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Comment by mewpmewp2 | Hacker News Reader

Yes, although, you could just poison and kill anyone as easily already now, so I'm not sure if it's exactly more terrifying or not.

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Possibly more humiliating to see an opponent mind be completely wiped out, possibly living the rest of their lives as a vegetable and to need the care of someone. When one is killed for their ideas they become a martyr of sorts.

It is already much easier to turn someone into a vegetable or to mentally incapacitate people

I think if you want terrifying, look for the "Devil's Breath" or Scopolamine. This has been actively used by robbers and can ruin a life forever.

I had (have) a hard time understanding this comment until I got to the "Use in Crime" section.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scopolamine#Use_in_crime

The estimate of 50k criminal cases involving scopolamine in Columbia makes it sound mainstream.

Nevertheless: > [...] on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines.

I remember seeing a Vice documentary on this drug, but Googling now it seems a lot of doubts about whether this drug has effects like claimed.

Well I don't know. But having tried drugs like Ambien which is a prescribed sleep medicine and it kind of completely removing all filters far, far more than alcohol would when not going to sleep immediately after and then not remembering anything the next day at all I found it plausible for there to exist really scary drugs like that, which would congitively affect you and your personality.

Murder leaves evidence, namely the corpse/vanishing of the victim, which leads to investigations. Usage of a memory-wipe drug could remain totally undiscovered.

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