Taija Mars McDougall, author of "King Ketamine," dives into the intriguing world of ketamine use among tech elites like Elon Musk. She discusses how this substance acts as a catalyst for disassociation and reflects the bizarre realities of billionaire culture. McDougall explores the political implications of drug use on social movements, critiques AI's ethical dilemmas, and shares her own experiences with altered states of consciousness. The conversation touches on everything from hallucinations to the intersection of psychoanalysis and American culture.
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Ketamine and Psychosis
Taija Mars McDougall's interest in ketamine stemmed from witnessing a friend's addiction and the resulting psychosis.
This individual's inability to differentiate reality from "slop ideas" like AI intrigued her.
insights INSIGHT
Tech Bro Subjectivity
The tech bro's financial consciousness, often awash in "slop," mirrors the ketamine experience.
Ketamine amplifies this subjectivity, creating a sense of being presented with constant, often low-quality, information.
insights INSIGHT
The Savage Other
Tech bros see themselves as divine, enacting a mission against a "savage" other.
This "savage" is often prototypically Black, but extends to anyone outside their strategy.
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CW: Includes references to drug use and racialized violence discourse.
King Ketamine: https://www.parapraxismagazine.com/articles/king-ketamine
Acid Horizon welcomes back Taija Mars McDougall to discuss her latest essay “King Ketamine,” published in Parapraxis Magazine. Together, we examine how ketamine—favored by Silicon Valley elites like Elon Musk—has become the drug of the techno-fascist sacrament, fueling disassociation and delusions of divine-like Promethean capitalism. Drawing on personal encounters and haunting hallucinations, Taija explores how the drug mirrors and intensifies a chimerical ruling-class subjectivity in which power is sanctified through suffering and algorithmic detachment. The conversation charts a chilling terrain: from the political theology of tech billionaires and the racial substrate of “techno-optimism” to the convergence of AI, surveillance, and “libertarian” psychoanalysis.
Acid Horizon