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CIA Sent Him Deep Undercover to Spy on Islamic Radicals. It Cost Him Everything
- id00 2y agohttps://archive.is/rZufj https://archive.is/rZufj
- sulandor 2y agonot paywalled on my end
- duxup 2y agoI suspect that anyone headed into a deep cover situation ... you're rolling the dice in almost every way. There's no magic prep that makes any given individual immune to coming out of it far worse, or to avoid tragic results. Complicating things further people who have access / opportunity to join a group like Al Qaeda, maybe already are at a disadvantage personally / psychologically as far as outcomes go.
- jimt1234 2y agoA high school friend of mine in Modesto became a cop and ended up doing undercover work - small-time stuff, mostly dealing with biker gangs and meth dealers. Years later we met up and he told me the undercover work he did reminded him of the movie, "Donnie Brasco", because the movie showed how it becomes extremely difficult to separate your "undercover life" from your regular home life. For years after he retired, he had nightmares about bumping into someone he busted. He left Modesto, but still gets nervous whenever he hears a Harley cruising by him out on the road.
- duxup 2y agoI suspect there's an overlap where if you're playing the part for enough hours of a day that it stops mattering psychologically that you're "playing the part".
- polotics 2y agoyou do realise that you may be identifiable on HN by third parties, depending on what you publish?
- 542354234235 2y ago“We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.” ― Kurt Vonnegut
- dylan604 2y ago"Nor have questions ceased about how the CIA ministers to — or disregards — the acute psychic strains sometimes faced by intelligence officers like him, or more broadly, about how it oversees the larger deep-cover corps of which he was a part." Are we really concerned about the psychic abilities of our spies, or is this gross editing that should be psychological strains? Has MK-Ultra percolated throughout the spy agencies to the points spies are psychic now? I want more details on that please
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- kylec 2y agoThe word has been used correctly, "psychic" doesn't just exclusively refer to paranormal mindreading stuff: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/psychic https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/psychic
- michaelt 2y ago> And his transformation was impressive. He “looked like something out of Hollywood central casting,” recalls a former senior agency official: an Arabic-speaking Salafist with a “killer beard,” decked out in traditional garb, an all-American Midwestern white boy turned jihadist. I've got to say, it's kinda surprising they'd send a white guy. I know there are some white jihadists - but compared to sending someone less obvious it kinda seems like just as much danger, but much less chance of success?
- Hikikomori 2y agohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzO78K4l4kI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzO78K4l4kI
- piombisallow 2y agoWhy do journalists like writing these endless articles about mental health?
- wry_discontent 2y agoWoe to the spooks; they should be treated better
- pphysch 2y agoThis particular article was likely co-produced by the CIA itself as a sort of puff piece. "Look how awesome and brave our James Bond supersoldiers are. But also they struggle too!!!" Random journos don't get this kind of access to multiple Agency personnel unless it's part of a PR campaign approved by higher ups.
- wry_discontent 2y agoThis is absolutely a work of propaganda the CIA worked on.
- rospaya 2y agoHave you read the article? The CIA doesn't look good and if I got any point across it is that I wouldn't like to be in the situation.
- pphysch 2y agoThe broader story here, which the article totally omits, is that the CIA is responsible for fueling and arming extremist groups such as ISIS as a means to take down "enemy regimes" in the region like Syria and Iran, in the wake of the largely failed military occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq. The subject of this article was probably involved in such nasty clandestine work, which could partly explain why he was so nihilistic/unhappy.
- stackghost 2y agoThe human toll of the war on terror, on the domestic side, is a topic that remains under-explored. Western society, and the US in particular, would benefit from greater introspection into the true costs of its policies.
- wry_discontent 2y agoImagine feeling bad for the CIA in this day and age. They deserve what they get.
- no_exit 2y agoI'm surprised they didn't manage to shoehorn in a Havana Syndrome plug.
- P_I_Staker 2y agoI lament every day that my skills as a spy aren't put to the test. Whe nyou imagine spying, you think of james bond gunchases in your car. I definitely have proven my skills in the area, but this is NOT where a genius places his mind. He places it into his langages and perfectioning the disguise. A spy has many outfits. A spy doesn't shop at the gap. Ultimately an ingagement like this would cost me nothing. To the government it would be everything. Spying aint cheep. $1k and hour, plus the expenses. Desent spy gear, oh I must. Part of the problems is the alphebet agents switched the low budget, "bargin bin" spys. The last jumook I spoken too barely understand the words of english let alone parsiki. He'll never get inside a local. I get welcome the home. Warm bread and pastry from scratch.