When most people think of the Air Force, they usually imagine aircraft like fighter jets and bombers. A report obtained in 2005 under the Freedom of Information Act by the Sunshine Project, however, paints a much different picture of the fighting force meant to protect and defend America’s skies. The secret document, written in 1994, reveals that Air Force scientists flirted with the idea of creating an aphrodisiac chemical weapon that could turn its victims into full-fledged homosexuals.

Drafted at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, “Harassing, Annoying, and ‘Bad Guy’ Identifying Chemicals” proposed a six-year program for developing non-lethal chemical weapons that could reduce enemy discipline and morale. Among the weapons suggested included an aphrodisiac that could be sprayed onto enemy combatants to make them permanently attracted to the same sex. Thankfully, the program was immediately dismissed upon review by higher authorities, or was it?

When asked about the weapons program in 2005, Lieutenant Colonel Barry Venable at the Pentagon had this to say: “it was a proposal that essentially came out of a brainstorming session as the best analogy. The proposal was dismissed out of hand.” However, further uncovering by the Sunshine Project shows that as late as 2000, the military’s Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate (JNLWD) sent out promotional materials to various segments of the military encouraging the development of “Harassing, Annoying, and ”Bad Guy” Identifying Chemicals.” End of story for the “gay weapon?” I don”t think so.

The weapons project itself is very reminiscent of the Cold War, when the government toyed with all sorts of ridiculous weaponry in hopes of competing with the Soviets. It also sounds much like World War II, when Nazi Germany toyed with a wide range of biological weapons also meant to alter human behavior. It is hard to imagine that in the twenty-first century, a country that considers liberty and freedom to be core values even thought of developing such a weapon.

Not only are openly gay individuals barred from joining the Air Force, but the thought that our military would put homosexuality in the same category as smallpox or anthrax and try to bottle it up is an insult to every gay American.

The Sunshine Project is a nongovernmental organization founded to prevent biological warfare and military abuse of biotechnology. The official “Harassing, Annoying, and ”Bad Guy” Identifying Chemicals” document may be download on their site here. ISN Security Watch has a good overview of the Sunshine Project’’s work in unraveling the secrets of the plan.