was being added to gasoline without consumers knowing, supposedly to improve engine performance. Researches expressed their concerns, as lead is a neurotoxin, which is extremely harmful and even more unsafe for children. It can cause cognitive deficits and it can affect brain development. 

  Activists and health professionals began to advocate for lead to be removed from gasoline, after a positive correlation between leaded gasoline use and rising blood lead levels was found in children. 

   In the 1970s, the US was one of the first countries to phase out leaded gasoline with others following. Following the removal of lead from gasoline, the positive correlation became negative, with less exposure to lead, therefore improving the development and cognitive abilities in children. 

        

4. Prohibition- Bad Booze?

    Prohibition was in effect from 1920-1933. Americans had thought the government had poisoned alcohol during prohibition to keep people from drinking- and they were right. Manufacturers had been mixing their products with dangerous chemicals prior to prohibition, and the federal government pushed for them to use stronger poisons to discourage bootleggers during the prohibition- crazy. However, it didn’t stop bootleggers, and as a result more than 10,000 Americans had died as a result, which in itself is incredibly horrifying. 

  5. The Government is Spying on You

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    This has been and still is a widely talked about issue. We always find ourselves saying and thinking, ‘My phones been listening to me’, when an ad pops up for something you had been recently thinking about. Well, there is some evidence behind the theory that technology can be used to spy on you. 10 years ago, Edward Snowden (a former National Security Agent) leaked 1000s of documents to a journalist, which revealed the intelligence network used by the government to spy on civilians. This was mainly through social media networks, with 49,868 requests for user data sent to Facebook, 27,850 sent to Apple and 9,076 sent to Google. The leaks sparked a global debate about privacy and security and resulted in significant scrutiny in surveillance practices.