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I can't believe this meme won't die -- it's so incredibly disrespectful to his family. Honestly no better than the Sandy Hook Truther bullshit. Michael Hasting

I can't believe this meme won't die -- it's so incredibly disrespectful to his family. Honestly no better than the Sandy Hook Truther bullshit. Michael Hastings was a recovering alcoholic and meth-abuser whose brother, Jonathan, had flown into town the day before because he suspected that Michael was having a manic breakdown similar to the ones he had in the past. Jonathan had been called to LA since several of Michael's coworkers had reached out about his mental state. After spending the day with Michael, Jonathan called their third brother to come help get Michael back into rehab. That brother arranged to fly out the next day but that night, at 4:30am, Michael snuck out of his apartment and crashed his car into a tree at very high speed. Here's what Jonathan Hastings thinks about his brother's death: I really rule out foul play entirely. I might have been suspicious if I hadn’t been with him the day before he died. After all, he definitely was investigating and writing about a lot of sensitive subjects. But based on being with him and talking to people who were worried about him in the weeks leading up to his death, and being around him when he had had similar problems when he was younger, I was pretty much convinced that he wasn’t in danger from any outside agency. https://www.salon.com/2013/11/05/michael_hastings_life_and_death_a_brothers_reflections/ https://www.salon.com/2013/11/05/michael_hastings_life_and_d...

djsumdog 10y ago
That doesn't explain the photos of the car's aftermath. I mean, it's just as likely people pressured his family to say this (either organized crime or the government .. really the same thing). It's not dying because it's highly suspicious and the narrative doesn't fit, the news reports are conflicting and much of the evidence is gone.
- mikeyouse 10y ago
  > That doesn't explain the photos of the car's aftermath. Do you realize how ridiculous this sounds? I take it you're an experienced crash-scene investigator? How exactly would an accident scene differ if the accident were caused by a CIA-backed exploit vs. your standard high speed crash? > I mean, it's just as likely people pressured his family to say this (either organized crime or the government .. really the same thing). No, it's really not just as likely. In fact it's not likely at all.
  - stefantalpalaru 10y ago
    > Do you realize how ridiculous this sounds? As ridiculous as shutting down discussions about the unusual circumstances of his death with "it's so incredibly disrespectful to his family"?
  - samstave 10y ago
    OK, so he was a meth user, as are you, he was an alcoholic, as are you, tell me I am wrong. When did you stop beating your wife on meth while drunk? When did you stop being a peadophile? Jesus dude - he was murdered attempting to reveal truth... youre attempting to obfuscate it. Prove me wrong.
    - mikeyouse 10y ago
      > Jesus dude - he was murdered attempting to reveal truth... youre attempting to obfuscate it His brother John said he wasn't murdered, his other brother also said he wasn't murdered. They would know because they had both flown to Los Angeles to convince him to go to rehab and were there when he died. They would also know because Michael had already crashed a car into a tree while drunk earlier and had become addicted to Ritalin in the past -- which necessitated a stint in inpatient rehab. His coworkers don't think he was murdered -- they recognized that he was having a manic episode, which is why they called his brothers to come get him help. His wife doesn't think he was murdered because she knew that he had starting using drugs again. So literally nobody that personally knew him thinks he was murdered. He had weed and meth in his system when he died, he told his brother that he had been taking DMT, he had a history of manic-depressive episodes and PTSD. It's possible that he was a brilliant journalist that uncovered serious crimes from connected people and that he was mentally unwell. You should really reconsider your insistence on some grand conspiracy theory. There are times to be skeptical but these lunatics who ignore all evidence to the contrary and call up his family to share their insane speculation are extremely disrespectful.
      - samstave 10y ago
        Thank you for information I did not have. I appreciate it... So I retract my assumptions based on info you have provided
samstave 10y ago
Personally, fuck you. WHO CARES if he was an alcoholic, wouldnt you be in a situation decribed. MAYBE he was touted as such.. do you have proof... These are HEAVY fucking claims against the system - so back your shit up... dont make claims against him.

djsumdog 10y ago

That doesn't explain the photos of the car's aftermath. I mean, it's just as likely people pressured his family to say this (either organized crime or the government .. really the same thing). It's not dying because it's highly suspicious and the narrative doesn't fit, the news reports are conflicting and much of the evidence is gone.

mikeyouse 10y ago
> That doesn't explain the photos of the car's aftermath. Do you realize how ridiculous this sounds? I take it you're an experienced crash-scene investigator? How exactly would an accident scene differ if the accident were caused by a CIA-backed exploit vs. your standard high speed crash? > I mean, it's just as likely people pressured his family to say this (either organized crime or the government .. really the same thing). No, it's really not just as likely. In fact it's not likely at all.
- stefantalpalaru 10y ago
  > Do you realize how ridiculous this sounds? As ridiculous as shutting down discussions about the unusual circumstances of his death with "it's so incredibly disrespectful to his family"?
- samstave 10y ago
  OK, so he was a meth user, as are you, he was an alcoholic, as are you, tell me I am wrong. When did you stop beating your wife on meth while drunk? When did you stop being a peadophile? Jesus dude - he was murdered attempting to reveal truth... youre attempting to obfuscate it. Prove me wrong.
  - mikeyouse 10y ago
    > Jesus dude - he was murdered attempting to reveal truth... youre attempting to obfuscate it His brother John said he wasn't murdered, his other brother also said he wasn't murdered. They would know because they had both flown to Los Angeles to convince him to go to rehab and were there when he died. They would also know because Michael had already crashed a car into a tree while drunk earlier and had become addicted to Ritalin in the past -- which necessitated a stint in inpatient rehab. His coworkers don't think he was murdered -- they recognized that he was having a manic episode, which is why they called his brothers to come get him help. His wife doesn't think he was murdered because she knew that he had starting using drugs again. So literally nobody that personally knew him thinks he was murdered. He had weed and meth in his system when he died, he told his brother that he had been taking DMT, he had a history of manic-depressive episodes and PTSD. It's possible that he was a brilliant journalist that uncovered serious crimes from connected people and that he was mentally unwell. You should really reconsider your insistence on some grand conspiracy theory. There are times to be skeptical but these lunatics who ignore all evidence to the contrary and call up his family to share their insane speculation are extremely disrespectful.
    - samstave 10y ago
      Thank you for information I did not have. I appreciate it... So I retract my assumptions based on info you have provided

samstave 10y ago

Personally, fuck you. WHO CARES if he was an alcoholic, wouldnt you be in a situation decribed. MAYBE he was touted as such.. do you have proof... These are HEAVY fucking claims against the system - so back your shit up... dont make claims against him.