Ted Kaczynski
Ted Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, was a former mathematician who engaged in a nationwide bombing campaign in the United States between 1978 and 1995. Kaczynski targeted individuals involved in modern technology, resulting in three deaths and numerous injuries. He eluded law enforcement for years, gaining notoriety for his ability to evade capture.
In the early 1960’s Kaczynski participated in psychological experiments conducted at Harvard University, which involved certain psychoactive substances, as part of the university’s research on the effects of these substances on human behavior. They were led by psychologist Timothy Leary and later by Richard Alpert (later known as Ram Dass). The experiments aimed to investigate the psychological and therapeutic effects of some psychedelic substances. However, Kaczynski became disillusioned with the direction of the experiments and, over time, developed a strong aversion to technological society and its impact on the environment and human freedom. There were also a supposed link between some of the experiments Kaczynski took part in and Project MK-Ultra.
After Harvard, Kaczynski held a tenure at UC Berkeley which he abrubtly resigned in 1969 without providing a clear explanation. Two years after that he moved to Montana, near Lincoln, where his family owned a piece of land, and built a small cabin without running water or electricity. He sent his first bomb in the late 1970’s and wrote his manifesto almost a decade and a half later. He started writing the manifesto early in the 1990’s, which ultimately led to his arrest after being published in The Washington Post in ’95. His writing style was recognized by his brother who notified the FBI.
Kaczynski’s motivations were outlined in the manifesto, titled “Industrial Society and Its Future“, where he expressed deep concerns about the negative consequences of industrialization and technological advancement on human freedom, dignity, and the environment. He argued that modern technological society posed a threat to individual autonomy, leading to what he called the “technological enslavement” of humanity.
