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US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

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71–80 of 319 posts

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#71
post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The new US policy under Trump is giving up trying to win the world and instead focusing on internal market and dominance over the American continent. Is that why he bombed Iran and single-handedly caused a global energy crisis? A shift of focus to “dominance of the American continent”?

> Is that why he bombed Iran and single-handedly caused a global energy crisis? Yes. Oil price hurts China industrial capacity more than the US economy. Oil companies made a $93 billion profit amid the war [1]. The US is a net oil exporter, while China halved their oil imports [2]. ExxonMobil and Chevron are US-incorporated. TotalEnergies (French) BP (UK), Shell (UK) also have significant US-based ownership (~50%, ~2…

that’s a lot of words about South America in order to paper over what we are all currently feeling at the pump and in the economy at large. Between his incoherent tariff policies and the paltry job numbers we are seeing, I think you’re going to have a hard time convincing me he’s doing things that are good for us domestically. I’m not even touching the heated social issues he’s been pouring gas all over.

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's lots of people working for NATO and federal agencies in Europe that have been assassinated by the luckystrike branch of the FSB. The name comes from the Telegram account with underscores in between, and they're essentially recruiting kids or former inmates for GTA style missions. Starts with simple stuff like package rerouting, then goes on to gathering intel about places, people, putting in USB flash drives…

What gets overlooked here is the US IC itself being a probable cause: the habit of "housecleaning" by killing individuals suspected to be possible (even only prospective) leaks of information is very real. The recent cluster of weird deaths and disappearances of scientists linked to secret military research has a similar pattern to it: a statistically highly unlikely density of "suicides, accidents & mishaps".

The US doesn't even kill foreign leaders. Our intelligence service doesn't have the skills or appetite, let alone citizens. The resulting scandal would make the Church commission look like nothing, not to mention the impact on recruitment.

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Used to work in this field. You're correct: not being able to talk about it is the worst part. This is equally true of successes as well as challenges. I did some cool, very impactful stuff in that job. I will go to jail for a long, long time if I ever go into detail about it.

What can you say, if anything, without going into detail?

Everybody here is all so small minded.

The government has spent centuries doing spycraft and has a budget in the billions.

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#74
This isn't Russian assassins. They kill specific notable people, not functionaries. Nor is this about not being able to talk about work. Working in these fields becomes your life. You talk about it all day. They don't want to talk about it more, certainly not at home.

This is about over-qualification in a narrow field. These are people for whom there is only the one job. Then ... something happens that threatens that existence. Think of a young airline pilot being diagnosed with an eye problem. His flying days are over. His entire experience is meaningless to any other jobs and he must start from scratch: a 40yo with no qualification beyond highschool.

Dig into these people and I think you will find something related to their security clearances. Something bad, or something totally innocent, that threatened their clearance. They are faced with a professional reset, something that will impact them and their family in a negative and permanent way.

From the article: Sergeant Kevin Stallings ... He took his own life the month before he’d have turned 37. ... grew up in a military family ... enlisted in the Air Force right out of a Virginia high school ... earned a degree in intelligence analysis

So he had no qualifications outside of intelligence. He had little to no perception of any life outside his field. So anything threatening that job, real or imagined, would be instantly existential.

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#75

I suspect the Cold War of cyber warfare that is happening is orders of magnitude bigger than the public knows. Imagine knowing this and not being able to get emotional support from your friends and family.

How about that they do bad stuff and feel bad about it? You make it sound like they are taking a bullet or something. Desillusion is probably way worse.

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#76
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Used to work in this field. You're correct: not being able to talk about it is the worst part. This is equally true of successes as well as challenges. I did some cool, very impactful stuff in that job. I will go to jail for a long, long time if I ever go into detail about it.

If you speak to the correct people about illegal activities and unlawful orders you will not.

… you might not.

Have you noticed the current executive administration in the US?

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#77

I suspect the Cold War of cyber warfare that is happening is orders of magnitude bigger than the public knows. Imagine knowing this and not being able to get emotional support from your friends and family.

Used to work in this field. You're correct: not being able to talk about it is the worst part. This is equally true of successes as well as challenges. I did some cool, very impactful stuff in that job. I will go to jail for a long, long time if I ever go into detail about it.

Is there any type of internal support where you're allowed to chat about it?

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#78
post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The new US policy under Trump is giving up trying to win the world and instead focusing on internal market and dominance over the American continent. Is that why he bombed Iran and single-handedly caused a global energy crisis? A shift of focus to “dominance of the American continent”?

> Is that why he bombed Iran and single-handedly caused a global energy crisis? Yes. Oil price hurts China industrial capacity more than the US economy. Oil companies made a $93 billion profit amid the war [1]. The US is a net oil exporter, while China halved their oil imports [2]. ExxonMobil and Chevron are US-incorporated. TotalEnergies (French) BP (UK), Shell (UK) also have significant US-based ownership (~50%, ~2…

> The US is a net oil exporter, while China halved their oil imports [2].

This seems to be the opposite point you want.

Everybody is going to have increased expenses for everything due to their oil dependency _except_ China. Which will raise the price of Chinese exports to the market price but giving China a lot of producer surplus.

Or China can keep doing it's Belt & Road plans and grant other countries money to help with their oil problems in exchange for territory. Or also keep prices lower to continue hollowing out other countries manufacturing capabilities.

--

The leaders of South America claiming to be "Trump aligned" is good for Trump. Trump is not the average american citizen. And boy will those leaders flip the second he's out of the presidency.

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#79
post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Those things you mention are cargo cult games to the true Truth of this. Every experience of the human mind may be curated by those far far fewer (from old lines, uplifts every one of them) who carry this ultimate secret of secrets through time. Many are families, many are incarcerated condemned men serving decades to life. Many are spook remnants of those elder programs you describe. Everything you describe is cargo…

Maybe cliche, but I think a lot of this is just trauma being passed down from one generation to the next. A lot of those people have an easy time imaging an angry puritan god in their head, and taking it out on others (and themselves). Cultural dogma is advertized as a unifying force, but is often implemented with unsavory methods. I think a lot of people would be fine with dropping much of the rhetoric, if only the…

I was press ganged into a hooligan army. American thought control is a raping murdering suiciding extortionist.

We are not alone in our own minds. There is a secret war among us.

Enjoy your not knowing, do not be a denier.

Re: US Military's cyber command unit grapples with cluster of deaths by suicide

#80
post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What gets overlooked here is the US IC itself being a probable cause: the habit of "housecleaning" by killing individuals suspected to be possible (even only prospective) leaks of information is very real. The recent cluster of weird deaths and disappearances of scientists linked to secret military research has a similar pattern to it: a statistically highly unlikely density of "suicides, accidents & mishaps".

The US doesn't even kill foreign leaders. Our intelligence service doesn't have the skills or appetite, let alone citizens. The resulting scandal would make the Church commission look like nothing, not to mention the impact on recruitment.

Yes, they only kill random fishermen in the Caribbean, foreign leaders get kidnapped and tried in kangaroo courts. Except Iranian leaders, those do get killed. But that's just the last 6 months.
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