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   In 1922, Reich and Freud soon parted, due to differences in individual theory and practice. Freud originally suspected that libido was a chemical composition but later tied it to the unconscious and instinct. Reich felt it was energy based. He theorized that libido was linked to orgasm. Reich soon began to develop Freud's original libido theory. He attempted to isolate libido (which is the driving force of the psychological process, or lust; sex drive; etc.) as a measurable physical energy. He discovered libido to be the most important piece of sexual-economics, and called this "new-found" energy "orgone."

   Reich continued to publish his work. He soon wrote "Discovery of the Orgone Volume 1: Function of the orgasm (1927)" and "The Impulsive Character And Other Writings (1931)." Both of these contained some early Freudian discoveries, however, Reich extended them into the biophysical sphere. Through his studies, he developed Reichian (or Vegetative) Therapy, from which we have taken gestalt therapy, bioenergetics, Rolfing therapy, and primal scream therapy. Some of the earlier published books included: and "Early Writings (includes essays/articles from 1920-1925) and "Sex-pol Essays (1929-1934)."

   Reich married Annie in March 17, 1922. He had two children by his first wife Annie: Eva (April 27, 1924) and Lore (March 13, 1928). Both girls were born in Austria. Reich's brother Robert died of tuberculosis in a sanitarium in April 1926. Reich separated from Annie in April 1933 and was divorced in late 1934. He other relationship of which Elsa Lindenberg was of a strong significance. Else became pregnant in 1935 but had an abortion in the same year. Later after arriving in America, Reich lived with Ilse Ollendorf. They had a child Peter (April 4, 1944) but they didn't get married until April 17, 1945. Reich became an officially an American citizen on May 28, 1946.

   Reich worked for a while in "practical sociology", producing "The Mass Psychology of Fascism (1933)", "People in Trouble (first published in 1953 but covered writings from 1927-1937),"The Invasion of Compulsory Sex-Morality (1932)," and "The Sexual Revolution (1935)". He was starting to become involved in politics. Reich rejected a government run by an authoritarian, or one all-powerful leader. He insisted that the individual structure of the citizens is what led to the rise of German Nazism. That is if everyone is forced to follow one leader, no matter what they say, they are not allowed the chance to form their own understanding and morality. Because the authoritarian goes one way, that's the way the people go. However, that may not always be the right way. Under Communism, Reich felt the people could be easily misled and their understanding of right and wrong easily fogged.

   "It creates in the average person a political helplessness and a lack of independence, the desire and the need to be led; it does this by means of authoritarian education and sexual suppression." (Wilhelm Reich, M.D., from "Character and Society, Journal of Orgonomy, V. 8, #2"). Reich concluded that a free and rational social order could not come through politics. This is because the unfree people are the real obstacles: how do you get to all their values, attitudes, taboos, etc. when they are so unfree and conformed? Further, Reich concluded that the nature of people would turn them back to the same old repressive order, regardless of the social and economic changes they may succeed in making.

   In 1934, Reich left his home and family in Vienna, and moved to Scandinavia, where he stayed for a while before moving to Norway and then later to the United States. At this time, Austria was undergoing a Nazi coup, and the main reason Reich left was due to the fact that he had been placed on both Hitler and Stalin's death lists. Many of his writings were burned in Russia and Germany.

   In Norway, Reich had tested the air-germ theory of illness. He cultured samples from the environment (air, vacuum cleaner dust, dirt on hands, etc.) and studied them in a controlled environment. He found no living or mobile organisms/ particles in the air. There were no protozoa, germs, viruses, bacteria or anything. Reich had also speculated that there was a connection between emotional well being (orgastic potency) and physical problems. Both of these two items had a part or interrelation with Reich's next, very important discovery.

   Orgone energy is primordial life energy that effects physical, biological, and psychological systems. It is a fundamental, creative life force that is known well by those in touch with nature. Orgone is referred to as "universal ether" by natural scientists, and is also used by acupuncturists. Wilhelm Reich first objectified, discovered, and demonstrated Orgone Energy in the 1930s. While doing research in microscopy, he microscopically observed dead, disintegrating "material" (moss and blades of grass), and discovered that the material created blue vesicles of energy, which he called "bions". Reich observed the bions organizing themselves to become organisms such as paramecia, protozoa, and amoebae. Reich identified many basic properties of orgone energy: it fills all space, is everywhere, has no mass, is primordial, cosmic energy, penetrates matter at different speeds, pulsates, is attracted by water, is accumulated naturally in organisms by food, water, breathing, and through the skin, and is "negatively entropic." Reich also found that the attraction and combining of orgonotic systems result in new systems. It seems that highly-charged systems attract lesser-charged systems. Reich called this "orgonotic potential." Orgone energy can be excited by other energies, such as electromagnetism, nuclear fission and electrical sparking.

   Shortly after the discovery of orgone, Reich discovered a method of accumulation. He was studying a special bion preparation made from pulverized beach sand heated into incandescence and immersed in a broth of sterile nutrients. Reich had stumbled upon powerful radiant energy phenomena. He developed conjunctivitis and a dark tan through his clothing from prolonged observation. He also noticed that his lab coat and laboratory walls glowed blue in the dark. The bions were radiating an intense bioenergy. This was the discovery of orgone radiation, and a method of accumulation. The results of this experiment, among many others, are contained in the following books written by Reich: "The Cancer Biopathy," The Bion Experiments (1938)," "Annals of the Orgone Institute (1947)," "International Journal of Sex-Economy and Orgone Research (1942-1945)," "Orgone Energy Bulletin (1949-1952," "CORE (Cosmic Orgone Engineering)," and "Ether God and Devil/Cosmic Superimposition (1951)." During this period he re-wrote or re-published many of the previous books that were in German into English editions. He also wrote a few new books: "The Murder of Christ (1951)," "Listen Little Man (1948)," and "CONTACT WITH SPACE, Oranur Second Report (1951-1956 (1957)."

    So what was really happening in the laboratory? The bions were radiating intense forms of bioenergy. The radiation sent a magnetic charge to any iron or steel that was nearby, and a static charge to insulators, like rubber gloves. Reich noticed that the energy was quickly attracted to metals and quickly repelled back into the air. Organic materials absorbed the radiation and held onto it. Thus the orgone accumulator was developed. It was made of alternating layers of organic and inorganic materials. This way, the orgone energy would be quickly drawn in and "reflected" into a material that would hold it in, some being displaced into the air and accumulated into the patient. When a person with their own energy field comes in contact with an accumulator, the two energies excite each other, creating stronger excitation. Lumination becomes present. Lumination is a strong orgonotic charge that is beneficial to all living systems. Orgone is not foreign to the body, but is naturally part of it. The accumulator basically helps the body help itself.

   There are some cautions regarding accumulating devices. Energy in the atmosphere affects accumulation. They should not be used near televisions, fluorescent lights, computers, x-ray machines, electric blankets, microwaves, strong chemical fumes, or within 25 miles of a nuclear power plant. People with heart disease, high blood pressure, brain tumors, arteriosclerosis, skin inflammations, conjunctivitis, or who are subject to apoplectic attacks should limit the amount of time they spend in an accumulator.

   Cloudbusting was designed by Reich to break droughts and bring water to deserts. The simplest cloudbusters consist of a system of hollow, parallel tubes (18' long) extending up from a clean running water source. The tubes are aimed at different areas of the sky. Cloudbusters trigger movements of the atmosphere through the energy already present in the atmosphere. No chemicals or electromagnetic energy are needed nor should they be used. Weather engineering is actually an offshoot of orgonomy. Three forms of orgone energy are present in the universe and in the atmosphere: regular orgone, DOR (deadly orgone) and ORANUR (orgone excited by radioactive energy). All these forms have specific effects on different systems. Good orgone energy is accumulated by water. However, less dense orgone is accumulated by aridity (dry climate). A cloud is like a pocket of dense orgone. The blue sky around it has less energy. Reich's theory is that in order for the cloud to burst or dissipate, the orgone energy contained therein must be drawn out. Reich got the idea of cloudbusting while observing some pipes that were pointed toward a lake. He noticed that they influenced the shape of the waves on the water. He tested out this theory when the DOR emergency occurred. Lab workers in Rangeley were all victims of DOR sickness (deadly orgone sickness) caused by a reaction of orgone to nuclear radiation. Not only were the people affected, but also the sky outside was filled with dark, drought-like clouds. Reich invented this contraption to solve the problem. He used 12 copper pipes (15-2"diameter pipes; 10' long or telescopic). The bottom ends connected in parallel to electrical cables. The cables were dropped into the well, and the DOR was transferred from the atmosphere to the water. The cloudbuster also proved successful in another way -- it could be used to produce or prevent rain!

   Reich offered his services many times to alter weather forecasts for events, which they were not suitable for rainy weather. He could prevent rainstorms for the Fourth of July Parade or bring rain during a drought, so he said. But few believed this. Reich developed a monumental principle: "Orgone flows from low potential to high." To draw orgone from cloud to the pipes, the orgone potential of the pipes had to be higher than that of the cloud. That's why the pipes were grounded in running water. The cloudbuster sort of "slowly changes" the cloud to its desired state. The rate of draw from the cloud depends on the speed or freshness of the water flowing in the pipes, the number of pipes being used, and, of course, the skill of operation. The length-to diameter ratio of the pipe determines the effectiveness of the cloudbuster. The larger the ratio, the longer the range. Fast running water or a large body of water connected to the pipes being the key to successful cloudbusting, we are clued in on the mechanism that makes it function. Orgone is mostly ionic-like phenomena. Ionic interactions inside the cloud, at a molecular level, explain how cloudbusting is possible. Orgone and static electricity have some similar characteristics but are not the same. The two could be the same with one exception: orgone cannot be fully explained by the physics of ionization. There is still much to be learned.

   Though Reich's studies seem pretty logical to me (from what I understand), not everyone could (or can) see it. The FDA filed a complaint for injunction in February of 1954 to stop Reich's work with orgone energy and the medical use of orgone energy to treat injuries, physical disease, and other health conditions. This attempted to forbid the transport of orgone accumulators across the state lines. Reich had performed treatments using orgone therapy, accumulators, orgone shooters, medical dorbuster, and orgone blankets. Reich didn't show up in court, but wrote a letter to the judge at the federal court in Portland, Maine. Since Reich didn't appear in court to contest the complaint, the injunction became a formal decree by default. An associate Doctor who overlooked the Laboratory in Rangeley while Reich was away on an expedition in Arizona, moved some orgone accumulators across state lines. This was forbidden by the Injunction. Due to this the Associate Doctor, Wilhelm Reich, and the Reich Foundation were formally charged for criminal contempt of court. At his trial, Reich's former attorney prosecuted him. The trial lasted from 1954 to 1956. In 1956, Reich was sentenced to two years in jail for "criminal contempt of court" and fines were levied on him and the Wilhelm Reich Foundation. Reich died in jail in 1957, only a few months before a possible release on parole if he agreed never to work on or write about Orgonomy again. Reich's works/books were burned on at least two different occasions in New York City and his journals and written work while in jail were never released from the state to the family.

Though Reich died before completing his studies, there are a few people today who follow Reich and are very much involved in his work. Someday in the near future, I think people will come to accept Wilhelm Reich as great scientist that should be remembered.


BIBLIOGRAPHY

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Hall, Calvin S., "A Primer of Freudian Psychology", Mentor Books, New York: 1954.

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