Monarch Programming: Are We All Easy Targets?

So, I recently came across Katy Perry's new video, for the song "Wide Awake", which I though to be about her recent divorce to comedian Russel Brand. However, when doing some research about a deeper meaning to this beautiful video, I was shocked to find an article about Monarch Programming, or Project MK Ultra. It seems like there's more to Katy's video that meets the eye.

Monarch Programming was developed by the CIA in the 50's and it was a way to train spies for the Cold War. Long story short, these victims were abducted, taken to a special CIA facility and tortured, sexually abused, deprived of water and food for long periods of time. When they couldn't bear any more pain, these victims' brains chose to ignore it, by seeking comfort in a fantasy land inside their own minds, and this was the only way they could survive so much abuse. As the victims became more and more fragile, they would also become obedient to their handlers, which made it possible to create slaves using this technique. There's a variety of slaves that can be created through this process: sex kittens, killing machines, suicide bombers, etc.

So, what does this tale of espionage have to do with Katy Perry? Her video is completely filled with this kind of imagery! The Monarch Programming is not connected to monarchy, but to the Monarch butterflies, which are seen a lot on Katy's video. Also, the beginning of the video shows Katy's sexy self finishing recording "California Gurls", after which she gets back in her dressing room, removes her wig (very symbolic gesture) and gazes at herself in the mirror. Then, a whole new world appears in front of us and Katy is now wearing dark clothes and lost inside of a maze. She calls out for help and it comes in the form of a little girl, who represents Katy as a pure innocent child, long before the fame struck her. This girl guides Katy through the maze and they enter a room with two-colored floor (very symbolic also, it represents the split personality that Monarch Programming victims are forced to create) and mirrors everywhere. The fact that little Katherine's image isn't reflected in the mirror emphasizes the fact that she's not real. On the other side of the mirror, there's a nasty paparazzi taking pictures, and Katy seems to be hypnotized by this image, as the floor behind her collapses. Katherine notices this, but Katy seems not to. Finally breaking the glass, we see Monarch butterflies flying off Katy's dress. Then the imagery changes and we're no longer in a colorful fantasy land, but in what seems to be a mental institution, where Katy is in a wheelchair in front of a door guarded by two men with bull heads. These men could represent her handlers, as they're guarding the door to a nicer part of her fantasy land. Being in a maze, it's likely they're references to the Minotaur, a character of Greek mythology who was a monster trapped inside of a maze. The bull represents masculinity and aggression, which could mean Katy is being handled to become a beta slave, or a sex kitten, someone who is forced to have sex. It wouldn't make much sense to say that Katy is being forced to have sex but, looking at her videos, she does appear to be selling sex: the tight little outfits, the way she moves, even a lot of her lyrics (the famous ones, at least) revolve around sex, directly or not. This suggests that Katy is selling sex in order to sell her music.

Little Katherine defeats the bulls, causing Katy to wake up from her state of trance (which is also a screaming symbol of Monarch Programming) and they open the door to a beautiful garden filled with colorful flowers. Here, they see a gorgeous prince on a unicorn. Katy then punches the prince, which has a not so deep meaning: she's refusing to let herself be controlled by a man, any man, and believe in the fairy tale.

This video seems to be symbolic of Katy breaking free from a state of mind control, with the help from her purer self, Katherine Elizabeth Hudson, the person she was before the fame and fortune. However, in the end, Katy is again wearing her revealing outfits and performing the song "Teenage Dream", a song about love. Could this mean Katy never really broke free from the mind control inflicted on her?

Like this music video, many other have used imagery related to Monarch Programming, including Paramore's "Brick By Boring Brick" and many videos by Lady Gaga, Britney Spears or Beyoncé. The question remains: are they doing it because it's apparently cool, or is there really a deeper meaning to this collection of imagery? What about us, the viewers, the consumers of their music? Should we take this seriously?

Roaming through some forums, I found that most teenagers (the general public to whom these artist are directed to) have no idea what is truly going on. They make comments about Katy's gorgeous purple hair, how Hayley looks so pretty in blonde, how much they love Lady Gaga's weirdness. But no one seems to be aware of the Monarch Programming concept.

Some people believe that Disney movies are meant to encourage little girls into becoming some sort of Monarch slaves themselves: to bear physical and mental abuse from their husbands or boyfriends, like in The Beauty and the Beast; to patiently wait on a man who will set them free, like in Aladdin, as they would never be able to see the world by themselves, like they need a man to do anything.

Do you think conspiracy theorists are overreacting, or is this really something we should all watch out for? Personally, I think that, although this might be a little exaggerated, it is possible that there are people out there wicked enough to give this a shot. After all, there are people who drop bombs on random villages killing thousands of innocent people, there are people who abduct children and force them to fight in the war... Why wouldn't there be Monarch Programmers?