Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Picador (2005), Edition: New Ed, 240 pages
Description
In 1979 a secret unit was established by the most gifted minds within the US army. Defying all known accepted military practice - and, indeed, the laws of physics -they believed that a soldier could adopt the cloak of invisibility, pass cleanly throughwalls and, perhaps most chillingly, kill goats just by staring at them. Entrusted withdefending America from all known adversaries, they were the First Earth Battalion.And they really weren't joking. What's more, they're back and fighting the War onTerror.
User reviews
LibraryThing member drneutron
The Men Who Stare at Goats was not the book I expected it to be. It's billed as a humorous look at research into parapsychology and remote viewing by Army intelligence, and for the first half, it is. It turns out that after Vietnam, a few officers influenced by the human potential and New Age
But just like Star Wars, there's a dark side to the Force. About halfway through the book, Ronson digs into the movement away from peaceful research into things like acoustic weaponry used to break prisoners and shows how these ideas were implemented in the Noriega arrest, Abu Ghraib prison and Guantanamo Bay. This is not funny stuff. The Psychological Operations folks treated these situations as laboratories to put into actual experiment all the wild ideas they've been thinking about all these years - leading to the abuses we've been reading about in the papers over the years. The Men Who Stare at Goats is a good book, make no mistake. It's just not quite what it's advertised to be.
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movements in California attempted to bring these ideas into the Army - resulting in the creation of the "First Earth Battalion" manual, a description of a new army where opponents are psychically manipulated into surrender and no weapons are needed. Some results - a general that repeatedly tries and repeatedly fails to walk through walls, remote viewers spying on the Loch Ness Monster, and the attempt to create real Jedi warriors that can kill goats by staring at them.But just like Star Wars, there's a dark side to the Force. About halfway through the book, Ronson digs into the movement away from peaceful research into things like acoustic weaponry used to break prisoners and shows how these ideas were implemented in the Noriega arrest, Abu Ghraib prison and Guantanamo Bay. This is not funny stuff. The Psychological Operations folks treated these situations as laboratories to put into actual experiment all the wild ideas they've been thinking about all these years - leading to the abuses we've been reading about in the papers over the years. The Men Who Stare at Goats is a good book, make no mistake. It's just not quite what it's advertised to be.
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LibraryThing member Crowyhead
The subject matter of this book is fascinating. It explores the US military's research into decidedly strange fighting and reconnaissance techniques: psychic warfare (as in, soldiers using psychic powers to stop the enemy in its tracks), remote viewing, you name it. It starts out fairly
The execution leaves something to be desired. For one, Ronson is aware that there is both an amusing and a serious side to his research, and points this out from time to time, but Ronson does not work to somehow make these two aspects of the stories he tells play off each other, or to reconcile these two aspects of the subject matter. Instead, the tone of the book is simply wildly uneven, sometimes switching from dead serious to satirical and jokey in the same page or two. The book is also quite rambling, and the overall impression is that it's a series of journalistic articles he wrote, which he then strung together into a book. It just struck me as lazy writing. Still interesting, though.
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lighthearted: look at what happens when you give some whackadoos in the government money to try to walk through walls! There's a serious side to it, though; out of some of the same minds that came up with the more out-there techniques of psychic warfare, came some of the psychological techniques that are being used to manipulate and torture prisoners and insurgent populations.The execution leaves something to be desired. For one, Ronson is aware that there is both an amusing and a serious side to his research, and points this out from time to time, but Ronson does not work to somehow make these two aspects of the stories he tells play off each other, or to reconcile these two aspects of the subject matter. Instead, the tone of the book is simply wildly uneven, sometimes switching from dead serious to satirical and jokey in the same page or two. The book is also quite rambling, and the overall impression is that it's a series of journalistic articles he wrote, which he then strung together into a book. It just struck me as lazy writing. Still interesting, though.
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LibraryThing member LisaShapter
A journalist's systematic yet picaresque journey through the war on terror and its tactics' purported roots in LSD, the human potential movement, and new age ideas. Detours through the Art Bell show, the Heaven's Gate suicides, CIA LSD experiments, and the odder bywaters of martial arts.
If you're
This book is far less silly than the (loosely based) movie or back cover makes it sound: worth reading.
If you're
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looking for an entertaining book where every chapter makes you ask "is this for real?" or if you ever wondered why the Barney the Purple Dinosaur song was played to detainees then this is the book for you. Shakes one's confidence in the idea that the military's treatment of POW's is based on the rational analysis of past successes or on experimental psychology. A fascinating look at how an idea harmless in a flaky friend could be dangerously misinterpreted, re-appropriated, and distorted when held by decision-makers and policy setters. This book is far less silly than the (loosely based) movie or back cover makes it sound: worth reading.
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LibraryThing member BruceCoulson
The Men Who... starts out much like [Them: Adventures in Extremism] in poking fun at a certain small group of military planners who (partially) embraced a whole slew of New Age concepts in an effort to re-vitalize the armed services post Vietnam. But the story takes some very dark turns, linking to
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the botched raid at Waco, the war crimes at Abu Ghraib, and similar efforts to use unconventional means to break the wills of America's enemies. You may start by laughing at the idea of staring goats to death as a means to defend the United States; but by the end, you'll be wondering just how far those in power will go to achieve an objective. Show Less
LibraryThing member Kanikoski
The premise for this journalistic read almost promises to lead to a place of humour: crack army dudes unsuccessfully staring at goats to try to make them drop dead. However, the narrative leads to altogether darker places. The 'Psychic Ops' described meander into stories associated with Abu Ghraib
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and Guantanamo Bay, for example, and while the prose is lightly written, this cannot altogether hide the seriousness of the subject matter. The final chapters, on CIA experimentation with hallucinogenic drugs on non-acquiescent subjects, seem somewhat tangential, as if the main story had already finished. However, in light of information that has been made public since 2004, when 'The Men Who Stare at Goats' was first published, the book deserved to be visited, or re-visited, through the eyes of the world post-Snowden and post-torture report. Show Less
LibraryThing member isabelx
Strangely, in fact, whenever I broached the subject of goat staring in my email exchanges with former friends and associates of Echanis, they immediately, on every occasion, stopped emailing me back. I started to think that perhaps I was nuts. This is why, after a while, I began avoiding
But even then the email exchanges abruptly halted. Perhaps I had indeed stumbled on a secret so sensitive that nobody wanted to admit to any knowledge of it.
Although the film of the same name was based on it, this is a non-fiction book that tells the story of the is author's investigation into the US military's psychic spying and psychological warfare programa. As well tracing some of the people who tried to kill goats (and hamsters!) by staring at them, he looks into remote viewing, the transformation of military personnel into Jedi Warriors, and the development of non-lethal weapons, including a failed attempt at using rapidly solidifying foam to build a wall between some rioters and the target of their wrath and an unexpected use of the Barney the Dinosaur theme tune. Although he doesn't have any luck in tracking down a man named Ron, who apparently reactivated Uri Geller as an American agent after 9/11, as everyone clams up when asked about him, he has more luck with other people who were involved, including a former General who tried repeatedly (but unsuccessfully) to walk through walls.
This is generally a fun read, although events take a more serious turn when the author investigates MK-Ultra, and the military's links to the Heaven's Gate suicides and the disastrous events at the Branch Davidians' compound at Waco, and I really don't like the sound of the Predator, a bright yellow plastic weapon that resembles a children's toy.
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crazy-sounding words like 'goat' and 'staring' and 'death', and instead asked questions like, 'Do you happen to know whether or not Michael was ever involved attempting to influence livestock from afar?'But even then the email exchanges abruptly halted. Perhaps I had indeed stumbled on a secret so sensitive that nobody wanted to admit to any knowledge of it.
Although the film of the same name was based on it, this is a non-fiction book that tells the story of the is author's investigation into the US military's psychic spying and psychological warfare programa. As well tracing some of the people who tried to kill goats (and hamsters!) by staring at them, he looks into remote viewing, the transformation of military personnel into Jedi Warriors, and the development of non-lethal weapons, including a failed attempt at using rapidly solidifying foam to build a wall between some rioters and the target of their wrath and an unexpected use of the Barney the Dinosaur theme tune. Although he doesn't have any luck in tracking down a man named Ron, who apparently reactivated Uri Geller as an American agent after 9/11, as everyone clams up when asked about him, he has more luck with other people who were involved, including a former General who tried repeatedly (but unsuccessfully) to walk through walls.
This is generally a fun read, although events take a more serious turn when the author investigates MK-Ultra, and the military's links to the Heaven's Gate suicides and the disastrous events at the Branch Davidians' compound at Waco, and I really don't like the sound of the Predator, a bright yellow plastic weapon that resembles a children's toy.
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LibraryThing member fundevogel
This was a page turner, though I do think it should be read with a giant grain of salt, primarily because the book is almost entirely based on interviews with crazy people with little or no substantiating content or critical evaluation. Certainly a lot of this stuff probably happened, but none of
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the interviewees had anything even approaching an objective viewpoint. Show Less
LibraryThing member glade1
Well-written and interesting account of some of our government's more unusual (and often sinister) forays into psychological warfare and parapsychology. From a peace-loving advocate of facing enemies while playing calming music and holding baby animals, to over-the-top tales of psychological
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torture and experimental drugs, there's a lot to hold the reader's interest. (I have not seen the movie that is based on this book and cannot imagine how they could have made it into a story for film; it is a great piece of reporting but is not a neat linear story with heroic characters.) Show Less
LibraryThing member CarolO
This book is so unbelievable that it must be true. The idea that the U.S. Army has adopted new age techniques in an attempt to walk through walls or even kill goats by staring at them would make a great plot for a Michael Crichton thriller. That some of these new age techniques may have resulted in
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acoustic weapons being used at Guantanamo is chilling. Show Less
LibraryThing member lilywren
The book provides a brief introduction into the rather dark world of ‘Psychological Operations’ (PsyOp). Ronson focuses upon the covert psychological techniques which have been used for interrogation purposes by the CIA and US Army. He introduces us to projects from as early as the 1950′s up
One of the poignant stories Ronson recalls is that of Frank Olson. Olson was a leading US biochemist working with the US government in the 40′s and early 50′s. In 1953 he ‘jumped’ to his death in what was an apparent suicide.
Circumstances around his death have been suspicious, especially given that Olson was becoming more and more concerned about the work he was doing. At the time, he was rumoured to have been resigning from his post and ready to speak out against the CIA. Ronson spends some time with Eric Olson, Frank’s son, who has tireless searched for the truth about the circumstances surrounding his father’s death. It gives a fascinating and frightening insight and certainly provides enough interest for me to read more on the subject.
It has been said that the book is one of two halves and I would tend to agree with this opinion. At the beginning of the book you could be forgiven for thinking this is a rather humorous piece of fiction. There are some incredibly amusing stories (which Ronson hints are purposely put out there in order to detract). The tale relating to a Major General Albert Stubblebine III may even raise a chuckle. Stubblebine was active in the early 80′s and particularly interested in psychic warfare. He was also convinced given the right training people can walk through walls. Was this guy really a General?
"General Stubblebine bangs his nose hard on the wall of his office. Damn, he thinks. General Stubblebine is confounded by his continual failure to walk through his wall….There is no doubt in his mind that the ability to pass through objects will one day be a common tool in the intelligence-gathering arsenal….These powers are attainable, so the only question is by whom?……Special Forces! (p.3)."
However, the more we move through the book, the darker it becomes. We are reminded that fact is often stranger than fiction and that this story involves real people, families and victims. Ronson provides an insightful and thoughtful introduction to what is, essentially, a complex story of conspiracy, psyops and the ultimate power of psychological warfare and mind control which goes far deeper than we can ever know.
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to the modern day 2000′s and the ‘War on Terror’. Warning! For those not yet aware of this world it is pretty twisted and frightening. Ronson touches upon areas including Project MKUltra (commenced in the 1950s by the CIA and including the use of drugs, sensory deprivation, hypnosis and various forms of torture in order to influence), the torture and human rights violations which took place at Abu Ghraib prison (2003-2004) and the link between the US military and the mass suicide by the Heaven’s Gate Cult in San Diego in 1997.One of the poignant stories Ronson recalls is that of Frank Olson. Olson was a leading US biochemist working with the US government in the 40′s and early 50′s. In 1953 he ‘jumped’ to his death in what was an apparent suicide.
Circumstances around his death have been suspicious, especially given that Olson was becoming more and more concerned about the work he was doing. At the time, he was rumoured to have been resigning from his post and ready to speak out against the CIA. Ronson spends some time with Eric Olson, Frank’s son, who has tireless searched for the truth about the circumstances surrounding his father’s death. It gives a fascinating and frightening insight and certainly provides enough interest for me to read more on the subject.
It has been said that the book is one of two halves and I would tend to agree with this opinion. At the beginning of the book you could be forgiven for thinking this is a rather humorous piece of fiction. There are some incredibly amusing stories (which Ronson hints are purposely put out there in order to detract). The tale relating to a Major General Albert Stubblebine III may even raise a chuckle. Stubblebine was active in the early 80′s and particularly interested in psychic warfare. He was also convinced given the right training people can walk through walls. Was this guy really a General?
"General Stubblebine bangs his nose hard on the wall of his office. Damn, he thinks. General Stubblebine is confounded by his continual failure to walk through his wall….There is no doubt in his mind that the ability to pass through objects will one day be a common tool in the intelligence-gathering arsenal….These powers are attainable, so the only question is by whom?……Special Forces! (p.3)."
However, the more we move through the book, the darker it becomes. We are reminded that fact is often stranger than fiction and that this story involves real people, families and victims. Ronson provides an insightful and thoughtful introduction to what is, essentially, a complex story of conspiracy, psyops and the ultimate power of psychological warfare and mind control which goes far deeper than we can ever know.
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LibraryThing member mattmallard
I really enjoyed this. It begins by exposing the sensational and seemingly benevolent "outside the box" thinking of the military and intelligence communities. By the end, the reader is left with the notion that powerful ideas, even those with beneficent intentions behind them, can be used in dark
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and inhumane ways. Show Less
LibraryThing member atreic
I don't read a lot of non fiction, and I don't read a lot of books about the military, so this book was off piste for me.
I spent much of the book confused as to whether it was satire, conspiricy theory or straight journalism. This is probably just a poor reflection on my lack of current affairs
It felt like a book of two halves, almost. In the first half, the author discusses psychic ops, soldiers who believed that with proper training, they could walk through walls or stop a goat's heart with the power of their minds. This was placed in the context of a shell-shocked post Viatnam army, inspired by the memes of the 60s. In the second hald, the author does a cunning segway into psychological ops, and discusses the army's behaviour in Iraq and Guantanamo bay.
In a way, this is a big pile of cherry picked stories, not all of which I believe, loosely piled together to look a bit like a coherant narrative. But on the other hand, it does have some truly terrifying things to say about the way the US military has behaved over the past 50 years.
I spent much of the book confused as to whether it was satire, conspiricy theory or straight journalism. This is probably just a poor reflection on my lack of current affairs
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knowledge, rather than the book. It felt like a book of two halves, almost. In the first half, the author discusses psychic ops, soldiers who believed that with proper training, they could walk through walls or stop a goat's heart with the power of their minds. This was placed in the context of a shell-shocked post Viatnam army, inspired by the memes of the 60s. In the second hald, the author does a cunning segway into psychological ops, and discusses the army's behaviour in Iraq and Guantanamo bay.
In a way, this is a big pile of cherry picked stories, not all of which I believe, loosely piled together to look a bit like a coherant narrative. But on the other hand, it does have some truly terrifying things to say about the way the US military has behaved over the past 50 years.
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LibraryThing member Ti99er
I have one word for this book......WOW!
Not only does this book provide a head scratching look into some of the US government’s odd tactics, it also connects some of the most seemingly unrelated events in our history.
Take the following events as a for instance: Heaven's Gate mass suicide, Waco
This story was interesting, funny and bizarre all at the same time. I’ll never look at a goat the same way again, especially if it has been debleated. I just wonder how much of it is actually true.
Not only does this book provide a head scratching look into some of the US government’s odd tactics, it also connects some of the most seemingly unrelated events in our history.
Take the following events as a for instance: Heaven's Gate mass suicide, Waco
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TX, David Koresh and the Davidians, one of the terrorists who piloted a plane on 911, Private Lynndie England, and don't forget the goats! If you haven't heard of these events, be sure to Google them as a point of reference. It is amazing when multiple events which apparently have no relevance to one another come together so like a puzzle. It’s almost like reading a mystery novel with plot lines which seem irrelevant to one another until the final climax. This story was interesting, funny and bizarre all at the same time. I’ll never look at a goat the same way again, especially if it has been debleated. I just wonder how much of it is actually true.
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LibraryThing member pgmcc
I can see how this book provided material for an amusing film, but I was very disappointed in the book itself. I read it because my son said the film was funny, so I wanted to read the book before watching the film, which I still intend doing. The book, however, is no more than a string of magazine
No structure to the book and no evidence of rigour. It presented a collection of stories about the US military's attempts to use paranormal and psychic weapons/tools. At times it seemed to confuse psychic and psychological.
Not a book I would recommend people waste time reading. Just go and watch the film. (I may, of course, change my mind about watching the film after I've seen it.)
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article level chapters full of hearsay and conjecture.No structure to the book and no evidence of rigour. It presented a collection of stories about the US military's attempts to use paranormal and psychic weapons/tools. At times it seemed to confuse psychic and psychological.
Not a book I would recommend people waste time reading. Just go and watch the film. (I may, of course, change my mind about watching the film after I've seen it.)
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LibraryThing member BoundTogetherForGood
I enjoyed this book but it didn't make me laugh as much as I had expected. I suppose I am glad that maybe the government is looking "outside the box" for solutions to things. But I also find it a bit disturbing too. I suppose I will still see the movie since it looked funny...
LibraryThing member wyvernfriend
In 1979 a secret unit is set up in the US Army to research the possibility of using psychic abilities. Ronson follows the clues across American following many of the people involved and being told a lot of stories, some of which were quite far-fetched. Amusing in a kind of scattered way, there is
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no attempt to understand the information but to document his travels through the strange world of psychic research and spies. Show Less
LibraryThing member abide01
Good book, not as comical as the movie is suppose to be. You can try to look at it in a comical way, but what kept crossing my mind, " T he government is wasting money on this?" If you enjoy books about black ops, and things of that nature, then you will enjoy this book.
LibraryThing member Niecierpek
An entertaining and baffling read about a secret division within the US army busying itself with combat using ESP means. The men from that division stare at goats and they die. How? They just concentrate on the task, will them to die, and they do. Or perhaps, not exactly. Perhaps there are some
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karate moves involved that don't work right away, but have a delayed response, and once hit, the goats will collapse a day or two later. That's pretty impressive anyway, and not everyone can do it, either. Just a few. But this is who the division is for- a chosen few, and this is what it is for- to explore unconventional combat techniques, psychological warfare and exotic techniques that involve anything from positive thinking and meditation to employing psychics as war means. Or, pummeling suspects with loud music and sending secret messages through it, which translated into playing Barney tunes to terror suspects in Iraq to implant subliminal sounds to arouse fear in them. And, the like. Very interesting, especially that I would have never thought that it could possibly exist in that shape and form within the US army, but it does. Show Less
LibraryThing member Zare
This one is a strange book. It starts rather funny - I mean is there something more weird than director of ultra secret military agency trying to run through a wall or taking bended metal fork in the meeting and saying to his commander "Do you want me to demonstrate how I did this?"? And then that
You have to agree that behavior of such high level officials is also rather disturbing especially in our time and age.
And then book takes the turn to a very dark place .... very, very dark place indeed. And gets exponentially more disturbing.
Only thing that this book is missing is more structure - it seems unfinished. It was like author was chasing down the story but just could not believe what was unfolding in front of him so he left the story open-ended while scratching his head all the time.
Do paranormal spies exist? Why would not they - although I think individuals with true gifts are very rare. To dismiss that as something impossible is as stupid as claiming that all of us can reach mental heights.
Is it possible that science is used for torture? Of course it is and it is something to be expected.
Interesting book, scary subject but without the proper closure.
Although book seems to be one of those thousand conspiracy books around give it a try - unfortunately it seems it is more than just "conspiracy gibberish".
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same commander saying "That wold be inappropriate!" not because he means that it is truly inappropriate to bend forks during supper in expensive restaurant but because he takes his inspiration from the holy book and paragraph sounding more like Warhammer 40K quote - Suffer not the witch breathing the same air as you?!?You have to agree that behavior of such high level officials is also rather disturbing especially in our time and age.
And then book takes the turn to a very dark place .... very, very dark place indeed. And gets exponentially more disturbing.
Only thing that this book is missing is more structure - it seems unfinished. It was like author was chasing down the story but just could not believe what was unfolding in front of him so he left the story open-ended while scratching his head all the time.
Do paranormal spies exist? Why would not they - although I think individuals with true gifts are very rare. To dismiss that as something impossible is as stupid as claiming that all of us can reach mental heights.
Is it possible that science is used for torture? Of course it is and it is something to be expected.
Interesting book, scary subject but without the proper closure.
Although book seems to be one of those thousand conspiracy books around give it a try - unfortunately it seems it is more than just "conspiracy gibberish".
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LibraryThing member Arthwollipot
Excellent book - goes into much more detail than the film does. At times it makes you think 'this can't possibly be real'.
LibraryThing member paulrach
The tale that Jon Ronson tells could be the script of a bad Science Fiction movie, yet is the real life story of the US Army's attempt at using New Age philosophies and ideas.
From torture by dinosaur, to military missions executed on the back of remote viewing, through to the tragedy of LSD
Through the humour, Ronson manages to convey what damage can be done when esoteric ideas become mainstream.
It is all the more disturbing, therefore, to think that some of the key decision makers in the US military allowed themselves to be influenced by ideas and individuals that were so irrational.
Well worth the read.
From torture by dinosaur, to military missions executed on the back of remote viewing, through to the tragedy of LSD
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experimentation, the author tells an interesting and at the same time entertaining tale.Through the humour, Ronson manages to convey what damage can be done when esoteric ideas become mainstream.
It is all the more disturbing, therefore, to think that some of the key decision makers in the US military allowed themselves to be influenced by ideas and individuals that were so irrational.
Well worth the read.
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LibraryThing member fothpaul
An interesting book. Got through it quite quickly. Left me feeling that I wanted a bit more from the text than what I got. Some interesting and disturbing ideas put forward about the use of psychic warfare and interrogation. May well look into the authors other books in the future.
LibraryThing member cwflatt
Sometimes it is best that we don't know what the government does with our tax dollars. Not because it is so ridiculousness, but that and they find something that might have a hint of actually working.
LibraryThing member cliffagogo
Jon Ronson investigates some of the more outlandish ideas that American military have used as alternatives to conventional weaponry – mind control, invisibility and psychic healing. The author’s fish-out-of-water style has been done to death by documentary TV presenters everywhere (Louis
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Theroux, Nick Broomfield, etc) but it’s the absurdity of the subjects which makes this such a readable book. Show Less
LibraryThing member les121
Let me first say that this audiobook has the best narrator ever. His voice is perfectly suited to the serious yet ridiculous nature of the text. But of course, I loved The Men Who Stare at Goats for more than its narrator - the content of the book is a fascinating, bizarre, and disturbing
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exploration of the American military that, much like Ronson’s The Psychopath Test, will have you cracking up one minute and pondering important issues the next. Overall, this is an intensely interesting, hilarious, and thought provoking book, and I highly recommend it. Show Less
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2004
Physical description
288 p.; 5.12 inches
ISBN
9780330375481
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DDC/MDS
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