Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby 8bitagent » Tue Jun 25, 2013 7:39 pm

I know there's info out that maybe Hastings was not following up on the Patreus sex scandal, though one truly has to wonder just WHAT was he working on? I just watched Michael Clayton last night, and with an almost unspoken wink and a nod powerful people who feel their way of doing business is threatened will sign off on any measure. Yeah I know it's a "movie" but probably a composite of real events from the past. Hell yesterday in the news it was revealed that for TEN YEARS the FBI was regularly meeting with a mafia capo who they knew was also killing people in between meetings with agents. These people have no scruples in working with black channels.
Chris Kyle bragged of killing over 200 Iraqi men(most of whom probably had children or were children themselves), going on to form Craft Intl before himself being killed at a gun range. If it's possible for even a black ops guy to get whacked(assuming there is more to that story), a "pansy waist whistleblower"...they wouldnt hesitate.

LAPD says there's no sign of a bomb or cut brakes, so no sign of "foul play". But that doesnt answer HOW he ended up crashing into the palm tree at insane miles. We can rule out suicide. And if what alchemy is saying from the book is true, then perhaps we can rule out substance relapse. So then we're left with either a mental snap, a momentary will to go crazy fast for the thrill of it(doubtful) or foul play.
Some speculate he was running from a pursuing car but I doubt that's the case as well.

However, while perhaps there is no evidence of a bomb, a forced crash by automatic acceleration with no brakes doesnt necessarily guarantee that he would die in said crash. For instance one of the peopl ein the Princess Diana car survived, albeit messed up and his mind erased of the event from the impact.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby justdrew » Tue Jun 25, 2013 7:49 pm

Forgetting2 » 25 Jun 2013 16:00 wrote:The car in the dash video appears to be going 77 mph, approximately, when it goes thru the red light half a mile north of Highland and Melrose. I'm pretty sure that's the intersection of Highland and Santa Monica Blvd he's going thru. (I got the speed from the car traveling 3 times it's own length (a Mercedes C250 it was reported) in 12 video frames running at 29.97 frames per second, assuming of course the video isn't altered or otherwise transferred improperly.)

Regarding Barracuda's insistence that it's just as likely he's on a joy ride of some sort, thats about as much fun as russian roulette. I know it happens. I just don't see any character reference anywhere to think Hastings was that guy.

In reference to a comment I made earlier about having the cooperation of the LAPD, in light of Richard Clark's statement and the other information regarding the ability to hack a modern car, one wouldn't necessarily need the help or even knowledge of the LAPD, it seems. So the idea that a small group made up of people tied to McChrystal or Petraeus (or whoever) are responsible, seems possible.


thanks for doing the calculation, after verifying the scene, I just didn't want to look at it any more.

I've been saying all along the most probable suspect is an ex-staffer for The General. The senior staff of a general are very much tied to his career. If we could get a list of their names, and by the way, I assure you he had at least one, probably several, IT/communications experts on his staff, and see how their military career has gone since The General was fired.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby Hunter » Tue Jun 25, 2013 8:09 pm

8bit hard to say what he was working on but he makes it very clear in his email that he was working on something very big, he was concerned about the FBI inquiring about his information gathering methods and he felt he needed to get off the radar a bit so that tells me he was definitely on a big story, a story that had sources he didnt want anyone to find and a story which would require him disappearing for a while, perhaps to contact and work with said sources.

That is what I got out of the email and that is enough for me to assume it had to have been a story that maybe got someones attention. He was also working on the Barret Brown case and that may or may not be connected, I feel horrible for Brown imagine how he felt when he heard Hastings was dead and he has no ability to speak out now. Someone should write Brown a letter, if you want to maybe get a feel for what happened here I bet Brown has some ideas.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby stillrobertpaulsen » Tue Jun 25, 2013 8:17 pm

Forgetting2 » Tue Jun 25, 2013 6:00 pm wrote:The car in the dash video appears to be going 77 mph, approximately, when it goes thru the red light half a mile north of Highland and Melrose. I'm pretty sure that's the intersection of Highland and Santa Monica Blvd he's going thru. (I got the speed from the car traveling 3 times it's own length (a Mercedes C250 it was reported) in 12 video frames running at 29.97 frames per second, assuming of course the video isn't altered or otherwise transferred improperly.)

Regarding Barracuda's insistence that it's just as likely he's on a joy ride of some sort, thats about as much fun as russian roulette. I know it happens. I just don't see any character reference anywhere to think Hastings was that guy.

In reference to a comment I made earlier about having the cooperation of the LAPD, in light of Richard Clark's statement and the other information regarding the ability to hack a modern car, one wouldn't necessarily need the help or even knowledge of the LAPD, it seems. So the idea that a small group made up of people tied to McChrystal or Petraeus (or whoever) are responsible, seems possible.


To send out an email saying that "the Feds" are questioning "close friends and associates" and that he needs to go "off the radar", I don't believe that going on a 77mph joyride is consistent with the need expressed there. Either the stress of that situation made him fall off the wagon in a HUGE way, or his car got hacked. I'm tending to side with the latter scenario.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby barracuda » Tue Jun 25, 2013 8:36 pm

Here, Hastings describes himself as a "recovering drunk/addict/screw-up" who "stopped using when I was nineteen".

77 in a 35 is speeding, but I wouldn't qualify it as a joyride necessarily. Neither, though, would I expect to lose control at that speed.

Sorcha Faal says a drone got him, btw. So we can duke that out, I think.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby Forgetting2 » Tue Jun 25, 2013 9:01 pm

Well, running a red light at that speed, at an intersection that does have traffic 24 hours a day, is something one wouldn't be all that surprised of from a 19 year old drunk/addict/screw-up. (We don't have hard evidence of his speed just over a half mile up the road, although an honest appraisal of the crash site should be able to determine that pretty closely.) It's possible he had a relapse, as it seems you're suggesting. It happens. I think we can guess he didn't condone that behavior at least.

Oh, and thanks for the smug and insulting comparison with Sorcha Faal. Your contempt is noted.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby barracuda » Tue Jun 25, 2013 9:24 pm

You seem to have a low threshold for assuming smugness and insult. I meant no such thing. It was a typo: substitute "rule" for "duke".

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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby Forgetting2 » Tue Jun 25, 2013 9:42 pm

I guess I do. Sorry. It seemed like a complete sentence with meaning in spite of the typo.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby Elvis » Wed Jun 26, 2013 12:03 am

Alchemy wrote:he makes it very clear in his email that he was working on something very big, he was concerned about the FBI inquiring about his information gathering methods and he felt he needed to get off the radar a bit so that tells me he was definitely on a big story, a story that had sources he didnt want anyone to find and a story which would require him disappearing for a while, perhaps to contact and work with said sources.



Exactly. Is there any reason Hastings would not have had spooks of some kind following him?

Fifteen hours after sending out the e-mail saying he was onto a big story, isn't it likely that someone would want to follow him to see what he was up to, whom he would see, watching for things like handoffs, pickups/drops etc. that electronic surveillance could miss, and that might lead to sources, and so on.

If Hastings wanted to get himself 'off the grid', he'd have to shake the people who were probably following him. Probably.


At the same time, the hacking scenario is very plausible, as Richard Clark seems to agree.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby JackRiddler » Wed Jun 26, 2013 1:13 am

barracuda » Tue Jun 25, 2013 7:36 pm wrote:Sorcha Faal says a drone got him, btw. So we can duke that out, I think.


How about we make this an exceptional thread, an unprecedented thread, by not bothering with the disinfo farts of the usual farters? How about you don't bother with obvious bullshit, or trying to provoke someone into "duking it out" on whatever the no-planes analogue is inevitably going to be? I'm sure Alex Jones will have a take, if he doesn't already. How about we don't bother with it, or with the rest of the market-driven menagerie? How about we talk more about what Clarke said about technological capabilities to hack modern electronic cars, as someone who should know - besides that it's something obvious?

I'd like to see someone campaign Daimler to take a stance on just what they think their car does when it runs into a palm tree. For a start. They should carry out a recall, or issue a statement.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby Hunter » Wed Jun 26, 2013 1:16 am

Elvis » Wed Jun 26, 2013 12:03 am wrote:
Alchemy wrote:he makes it very clear in his email that he was working on something very big, he was concerned about the FBI inquiring about his information gathering methods and he felt he needed to get off the radar a bit so that tells me he was definitely on a big story, a story that had sources he didnt want anyone to find and a story which would require him disappearing for a while, perhaps to contact and work with said sources.



Exactly. Is there any reason Hastings would not have had spooks of some kind following him?

Fifteen hours after sending out the e-mail saying he was onto a big story, isn't it likely that someone would want to follow him to see what he was up to, whom he would see, watching for things like handoffs, pickups/drops etc. that electronic surveillance could miss, and that might lead to sources, and so on.

If Hastings wanted to get himself 'off the grid', he'd have to shake the people who were probably following him. Probably.


At the same time, the hacking scenario is very plausible, as Richard Clark seems to agree.



Precisely. What is more likely, that he did have spooks on his tail and that someone wanted to silence him and did OR 15 hours after sending said email that outline above, he decides to relapse, go on a bender and drive like a wildman blowing red lights and putting lives in danger? The preponderance of evidence suggests he was killed, IMO.

I understand some might see it differently than I do and that is OK, but for me, this is a real simple case. He was killed/silenced. And I am not one to easily jump to these kinds of conclusions but I am also not the kind of person that will deny a pink elephant in the middle of the room.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby barracuda » Wed Jun 26, 2013 1:34 am

JackRiddler » Tue Jun 25, 2013 10:13 pm wrote:How about we make this an exceptional thread, an unprecedented thread, by not bothering with the disinfo farts of the usual farters? How about you don't bother with obvious bullshit, or trying to provoke someone into "duking it out" on whatever the no-planes analogue is inevitably going to be?


Jesus christ on a waterski, I already said it was a typo, man.

I happen to sort of like the drone angle, fairy tale though it may be. If you find the mention of it ridiculous, or find that it muddies the waters of the narrative here, I feel for ya, I really do.

How about we talk more about what Clarke said about technological capabilities to hack modern electronic cars, as someone who should know - besides that it's something obvious?


And simply continue the endless confirmation bias regarding something that is evidently unprovable? I hope there are more profitable avenues of exploration than that.
Last edited by barracuda on Wed Jun 26, 2013 1:46 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby Hunter » Wed Jun 26, 2013 1:46 am

Wouldnt there be some pretty obvious shrapnel and other leftovers laying around all over if it were a drone missile strike or does all that shit disintegrate on impact these days?

I dont think they needed to risk a drone strike when a simple hack is all that was needed and which I am certain is what was used at this point. It will be awfully difficult to convince me otherwise right now.
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby justdrew » Wed Jun 26, 2013 2:07 am

someone needs to step up with a few donated cars and prove the hack-ability out on the salt flats.

needed: 3 2009 or later cars, >$35k MSRP when new
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Re: Journalist Michael Hastings is dead at 33

Postby Hunter » Wed Jun 26, 2013 2:23 am

Its already been proven, demonstrated and written about extensively, but yea, I would be all for making it more well known to the general public.
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