MIND WARS: The True Story of Secret Government Research into the Military Potential of the Paranormal

A slick, haphazard, essentially debunking assemblage of material on government psi research, by a former Jack Anderson aide. What gives the book its attraction is the number of military or government people willing to be identified as past or present supporters of psi research--either because they believe in it, or because the Russians are said to be doing it (and so we should too). On this basis, we may be spending $6 million to support projects that range from the vaguely reasonable--laboratory studies of dream telepathy conducted by psychologists--to beyond-the-fringe ""hyperspatial nuclear howitzers,"" thought control via telepathic hypnosis, and enlistment of warrior/monk-psychics to counter terrorism. Some of this makes for ripe reading: ""Madame Zodiac"" being paid by Navy brass to see if she could track Russian subs; the Army War College course on miracles. We learn, too, some incidental intelligence: the founder of McDonnell Aircraft was a believer in the occult, and that's why the planes have names like Phantom and Voodoo. We also learn a few Uri Geller tricks: the belt buckle with the built-in vise, the confederate with the magnet in his hat. But McRae skips around so much, in time and place, that there's little continuity or thrust. He also likes to talk about the possibility of Something Real There--but in letting the proponents speak for themselves, enough's said.