The search for the "Manchurian candidate"

the long version

Here is the extraordinary story of how the Central Intelligence Agency waged a careful and systematic assault on the human psyche. John Marks reveals what was perhaps the most sinister activity ever engaged in by an organ of the United States government. He describes how the government conducted a series of secret programs to find ways to control human behavior. Responding to the assumption that the Soviets (and before them the Nazis) were trying to do the same, Marks asserts that high officials of the CIA and military intelligence believed they could enhance American security if they make a recalcitrant subject talk or otherwise act against his will. - Jacket flap.