ADKO

kesey

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Here’s a summary of the text with the requested annotations:

The text discusses Ken Kesey, author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and his role in the West Coast counterculture. Kesey studied at Stanford and participated in a CIA-funded study on psychedelic drugs like LSD, psilocybin, mescaline, cocaine, and DMT at the Veterans’ Hospital in Menlo Park, CA. He then worked at the hospital, eventually taking and distributing LSD to friends, who became known as the Merry Pranksters. This access to psychedelics and his successful novel established Kesey as a counterculture leader.

The Merry Pranksters embarked on a road trip in a painted bus named Furthur from California to New York in the summer of 1964, an event widely seen as pivotal to the counterculture movement. The trip was intended to be a movie, reminiscent of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, and Tom Wolfe accompanied them to write his book, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. However, the text suggests this trip was planned as a media project from the outset.

Further analysis reveals a surprising number of Merry Pranksters with elite military and educational backgrounds. For instance, Ken Babbs was in the Naval Reserve and served in vietnam, Lee Quarnstrom attended New Trier High School, and Sandy Lehmann-Haupt’s father was a Psychological Warfare Officer. Robert Stone, picked up in New York, had served in the Navy and was a war correspondent in vietnam. Ken Kesey’s father was in the Navy, and Kesey himself participated in CIA MKUltra studies at Stanford. The text highlights this “unusual concentration of elite military and educational pedigrees” among the Pranksters, questioning their portrayal as typical hippies.

The author, citing “Miles,” claims all the Pranksters were Jewish and lists several attendees of a 1970 Pranksters reunion, including Tim Leary, Myron Stolaroff, Sidney Cohen, Al Hubbard, Oscar Janiger, Humphrey Osmond, John Lilly, Laura Huxley, Willis Harmon, and Nick Bercel, asserting they are “All Jewish, and many from peerage lines.” Tim Leary is noted as having been recruited by the CIA out of Harvard via Aldous Huxley.

Tom Wolfe, who wrote about the trip, majored in American Studies at Yale, a department influenced by Norman Pearson, described as a high-ranking spook linked to the OSS and British Ultra cryptoanalysis. Stewart Brand, also associated with the Pranksters, attended Phillips Exeter and Stanford, served as a paratrooper, and worked out of the Pentagon, with “Miles” identifying him as an intelligence asset.

The text posits that the Merry Pranksters were a diversionary tactic, part of a Gulf of Tonkin psy-op to redirect anti-war sentiment towards drug use and introspection rather than political action.

Augustus Owsley Stanley III, known as Owsley, is identified as the primary LSD supplier to the Merry Pranksters and later to the Grateful Dead, Beatles, and other counterculture figures. Owsley, son of a political family from Kentucky, had connections to UVA, the Air Force, Andrews Air Force Base, and the Jet Propulsion Lab.

The text also delves into the Grateful Dead. John Perry Barlow, a lyricist for the band, admitted to working for the CIA and helping to establish the CIA’s website. Barlow’s background, including his upbringing on a large ranch in Wyoming, erratic academic record, and connections to Andy Warhol and Harvard Law School, is presented as indicative of privilege and influence.

Timothy Leary, an associate of Barlow and a proponent of LSD, had a history with West Point and the Army Specialized Training Program. His research into psychedelic mushrooms was inspired by an article by R. Gordon Wasson, a JP Morgan Vice President whose research was funded by the CIA. Leary’s subsequent academic career at Harvard, his involvement with the Hitchcock Estate (owned by heirs to the Mellon fortune), and his later prison sentence and escape are detailed, with suspicions raised about the authenticity of his incarceration and his role as an informant for the FBI.

Robert Hunter, another lyricist for the Grateful Dead, is also linked to the CIA/Stanford drug study and the MKUltra project. The text scrutinizes Hunter’s identity, suggesting his listed biography is fabricated and that he may be related to Robert E. Hunter, Jr., a member of Bohemian Grove and Freemasons, with ties to Brown Brothers Harriman and Prescott Bush, and Fritz Thyssen. Hunter’s alleged upbringing in Palo Alto, San Francisco, and Connecticut is correlated with the locations of Brown Brothers Harriman and Prescott Bush. A search for “Robert C. Christie Hunter” is said to yield no results, labeling him a “ghost.”

The text concludes by questioning the narrative of Kesey stealing LSD, suggesting that if he were given and encouraged to distribute it by the government, it would reframe him as an agent and cast doubt on the counterculture’s belief in LSD’s consciousness-expanding properties. The author suggests two possibilities: either Kesey stole drugs for inherent good or he was a government agent using them for control.

Summary with Annotations:

The text examines Ken Kesey, author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and his pivotal role in the West Coast counterculture. Kesey’s experiences at Stanford, including participation in a CIA-funded study on psychedelic drugs like LSD at the Veterans’ Hospital in Menlo Park, CA, are detailed. His subsequent involvement with and distribution of LSD to friends, who formed the Merry Pranksters, are highlighted as a catalyst for his counterculture leadership.

The Merry Pranksters’ iconic road trip in the bus Furthur from California to New York in 1964 is presented as a foundational event for the counterculture, initially conceived as a project for a film and a book by Tom Wolfe, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test.

However, the text scrutinizes the backgrounds of the Merry Pranksters, revealing a disproportionate number with elite military and educational pedigrees, including Ken Babbs (Naval Reserve, vietnam), Lee Quarnstrom (New Trier High School), Sandy Lehmann-Haupt (son of a Psychological Warfare Officer), Robert Stone (Navy, war correspondent), and Ken Kesey himself (father in Navy, CIA MKUltra studies). The author suggests this unusual concentration of backgrounds casts doubt on their “hippie” image and points to possible CIA involvement.

The author, referencing “Miles,” claims the Pranksters were Jewish and lists individuals associated with the movement, including Tim Leary, Myron Stolaroff, Sidney Cohen, Al Hubbard, Oscar Janiger, Humphrey Osmond, John Lilly, Laura Huxley, Willis Harmon, and Nick Bercel, suggesting deep-rooted connections. Tim Leary is noted as having been recruited by the CIA out of Harvard via Aldous Huxley.

Tom Wolfe’s academic background at Yale in American Studies, influenced by Norman Pearson (linked to OSS and British Ultra cryptoanalysis), and Stewart Brand’s military service and Pentagon work are also presented as potential indicators of intelligence connections.

The text proposes that the Merry Pranksters and the Furthur trip served as a domestic diversionary element of the Gulf of Tonkin psy-op, aimed at steering anti-war sentiment away from political action.

Augustus Owsley Stanley III, known as Owsley, is identified as a key LSD supplier to the Merry Pranksters, Grateful Dead, Beatles, and others. His familial background from Kentucky, education at UVA, and employment with the Air Force and Jet Propulsion Lab are cited as further connections.

The Grateful Dead are also examined, with John Perry Barlow, a lyricist, admitting to CIA work and involvement in the agency’s website development. Barlow’s privileged background and unusual academic and personal path are highlighted.

Timothy Leary’s history, including his time at West Point and Army Specialized Training Program, his research into psychedelic mushrooms inspired by R. Gordon Wasson (JP Morgan, CIA funding), his Harvard career, and his subsequent prison sentence and escape, are presented with skepticism regarding the authenticity of his incarceration and his role as an FBI informant.

Robert Hunter, another Grateful Dead lyricist, is also linked to the CIA/Stanford drug study and MKUltra. The text questions his biographical details, suggesting a fabricated identity and potential ties to Robert E. Hunter, Jr., Bohemian Grove, Freemasons, Brown Brothers Harriman, and Prescott Bush. Hunter’s presence in Palo Alto and San Francisco is correlated with the locations of these entities. A lack of verifiable information on “Robert C. Christie Hunter” leads to him being labeled a “ghost.”

The piece concludes by questioning the narrative of Kesey “stealing” LSD, suggesting that if he were a government agent distributing it, it would redefine his role and the counterculture’s perception of the drug’s potential. The author posits that either Kesey was acting independently or was a government agent using the drugs for control, with the former scenario raising doubts about the CIA’s awareness of his actions.

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