Things You Would Never Know

Pont-Saint-Esprit

Pont-Saint-Esprit

Down in a small town called Pont-Saint-Esprit in France, there was an epidemic of mental illness August 15th, 1951. This is where perceptions and opinions may vary from actual fact. This outbreak was said to have due to a poisoning, a "food born illness," or as claimed "cursed bread." There have been many suggestions as to what the cause was to the poisoning of the town.

But the fact of this event is that over 250 people in this town had been affected by this outbreak, experiencing acute psychotic episodes, hallucinations and paranoia. Over 50 of these victims had to be placed into asylums because their affects were so mentally damaging.

Conspiracy theorists believe the CIA had been involved in this massive epidemic due to some documents and sources that have been claimed to have gotten out. In some of those documents, and by some of those sources, this little town in France had been referred to many times.

As a bit of a background story for those of you who are not fully aware as to how or why something like this might take place, lets begin with the CIA initially beginning a program that was specifically designed to experiment the effects of LSD. They believed it could be used as a truth serum, or a means to mentally break down contacts or prisoners to not only retain information but perhaps in fact use it as a method of brain washing. However, one of the bigger goals was to be able to use LSD on a wider spread scale. This is where it is rumored that Pont-Saint-Esprit was the first subject of a mass experience on the unsuspecting public.

The next goal, had the "experiment" in this small French town been successful, would have been to release it on New York City subway passengers, and to see the effects it had on them.

Now the whole part about the CIA and the claims can not be verified as fact. But it is true that this is one of the many conspiracy theories floating out there. And who knows, perhaps it is true. Perhaps fungi or food born illnesses in a singular town, where you have not seen it spread beyond that town at that time is in fact just a cover up?

You decide. Regardless, who would have thought that mental illness could be an epidemic.