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> The fact that both Aaron Swartz and James Dolan committed suicide does, indeed, smell. In the past, our government has shown itself capable of [grabbing peopl

> The fact that both Aaron Swartz and James Dolan committed suicide does, indeed, smell. In the past, our government has shown itself capable of [grabbing people off the street for mind control experiments](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_MKUltra https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_MKUltra). Or maybe it's that there's a high incidence of mental illness among particularly intelligent humans, and even more particularly cryptography/privacy engineers? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Turing https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Turing https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Len_Sassaman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Len_Sassaman The problem isn't some secret nefarious government mind control program. The problem is that we, as a society, are still very bad at caring for our most vulnerable people. More importantly, the timing here is suspect: Many HN users are just now finding out about his death, and need time to mourn. Bringing up conspiracy theories-- even if they were true-- is poor form.

dbingham 9y ago
The timing is suspect? When we're suspicious a friend or relative was murdered, do not most people bring it up right away with the police? Are murder investigations not routinely started before the body is even moved? Mourning is important, and I'm sorry if you and others knew James personally. I did not. But I maintain suspicion here is warranted, and personally, I think we do James and Aaron and any other front line activists in the current battle for our civil liberties a great disservice if we do not heed our suspicions in the events of their deaths. As to the issues with mental health, yes, that is, indeed, a real issue and another possible explanation. [As an aside, your choice of Alan Turing as an example of mental health issues is an extremely poor one. Turing was driven to suicide after being hounded by the government for decades -- and even forcibly sterilized against his will -- for his sexuality. In his case it wasn't conspiracy so much as open persecution. Although, he was deeply involved in a what was highly classified work at the time and it's possible there are events in his life that have yet to be declassified.] Right now, we do not have much evidence to work from either way. So mental illness and conspiracy are equally possibilities. A combination of the two is also a possibility. So it makes sense to keep an open mind and remain suspicious. If you need time to mourn, then take it. But do not denigrate those who would honor those fighting for all of us by making sure that there isn't more to the story.
- tptacek 9y ago
  You aren't honoring them. You're using them to create an exciting narrative to break up the monotony of your day. The fact that you don't have enough information to distinguish between possibilities doesn't mean the family doesn't. You aren't entitled to that information and may never get it.
- CiPHPerCoder 9y ago
  > If you need time to mourn, then take it. But do not denigrate those who would honor those fighting for all of us by making sure that there isn't more to the story. I would think people who care so much about online privacy would be capable of shutting their mouths for a short bit of time to give the friends and family of the deceased a chance to mourn. But what do I know?

dbingham 9y ago

The timing is suspect? When we're suspicious a friend or relative was murdered, do not most people bring it up right away with the police? Are murder investigations not routinely started before the body is even moved? Mourning is important, and I'm sorry if you and others knew James personally. I did not. But I maintain suspicion here is warranted, and personally, I think we do James and Aaron and any other front line activists in the current battle for our civil liberties a great disservice if we do not heed our suspicions in the events of their deaths. As to the issues with mental health, yes, that is, indeed, a real issue and another possible explanation. [As an aside, your choice of Alan Turing as an example of mental health issues is an extremely poor one. Turing was driven to suicide after being hounded by the government for decades -- and even forcibly sterilized against his will -- for his sexuality. In his case it wasn't conspiracy so much as open persecution. Although, he was deeply involved in a what was highly classified work at the time and it's possible there are events in his life that have yet to be declassified.] Right now, we do not have much evidence to work from either way. So mental illness and conspiracy are equally possibilities. A combination of the two is also a possibility. So it makes sense to keep an open mind and remain suspicious. If you need time to mourn, then take it. But do not denigrate those who would honor those fighting for all of us by making sure that there isn't more to the story.

tptacek 9y ago
You aren't honoring them. You're using them to create an exciting narrative to break up the monotony of your day. The fact that you don't have enough information to distinguish between possibilities doesn't mean the family doesn't. You aren't entitled to that information and may never get it.
CiPHPerCoder 9y ago
> If you need time to mourn, then take it. But do not denigrate those who would honor those fighting for all of us by making sure that there isn't more to the story. I would think people who care so much about online privacy would be capable of shutting their mouths for a short bit of time to give the friends and family of the deceased a chance to mourn. But what do I know?