THE BATTLE FOR YOUR MIND, by Dick Sutphen
Dick Sutphen is a professional hypnotist who makes a good portion of his living
training other professional hypnotists... and another good portion selling
tapes of his lectures and "subliminal learning" tapes to help people with their
problems. This file is a transcript of a taped lecture with information he felt
was important enough that he asked for it to be as widely disseminated as
possible, at NO CHARGE. I found it on Illumi-Net in Decatur GA, and it hit me
where I live, so I ask that all who read it pass it along as widely as possible.
I have broken it up into four parts... please be sure that all four are printed,
uploaded, etc. together, so that none of the information is lost, for it is all
VITAL!
It could mean the return of free thought to this nation, or the end of it.
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Decatur, GA
Ron Bonds Sysop
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THE BATTLE FOR YOUR MIND, by Dick Sutphen -- 22.2 KB
Persuasion & Brainwashing Techniques Being Used On The Public Today
SUMMARY OF CONTENTS
The Birth of Conversion/Brainwashing in Christian Revivalism in 1735. The
Pavlovian explanation of the three brain phases. Born-again preachers:
Step-by-Step, how they conduct a revival and the expected physiological results.
The "voice roll" technique used by preachers, lawyers and hypnotists. New
trance-inducing churches. The 6 steps to conversion. The decognition process.
Thought-stopping techniques. The "sell it by zealot" technique. True believers
and mass movements. Persuasion techniques: "Yes set," "Imbedded Commands,"
"Shock and Confusion," and the "Interspersal Technique." Subliminals. Vibrato
and ELF waves. Inducing trance with vibrational sound. Even professional
observers will be "possessed" at charismatic gatherings. The "only hope"
technique to attend and not be converted. Non-detectable Neurophone programming
through the skin. The medium for mass take-over.
I'm Dick Sutphen and this tape is a studio-recorded, expanded version of a talk
I delivered at the World Congress of Professional Hypnotists Convention in Las
Vegas, Nevada. Although the tape carries a copyright to protect it from
unlawful duplication for sale by other companies, in this case, I invite
individuals to make copies and give them to friends or anyone in a position to
communicate this information.
Although I've been interviewed about the subject on many local and regional
radio and TV talk shows, large-scale mass communication appears to be blocked,
since it could result in suspicion or investigation of the very media presenting
it or the sponsors that support the media. Some government agencies do not want
this information generally known. Nor do the Born-Again Christian movement,
cults, and many human-potential trainings.
Everything I will relate only exposes the surface of the problem. I don't know
how the misuse of these techniques can be stopped. I don't think it is possible
to legislate against that which often cannot be detected; and if those who
legislate are using these techniques, there is little hope of affecting laws to
govern usage. I do know that the first step to initiate change is to generate
interest. In this case, that will probably only result from an underground
effort.
In talking about this subject, I am talking about my own business. I know it,
and I know how effective it can be. I produce hypnosis and subliminal tapes
and, in some of my seminars, I use conversion tactics to assist participants to
become independent and self-sufficient. But, anytime I use these techniques, I
point out that I am using them, and those attending have a choice to participate
or not. They also know what the desired result of participation will be.
So, to begin, I want to state the most basic of all facts about brainwashing:
IN THE ENTIRE HISTORY OF MAN, NO ONE HAS EVER BEEN BRAINWASHED AND REALIZED, OR
BELIEVED, THAT HE HAD BEEN BRAINWASHED. Those who have been brainwashed will
usually passionately defend their manipulators, claiming they have simply been
"shown the light" . . . or have been transformed in miraculous ways.
The Birth of Conversion
CONVERSION is a "nice" word for BRAINWASHING . . . and any study of
brainwashing has to begin with a study of Christian revivalism in eighteenth
century America. Apparently, Jonathan Edwards accidentally discovered the
techniques during a religious crusade in 1735 in Northampton, Massachusetts. By
inducing guilt and acute apprehension and by increasing the tension, the
"sinners" attending his revival meetings would break down and completely submit.
Technically, what Edwards was doing was creating conditions that wipe the brain
slate clean so that the mind accepts new programming. The problem was that the
new input was negative. He would tell them, "You're a sinner! You're destined
for hell!"
As a result, one person committed suicide and another attempted suicide. And
the neighbors of the suicidal converts related that they, too, were affected so
deeply that, although they had found "eternal salvation," they were obsessed
with a diabolical temptation to end their own lives.
Once a preacher, cult leader, manipulator or authority figure creates the brain
phase to wipe the brain-slate clean, his subjects are wide open. New input, in
the form of suggestion, can be substituted for their previous ideas. Because
Edwards didn't turn his message positive until the end of the revival, many
accepted the negative suggestions and acted, or desired to act, upon them.
Charles J. Finney was another Christian revivalist who used the same techniques
four years later in mass religious conversions in New York. The techniques are
still being used today by Christian revivalists, cults, human-potential
trainings, some business rallies, and the United States Armed Services . . .
to name just a few.
Let me point out here that I don't think most revivalist preachers realize or
know they are using brainwashing techniques. Edwards simply stumbled upon a
technique that really worked, and others copied it and have continued to copy it
for over two hundred years. And the more sophisticated our knowledge and
technology become, the more effective the conversion. I feel strongly that this
is one of the major reasons for the increasing rise in Christian fundamentalism,
especially the televised variety, while most of the orthodox religions are
declining.
The Three Brain Phases
The Christians may have been the first to successfully formulate brainwashing,
but we have to look to Pavlov, the Russian scientist, for a technical
explanation. In the early 1900s, his work with animals opened the door to
further investigations with humans. After the revolution in Russia, Lenin was
quick to see the potential of applying Pavlov's research to his own ends.
Three distinct and progressive states of transmarginal inhibition were
identified by Pavlov. The first is the EQUIVALENT phase, in which the brain
gives the same response to both strong and weak stimuli. The second is the
PARADOXICAL phase, in which the brain responds more actively to weak stimuli
than to strong. And the third is the ULTRA-PARADOXICAL phase, in which
conditioned responses and behavior patterns turn from positive to negative or
from negative to positive.
With the progression through each phase, the degree of conversion becomes more
effective and complete. The way to achieve conversion are many and varied, but
the usual first step in religious or political brainwashing is to work on the
emotions of an individual or group until they reach an abnormal level of anger,
fear, exitement, or nervous tension.
The progressive result of this mental condition is to impair judgement and
increase suggestibility. The more this condition can be maintained or
intensified, the more it compounds. Once catharsis, or the first brain phase,
is reached, the complete mental takeover becomes easier. Existing mental
programming can be replaced with new patterns of thinking and behavior.
Other often-used physiological weapons to modify normal brain functions are
fasting, radical or high sugar diets, physical discomforts, regulation of
breathing, mantra chanting in meditation, the disclosure of awesome mysteries,
special lighting and sound effects, programmed response to incense, or
intoxicating drugs.
The same results can be obtained in contemporary psychiatric treatment by
electric shock treatments and even by purposely lowering a person's blood sugar
level with insulin injections.
Before I talk about exactly how some of the techniques are applied, I want to
point out that hypnosis and conversion tactics are two distinctly different
things--and that conversion techniques are far more powerful. However, the two
are often mixed . . . with powerful results.
How Revivalist Preachers Work
If you'd like to see a revivalist preacher at work, there are probably several
in your city. Go to the church or tent early and sit in the rear, about
three-quarters of the way back. Most likely repetitive music will be played
while the people come in for the service. A repetitive beat, ideally ranging
from 45 to 72 beats per minute (a rhythm close to the beat of the human heart),
is very hypnotic and can generate an eyes-open altered state of consciousness in
a very high percentage of people. And, once you are in an alpha state, you are
at least 25 times as suggestible as you would be in full beta consciousness.
The music is probably the same for every service, or incorporates the same beat,
and many of the people will go into an altered state almost immediately upon
entering the sanctuary. Subconsciously, they recall their state of mind from
previous services and respond according to the post-hypnotic programming.
Watch the people waiting for the service to begin. Many will exhibit external
signs of trance--body relaxation and slightly dilated eyes. Often, they begin
swaying back and forth with their hands in the air while sitting in their
chairs. Next, the assistant pastor will probably come out. He usually speaks
with a pretty good "voice roll."
Voice Roll Technique
A "voice roll" is a patterned, paced style used by hypnotists when inducing a
trance. It is also used by many lawyers, several of whom are highly trained
hypnotists, when they desire to entrench a point firmly in the minds of the
jurors. A voice roll can sound as if the speaker were talking to the beat of a
metronome or it may sound as though he were emphasizing every word in a
monotonous, patterned style. The words will usually be delivered at the rate of
45 to 60 beats per minute, maximizing the hypnotic effect.
Now the assistant pastor begins the "build-up" process. He induces an altered
state of consciousness and/or begins to generate the excitement and the
expectations of the audience. Next, a group of young women in "sweet and pure"
chiffon dresses might come out to sing a song. Gospel songs are great for
building excitement and INVOLVEMENT. In the middle of the song, one of the
girls might be "smitten by the spirit" and fall down or react as if possessed by
the Holy Spirit. This very effectively increases the intensity in the room. At
this point, hypnosis and conversion tactics are being mixed. And the result is
the audience's attention span is now totally focused upon the communication
while the environment becomes more exciting or tense.
Right about this time, when an eyes-open mass-induced alpha mental state has
been achieved, they will usually pass the collection plate or basket. In the
background, a 45-beat-per-minute voice roll from the assistant preacher might
exhort, "Give to God . . . Give to God . . . Give to God . . ." And the
audience does give. God may not get the money, but his already wealthy
representative will.
Next, the fire-and-brimstone preacher will come out. He induces fear and
increases the tension by talking about "the devil," "going to hell," or the
forthcoming Armegeddon.
In the last such rally I attended, the preacher talked about the blood that
would soon be running out of every faucet in the land. He was also obsessed
with a "bloody axe of God," which everyone had seen hanging above the pulpit the
previous week. I have no doubt that everyone saw it--the power of suggestion
given to hundreds of people in hypnosis assures that at least 10 to 25 percent
would see whatever he suggested they see.
In most revivalist gatherings, "testifying" or "witnessing" usually follows the
fear-based sermon. People from the audience come up on stage and relate their
stories. "I was crippled and now I can walk!" "I had arthritis and now it's
gone!" It is a psychological manipulation that works. After listening to
numerous case histories of miraculous healings, the average guy in the audience
with a minor problem is sure he can be healed. The room is charged with fear,
guilt, intense excitement, and expectations.
Now those who want to be healed are frequently lined up around the edge of the
room, or they are told to come down to the front. The preacher might touch them
on the head firmly and scream, "Be healed!" This releases the psychic energy
and, for many, catharsis results. Catharsis is a purging of repressed emotions.
Individuals might cry, fall down or even go into spasms. And if catharsis is
effected, they stand a chance of being healed. In catharsis (one of the three
brain phases mentioned earlier), the brain-slate is temporarily wiped clean and
the new suggestion is accepted.
For some, the healing may be permanent. For many, it will last four days to a
week, which is, incidentally, how long a hypnotic suggestion given to a
somnambulistic subject will usually last. Even if the healing doesn't last, if
they come back every week, the power of suggestion may continually override the
problem . . . or sometimes, sadly, it can mask a physical problem which could
prove to be very detrimental to the individule in the long run.
I'm not saying that legitimate healings do not take place. They do. Maybe the
individual was ready to let go of the negativity that caused the problem in the
first place; maybe it was the work of God. Yet I contend that it can be
explained with existing knowledge of brain/mind function.
The techniques and staging will vary from church to church. Many use "speaking
in tongues" to generate catharsis in some while the spectacle creates intense
excitement in the observers.
The use of hypnotic techniques by religions is sophisticated, and professionals
are assuring that they become even more effective. A man in Los Angeles is
designing, building, and reworking a lot of churches around the country. He
tells ministers what they need and how to use it. This man's track record
indicates that the congregation and the monetary income will double if the
minister follows his instructions. He admits that about 80 percent of his
efforts are in the sound system and lighting.
Powerful sound and the proper use of lighting are of primary importance in
inducing an altered state of consciousnes--I've been using them for years in my
own seminars. However, my participants are fully aware of the process and what
they can expect as a result of their participation.
Six Conversion Techniques
Cults and human-potential organizations are always looking for new converts. To
attain them, they must also create a brain-phase. And they often need to do it
within a short space of time--a weekend, or maybe even a day. The following are
the six primary techniques used to generate the conversion.
The meeting or training takes place in an area where participants are cut off
from the outside world. This may be any place: a private home, a remote or
rural setting, or even a hotel ballroom where the participants are allowed only
limited bathroom usage. In human-potential trainings, the controllers will give
a lengthy talk about the importance of "keeping agreements" in life. The
participants are told that if they don't keep agreements, their life will never
work. It's a good idea to keep agreements, but the controllers are subverting a
positive human value for selfish purposes. The participants vow to themselves
and their trainer that they will keep their agreements. Anyone who does not
will be intimidated into agreement or forced to leave. The next step is to
agree to complete training, thus assuring a high percentage of conversions for
the organizations. They will USUALLY have to agree not to take drugs, smoke,
and sometimes not to eat . . . or they are given such short meal breaks that
it creates tension. The real reason for the agreements is to alter internal
chemistry, which generates anxiety and hopefully causes at least a slight
malfunction of the nervous system, which in turn increases the conversion
potential.
Before the gathering is complete, the agreements will be used to ensure that the
new converts go out and find new participants. They are intimidated into
agreeing to do so before they leave. Since the importance of keeping agreements
is so high on their priority list, the converts will twist the arms of everyone
they know, attempting to talk them into attending a free introductory session
offered at a future date by the organization. The new converts are zealots. In
fact, the inside term for merchandising the largest and most successful
human-potential training is, "sell it by zealot!"
At least a million people are graduates and a good percentage have been left
with a mental activation button that assures their future loyalty and assistance
if the guru figure or organization calls. Think about the potential political
implications of hundreds of thousands of zealots programmed to campaign for
their guru.
Be wary of an organization of this type that offers follow-up sessions after the
seminar. Follow-up sessions might be weekly meetings or inexpensive seminars
given on a regular basis which the organization will attempt to talk you into
taking--or any regularly scheduled event used to maintain control. As the early
Christian revivalists found, long-term control is dependent upon a good
follow-up system.
Alright. Now, let's look at the second tip-off that indicates conversion
tactics are being used. A schedule is maintained that causes physical and
mental fatigue. This is primarily accomplished by long hours in which the
participants are given no opportunity for relaxation or reflection.
The third tip-off: techniques used to increase the tension in the room or
environment.
Number four: Uncertainty. I could spend hours relating various techniques to
increase tension and generate uncertainty. Basically, the participants are
concerned about being "put on the spot" or encountered by the trainers, guilt
feelings are played upon, participants are tempted to verbally relate their
innermost secrets to the other participants or forced to take part in activities
that emphasize removing their masks. One of the most successful human-potential
seminars forces the participants to stand on a stage in front of the entire
audience while being verbally attacked by the trainers. A public opinion poll,
conducted a few years ago, showed that the number one most-fearful situation an
individual could encounter is to speak to an audience. It ranked above window
washing outside the 85th floor of an office building. So you can imagine the
fear and tension this situation generates within the participants. Many faint,
but most cope with the stress by mentally going away. They literally go into an
alpha state, which automatically makes them many times as suggestible as they
normally are. And another loop of the downward spiral into conversion is
successfully effected.
The fifth clue that conversion tactics are being used is the introduction of
jargon--new terms that have meaning only to the "insiders" who participate.
Vicious language is also frequently used, purposely, to make participants
uncomfortable.
The final tip-off is that there is no humor in the communications . . . at
least until the participants are converted. Then, merry-making and humor are
highly desirable as symbols of the new joy the participants have supposedly
"found."
I'm not saying that good does not result from participation in such gatherings.
It can and does. But I contend it is important for people to know what has
happened and to be aware that continual involvement may not be in their best
interest.
Over the years, I've conducted professional seminars to teach people to be
hypnotists, trainers, and counselors. I've had many of those who conduct
trainings and rallies come to me and say, "I'm here because I know that what I'm
doing works, but I don't know why." After showing them how and why, many have
gotten out of the business or have decided to approach it differently or in a
much more loving and supportive manner.
Many of these trainers have become personal friends, and it scares us all to
have experienced the power of one person with a microphone and a room full of
people. Add a little charisma and you can count on a high percentage of
conversions. The sad truth is that a high percentage of people want to give
away their power--they are true "believers"!
Cult gatherings or human-potential trainings are an ideal environment to observe
first-hand what is technically called the "Stockholm Syndrome." This is a
situation in which those who are intimidated, controlled, or made to suffer,
begin to love, admire, and even sometimes sexually desire their controllers or
captors.
But let me inject a word of warning here: If you think you can attend such
gatherings and not be affected, you are probably wrong. A perfect example is
the case of a woman who went to Haiti on a Guggenheim Fellowship to study
Haitian Voodoo. In her report, she related how the music eventually induced
uncontrollable bodily movement and an altered state of consciousness. Although
she understood the process and thought herself above it, when she began to feel
herself become vulnerable to the music, she attempted to fight it and turned
away. Anger or resistance almost always assures conversion. A few moments
later she was possessed by the music and began dancing in a trance around the
Voodoo meeting house. A brain phase had been induced by the music and
excitement, and she awoke feeling reborn. The only hope of attending such
gatherings without being affected is to be a Buddha and allow no positive or
negative emotions to surface. Few people are capable of such detachment.
Before I go on, let's go back to the six tip-offs to conversion. I want to
mention the United States Government and military boot camp. The Marine Corps
talks about breaking men down before "rebuilding" them as new men--as marines!
Well, that is exactly what they do, the same way a cult breaks its people down
and rebuilds them as happy flower sellers on your local street corner. Every
one of the six conversion techniques are used in boot camp. Considering the
needs of the military, I'm not making a judgement as to whether that is good or
bad. IT IS A FACT that the men are effectively brainwashed. Those who won't
submit must be discharged or spend much of their time in the brig.
Decognition Process
Once the initial conversion is effected, cults, armed services, and similar
groups cannot have cynicism among their members. Members must respond to
commands and do as they are told, otherwise they are dangerous to the
organizational control. This is normally accomplished as a three-step
Decognition Process.
Step One is ALERTNESS REDUCTION: The controllers cause the nervous system to
malfunction, making it difficult to distinguish between fantasy and reality.
This can be accomplished in several ways. POOR DIET is one; watch out for
Brownies and Koolaid. The sugar throws the nervous system off. More subtle is
the "SPIRITUAL DIET" used by many cults. They eat only vegetables and fruits;
without the grounding of grains, nuts, seeds, dairy products, fish or meat, an
individual becomes mentally "spacey." INADEQUATE SLEEP is another primary way
to reduce alertness, especially when combined with long hours of work or intense
physical activity. Also, being bombarded with intense and unique experiences
achieves the same result.
Step Two is PROGRAMMED CONFUSION: You are mentally assaulted while your
alertness is being reduced as in Step One. This is accomplished with a deluge
of new information, lectures, discussion groups, encounters or one-to-one
processing, which usually amounts to the controller bombarding the individual
with questions. During this phase of decognition, reality and illusion often
merge and perverted logic is likely to be accepted.
Step Three is THOUGHT STOPPING: Techniques are used to cause the mind to go
"flat." These are altered-state-of-consciousness techniques that initially
induce calmness by giving the mind something simple to deal with and focusing
awareness. The continued use brings on a feeling of elation and eventually
hallucination. The result is the reduction of thought and eventually, if used
long enough, the cessation of all thought and withdrawal from everyone and
everything except that which the controllers direct. The takeover is then
complete. It is important to be aware that when members or participants are
instructed to use "thought-stopping" techniques, they are told that they will
benefit by so doing: they will become "better soldiers" or "find
enlightenment."
There are three primary techniques used for thought stopping. The first is
MARCHING: the thump, thump, thump beat literally generates self-hypnosis and
thus great susceptibility to suggestion.
The second thought stopping technique is MEDITATION. If you spend an hour to an
hour and a half a day in meditation, after a few weeks, there is a great
probability that you will not return to full beta consciousness. You will
remain in a fixed state of alpha for as long as you continue to meditate. I'm
not saying this is bad--if you do it yourself. It may be very beneficial. But
it is a fact that you are causing your mind to go flat. I've worked with
meditators on an EEG machine and the results are conclusive: the more you
meditate, the flatter your mind becomes until, eventually and especially if used
to excess or in combination with decognition, all thought ceases. Some
spiritual groups see this as nirvana--which is bullshit. It is simply a
predictable physiological result. And if heaven on earth is non-thinking and
non-involvement, I really question why we are here.
The third thought-stopping technique is CHANTING, and often chanting in
meditation. "Speaking in tongues" could also be included in this category.
All three stopping techniques produce an altered state of consciousness. This
may be very good if YOU are controlling the process, for you also control the
input. I personally use at least one self-hypnosis programming session every
day and I know how beneficial it is for me. But you need to know if you use
these techniques to the degree of remaining continually in alpha that, although
you'll be very mellow, you'll also be more suggestible.
True Believers & Mass Movements
Before ending this section on conversion, I want to talk about the people who
are most susceptible to it and about Mass Movements. I am convinced that at
least a third of the population is what Eric Hoffer calls "true believers."
They are joiners and followers . . . people who want to give away their
power. They look for answers, meaning, and enlightenment outside themselves.
Hoffer, who wrote THE TRUE BELIEVER, a classic on mass movements, says, "true
believers are not intent on bolstering and advancing a cherished self, but are
those craving to be rid of unwanted self. They are followers, not because of a
desire for self-advancement, but because it can satisfy their passion for
self-renunciation!" Hoffer also says that true believers "are eternally
incomplete and eternally insecure"!
I know this from my own experience. In my years of communicating concepts and
conducting trainings, I have run into them again and again. All I can do is
attempt to show them that the only thing to seek is the True Self within. Their
personal answers are to be found there and there alone. I communicate that the
basics of spirituality are self-responsibility and self-actualization. But most
of the true believers just tell me that I'm not spiritual and go looking for
someone who will give them the dogma and structure they desire.
Never underestimate the potential danger of these people. They can easily be
molded into fanatics who will gladly work and die for their holy cause. It is a
substitute for their lost faith in themselves and offers them as a substitute
for individual hope. The Moral Majority is made up of true believers. All
cults are composed of true believers. You'll find them in politics, churches,
businesses, and social cause groups. They are the fanatics in these
organizations.
Mass Movements will usually have a charismatic leader. The followers want to
convert others to their way of living or impose a new way of life--if necessary,
by legislating laws forcing others to their view, as evidenced by the activities
of the Moral Majority. This means enforcement by guns or punishment, for that
is the bottomline in law enforcement.
A common hatred, enemy, or devil is essential to the success of a mass movement.
The Born-Again Christians have Satan himself, but that isn't enough--they've
added the occult, the New Age thinkers and, lately, all those who oppose their
integration of church and politics, as evidenced in their political reelection
campaigns against those who oppose their views. In revolutions, the devil is
usually the ruling power or aristocracy. Some human-potential movements are far
too clever to ask their graduates to join anything, thus labeling themselves as
a cult--but, if you look closely, you'll find that their devil is anyone and
everyone who hasn't taken their training.
There are mass movements without devils but they seldom attain major status.
The True Believers are mentally unbalanced or insecure people, or those without
hope or friends. People don't look for allies when they love, but they do when
they hate or become obsessed with a cause. And those who desire a new life and
a new order feel the old ways must be eliminated before the new order can be
built.
Persuasion Techniques
Persuasion isn't technically brainwashing but it is the manipulation of the
human mind by another individual, without the manipulated party being aware what
caused his opinion shift. I only have time to very basically introduce you to a
few of the thousands of techniques in use today, but the basis of persuasion is
always to access your RIGHT BRAIN. The left half of your brain is analytical
and rational. The right side is creative and imaginative. That is overly
simplified but it makes my point. So, the idea is to distract the left brain
and keep it busy. Ideally, the persuader generates an eyes-open altered state
of consciousness, causing you to shift from beta awareness into alpha; this can
be measured on an EEG machine.
First, let me give you an example of distracting the left brain. Politicians
use these powerful techniques all the time; lawyers use many variations which,
I've been told, they call "tightening the noose."
Assume for a moment that you are watching a politician give a speech. First, he
might generate what is called a "YES SET." These are statements that will cause
listeners to agree; they might even unknowingly nod their heads in agreement.
Next come the TRUISMS. These are usually facts that could be debated but, once
the politician has his audience agreeing, the odds are in the politician's favor
that the audience won't stop to think for themselves, thus continuing to agree.
Last comes the SUGGESTION. This is what the politician wants you to do and,
since you have been agreeing all along, you could be persuaded to accept the
suggestion. Now, if you'll listen closely to my political speech, you'll find
that the first three are the "yes set," the next three are truisms and the last
is the suggestion.
"Ladies and gentlemen: are you angry about high food prices? Are you tired of
astronomical gas prices? Are you sick of out-of-control inflation? Well, you
know the Other Party allowed 18 percent inflation last year; you know crime has
increased 50 percent nationwide in the last 12 months, and you know your
paycheck hardly covers your expenses any more. Well, the answer to resolving
these problems is to elect me, John Jones, to the U.S. Senate."
And I think you've heard all that before. But you might also watch for what are
called Imbedded Commands. As an example: On key words, the speaker would make
a gesture with his left hand, which research has shown is more apt to access
your right brain. Today's media-oriented politicians and spellbinders are often
carefully trained by a whole new breed of specialist who are using every trick
in the book--both old and new--to manipulate you into accepting their candidate.
The concepts and techniques of Neuro-Linguistics are so heavily protected that I
found out the hard way that to even talk about them publicly or in print results
in threatened legal action. Yet Neuro-Linguistic training is readily available
to anyone willing to devote the time and pay the price. It is some of the most
subtle and powerful manipulation I have yet been exposed to. A good friend who
recently attended a two-week seminar on Neuro-Linguistics found that many of
those she talked to during the breaks were government people.
Another technique that I'm just learning about is unbelievably slippery; it is
called an INTERSPERSAL TECHNIQUE and the idea is to say one thing with words but
plant a subconscious impression of something else in the minds of the listeners
and/or watchers.
Let me give you an example: Assume you are watching a television commentator
make the following statement: SENATOR JOHNSON is assisting local authorities to
clear up the stupid mistakes of companies contributing to the nuclear waste
problems." It sounds like a statement of fact, but, if the speaker emphasizes
the right word, and especially if he makes the proper hand gestures on the key
words, you could be left with the subconscious impression that Senator Johnson
is stupid. That was the subliminal goal of the statement and the speaker cannot
be called to account for anything.
Persuasion techniques are also frequently used on a much smaller scale with just
as much effectiveness. The insurance salesman knows his pitch is likely to be
much more effective if he can get you to visualize something in your mind. This
is right-brain communication. For instance, he might pause in his conversation,
look slowly around your livingroom and say, "Can you just imagine this beautiful
home burning to the ground?" Of course you can! It is one of your unconscious
fears and, when he forces you to visualize it, you are more likely to be
manipulated into signing his insurance policy.
The Hare Krishnas, operating in every airport, use what I call SHOCK AND
CONFUSION techniques to distract the left brain and communicate directly with
the right brain. While waiting for a plane, I once watched one operate for over
an hour. He had a technique of almost jumping in front of someone. Initially,
his voice was loud then dropped as he made his pitch to take a book and
contribute money to the cause. Usually, when people are shocked, they
immediately withdraw. In this case they were shocked by the strange appearance,
sudden materialization and loud voice of the Hare Krishna devotee. In other
words, the people went into an alpha state for security because they didn't want
to confront the reality before them. In alpha, they were highly suggestible so
they responded to the suggestion of taking the book; the moment they took the
book, they felt guilty and responded to the second suggestion: give money. We
are all conditioned that if someone gives us something, we have to give them
something in return--in that case, it was money. While watching this hustler, I
was close enough to notice that many of the people he stopped exhibited an
outward sign of alpha--their eyes were actually dilated.
Subliminal Programming
Subliminals are hidden suggestions that only your subconscious perceives. They
can be audio, hidden behind music, or visual, airbrushed into a picture, flashed
on a screen so fast that you don't consciously see them, or cleverly
incorporated into a picture or design.
Most audio subliminal reprogramming tapes offer verbal suggestions recorded at a
low volume. I question the efficacy of this technique--if subliminals are not
perceptible, they cannot be effective, and subliminals recorded below the
audible threshold are therefore useless. The oldest audio subliminal technique
uses a voice that follows the volume of the music so subliminals are impossible
to detect without a parametric equalizer. But this technique is patented and,
when I wanted to develop my own line of subliminal audiocassettes, negotiations
with the patent holder proved to be unsatisfactory. My attorney obtained copies
of the patents which I gave to some talented Hollywood sound engineers, asking
them to create a new technique. They found a way to psycho-acoustically modify
and synthesize the suggestions so that they are projected in the same chord and
frequency as the music, thus giving them the effect of being part of the music.
But we found that in using this technique, there is no way to reduce various
frequencies to detect the subliminals. In other words, although the suggestions
are being heard by the subconscious mind, they cannot be monitored with even the
most sophisticated equipment.
If we were able to come up with this technique as easily as we did, I can only
imagine how sophisticated the technology has become, with unlimited government
or advertising funding. And I shudder to think about the propaganda and
commercial manipulation that we are exposed to on a daily basis. There is
simply no way to know what is behind the music you hear. It may even be
possible to hide a second voice behind the voice to which you are listening.
The series by Wilson Bryan Key, Ph.D., on subliminals in advertising and
political campaigns well documents the misuse in many areas, especially printed
advertising in newspapers, magazines, and posters.
The big question about subliminals is: do they work? And I guarantee you they
do. Not only from the response of those who have used my tapes, but from the
results of such programs as the subliminals behind the music in department
stores. Supposedly, the only message is instructions to not steal: one East
Coast department store chain reported a 37 percent reduction in thefts in the
first nine months of testing.
A 1984 article in the technical newsletter, "Brain-Mind Bulletin," states that
as much as 99 percent of our cognitive activity may be "non-conscious,"
according to the director of the Laboratory for Cognitive Psychophysiology at
the University of Illinois. The lengthy report ends with the statement, "these
findings support the use of subliminal approaches such as taped suggestions for
weight loss and the therapeutic use of hypnosis and Neuro-Linguistic
Programming."
Mass Misuse
I could relate many stories that support subliminal programming, but I'd rather
use my time to make you aware of even more subtle uses of such programming.
I have personally experienced sitting in a Los Angeles auditorium with over ten
thousand people who were gathered to listen to a current charismatic figure.
Twenty minutes after entering the auditorium, I became aware that I was going in
and out of an altered state. Those accompanying me experienced the same thing.
Since it is our business, we were aware of what was happening, but those around
us were not. By careful observation, what appeared to be spontaneous
demonstrations were, in fact, artful manipulations. The only way I could figure
that the eyes-open trance had been induced was that a 6- to 7-cycle-per-second
vibration was being piped into the room behind the air conditioner sound. That
particular vibration generates alpha, which would render the audience highly
susceptible. Ten to 25 percent of the population is capable of a somnambulistic
level of altered states of consciousness; for these people, the suggestions of
the speaker, if non-threatening, could potentially be accepted as "commands."
Vibrato
This leads to the mention of VIBRATO. Vibrato is the tremulous effect imparted
in some vocal or instrumental music, and the cyle-per-second range causes people
to go into an altered state of consciousness. At one period of English history,
singers whose voices contained pronounced vibrato were not allowed to perform
publicly because listeners would go into an altered state and have fantasies,
often sexual in nature.
People who attend opera or enjoy listening to singers like Mario Lanza are
familiar with this altered state induced by the performers.
ELFs
Now, let's carry this awareness a little farther. There are also inaudible ELFs
(extra-low frequency waves). These are electromagnetic in nature. One of the
primary uses of ELFs is to communicate with our submarines. Dr. Andrija
Puharich, a highly respected researcher, in an attempt to warn U.S. officials
about Russian use of ELFs, set up an experiment. Volunteers were wired so their
brain waves could be measured on an EEG. They were sealed in a metal room that
could not be penetrated by a normal signal.
Puharich then beamed ELF waves at the volunteers. ELFs go right through the
earth and, of course, right through metal walls. Those inside couldn't know if
the signal was or was not being sent. And Puharich watched the reactions on the
technical equipment: 30 percent of those inside the room were taken over by the
ELF signal in six to ten seconds.
When I say "taken over," I mean that their behavior followed the changes
anticipated at very precise frequencies. Waves below 6 cycles per second caused
the subjects to become very emotionally upset, and even disrupted bodily
functions. At 8.2 cycles, they felt very high . . . an elevated feeling, as
though they had been in masterful meditation, learned over a period of years.
Eleven to 11.3 cycles induced waves of depressed agitation leading to riotous
behavior.
The Neurophone
Dr. Patrick Flanagan is a personal friend of mine. In the early 1960s, as a
teenager, Pat was listed as one of the top scientists in the world by "Life"
magazine. Among his many inventions was a device he called the Neurophone--an
electronic instrument that can successfully programm suggestions directly
through contact with the skin. When he attempted to patent the device, the
government demanded that he prove it worked. When he did, the National Security
Agency confiscated the neurophone. It took Pat two years of legal battle to get
his invention back.
In using the device, you don't hear or see a thing; it is applied to the skin,
which Pat claims is the source of special senses. The skin contains more
sensors for heat, touch, pain, vibration, and electrical fields than any other
part of the human anatomy.
In one of his recent tests, Pat conducted two identical seminars for a military
audience--one seminar one night and one the next night, because the size of the
room was not large enough to accommodate all of them at one time. When the
first group proved to be very cool and unwilling to respond, Patrick spent the
next day making a special tape to play at the second seminar. The tape
instructed the audience to be extremely warm and responsive and for their hands
to become "tingly." The tape was played through the neurophone, which was
connected to a wire he placed along the ceiling of the room. There were no
speakers, so no sound could be heard, yet the message was successfully
transmitted from that wire directly into the brains of the audience. They were
warm and receptive, their hands tingled and they responded, according to
programming, in other ways that I cannot mention here.
The more we find out about how human beings work through today's highly advanced
technological research, the more we learn to control human beings. And what
probably scares me the most is that the medium for takeover is already in place!
The television set in your livingroom and bedroom is doing a lot more than just
entertaining you.
Before I continue, let me point out something else about an altered state of
consciousness. When you go into an altered state, you transfer into right
brain, which results in the internal release of the body's own opiates:
enkephalins and Beta-endorphins, chemically almost identical to opium. In other
words, it feels good . . . and you want to come back for more.
Recent tests by researcher Herbert Krugman showed that, while viewers were
watching TV, right-brain activity outnumbered left-brain activity by a ratio of
two to one. Put more simply, the viewers were in an altered state . . . in
trance more often than not. They were getting their Beta-endorphin "fix."
To measure attention spans, psychophysiologist Thomas Mulholland of the Veterans
Hospital in Bedford, Massachusetts, attached young viewers to an EEG machine
that was wired to shut the TV set off whenever the children's brains produced a
majority of alpha waves. Although the children were told to concentrate, only a
few could keep the set on for more than 30 seconds!
Most viewers are already hypnotized. To deepen the trance is easy. One simple
way is to place a blank, black frame every 32 frames in the film that is being
projected. This creates a 45-beat-per-minute pulsation perceived only by the
subconscious mind--the ideal pace to generate deep hypnosis.
The commercials or suggestions presented following this alpha-inducing broadcast
are much more likely to be accepted by the viewer. The high percentage of the
viewing audience that has somnambulistic-depth ability could very well accept
the suggestions as commands--as long as those commands did not ask the viewer to
do something contrary to his morals, religion, or self-preservation.
The medium for takeover is here. By the age of 16, children have spent 10,000
to 15,000 hours watching television--that is more time than they spend in
school! In the average home, the TV set is on for six hours and 44 minutes per
day--an increase of nine minutes from last year and three times the average rate
of increase during the 1970s.
It obviously isn't getting better . . . we are rapidly moving into an
alpha-level world--very possibly the Orwellian world of "1984"--placid,
glassy-eyed, and responding obediently to instructions.
A research project by Jacob Jacoby, a Purdue University psychologist, found that
of 2,700 people tested, 90 percent misunderstood even such simple viewing fare
as commercials and "Barnaby Jones." Only minutes after watching, the typical
viewer missed 23 to 36 percent of the questions about what he or she had seen.
Of course they did--they were going in and out of trance! If you go into a deep
trance, you must be instructed to remember--otherwise you automatically forget.
I have just touched the tip of the iceberg. When you start to combine
subliminal messages behind the music, subliminal visuals projected on the
screen, hypnotically produced visual effects, sustained musical beats at a
trance-inducing pace . . . you have extremely effective brainwashing. Every
hour that you spend watching the TV set you become more conditioned. And, in
case you thought there was a law against any of these things, guess again.
There isn't! There are a lot of powerful people who obviously prefer things
exactly the way they are. Maybe they have plans for?
