Who the Frak are YOU: The RI Membership Directory

[elfismiles]

Hola everyone!

Thank you so much for contributing to this thread. I have been exceptionally pleasantly surprised at the response so far.

Thank you Wombaticus Rex, Zap, stefano, NeonLX, American Dream, operator kos, daba64, Percival, alwyn and the others ... more thank yous and commentary and actual replies to come.

[OP ED]

They already know who all of you are.

That's probably true, but what's telling about it is they don't seem to care. I've read more subtlely treasonous and outrightly seditious statements on this board than just about anywhere else in my little jaunts about the net.

thank you.

[Fat Lady Singing]

I'm serious when I say I love you all. Here's what I think, not that anyone particularly cares. We are all so damn paranoid half the time (others probably full time), and not for no reason. That anyone who regularly visits here can be so brave to share of themselves is nothing short of miraculous.

As for myself, I used to have a blog:
http://fatladysinging.blogspot.com/
but I haven't posted in years.

I've never feared that anyone is targeting me in particular, because I'm really damn unimportant. The main reason I don't have more personal info out there is because I do worry, a bit, about identity theft. I probably don't have very good security on my computer. Oh well.

[elfismiles]

...with all the shit that has gone down here I very often wonder WHO IS WHO.

I've wondered if anyone else here would participate in an open directory of usernames where each of us can include whatever public data about ourselves that others might find useful or helpful in solidifying a REAL TRUST LEVEL.

I'm not sure there's anything anybody could post online that would convince me that I "knew" them and could "trust" them.

A picture of you and a link to your web site(s) doesn't mean you aren't up to no good. In reality, some who couldn't (or wouldn't) provide much documentation at all are in fact eminently trustworthy and some who could provide extensive "proof" could well be up to all kinds of shenanigans. SMiles, what happened to your sig line "'Trust No One' ... especially people you only 'know' from online"? You were right and no amount of pics and links can change that.

Think about it. Paulette Cooper had her close friend, neighbor and confidant Jerry Levin. She cried on his shoulder about being harassed by C0$ and he reported back every word of it to the Guardian's Office. Dorothy Kilgallen had Ron Pataki, her lover and trusted friend. They spoke every day and met whenever they could. And he may well have killed her on behalf of those who did not want her JFK book published.

But I should trust you because of a posting on the interwebs?? Sorry -- I don't think so.

Now granted, I'm not an investigative journalist breaking any big stories. And you're probably not a spook trying to kill me. But that still doesn't mean you aren't up to no good. Smiling faces and all that. If it's all the same to you, I will continue to treat the dreams and vapors I meet online with a healthy dose of skepticism and caution.

Hi Daba64.

I hear what you are saying, and it has been said to me before. But personally, I feel that I have made myself about as public open and honest as anyone can so that someone can fairly easily ascertain, A - That I am who I say I am and B - judge me on my real-world and online actions.

And the above publicness goes a long way towards allowing folks to investigate for themselves if there are any nay-sayers out there regarding me and my activities.

What more can / could anyone do to open themselves up to be trusted?

Certainly you are correct that even people in our real-world offline lives can be charlatans and not friends at all. But then word would get out about that, right? As you have indicated there is info out there regarding the examples you cited.

As for my sig line ... pft ... it changes more regularly now. It's just like having a changeable bumper sticker on my car. Or like your "status" message on sites like facespace / mybook etc.

About the worst I've ever had someone accuse me of offline was a local self-proclaimed alien-abductee / MK-victim and political activist (whom I respect despite there disruptive and truly insane behavior) who vascillated from practically calling me a CIA agent to praising my name. This person got very angry at my organizing the 38th annual National UFO Conference to be held at an establishment that (gasp) served alcohol (because the activist in question is an alcoholic) and swore that he/she would boycott / picket my event. He/she ended up buying tickets for the event (which I ended up refunding as the event was cancelled due to 911).

[elfismiles]

I am not really interested in being personable with folks online, I am here to discuss and debate and thats about the extent of it.

But since you asked my name is Michael, I work for my local newspaper and have been in journalism for the last 15 years. I graduated from the University of Arizona, joined the Navy, saw time in Panama during the capture of Noriega, after my discharge I settled down in Arizona where I currently reside and write for the local newspaper. I am also a professional photographer, which I do on the side as a hobby and to earn extra money.

I like RI and enjoy Jeff's work.

Fair enough Percival.

And thanks for opening up. Have you commented before on RI about the Panama invasion? I know I've read about the horrors and atrocities associated with that invasion.

I think it is so cool how many folks on RI are writers, activists and /or journalists and bloggers.

Yeah, its Jeff's writing that brought so many of us here but its definitely the (weird) sense of community that keeps me and others.

[elfismiles]

Aaaaannnnnddddd, continuing the thank yous:

Thanks Maddy, OP ED, Pele'sDaughter (fellow Texan, yeeHaw! I just finally read Ender's Game recently myself), Alaya (so are you Alice, the caterpillar ... or the shroom), Nordic (fair enough - privacy is golden), DrVolin, Fat Lady Singing, NaturalMystik (may just have to PM you for your rates), smiths (where'd the pic go?) and all.

- SMiles

[elfismiles]

How about first we see a show of hands from those who have been keeping little black books, entering profile info on posters here, hmmmm? I'd be willing to bet there are a few, and not all members here, some just lurkers.

Yes, thanks for calling me out on this ...

I've tried to keep a little text file as a cheat-sheet / cliffs-notes over the years but ... there are a LOT of folks around here.

[elfismiles]

Hi §ê¢rꆧ,

Yeah, I respect that some folks want and truly need to remain anonymous and retain some sense (real and imagined) of privacy.

I don't recall if I realized you were into RPGs and such. I certainly played my share over the years; a lot during childhood but probably even more in my "adult" life. Usually go through phases. And like most gamers I've created my own sci-fi campaign worlds. I still have a huge shelf full of old RPGs including original sets of other games like Paranoia, the Illuminati card game, Car Wars, old D&D adventure modules, rules sets like Traveller, Gama World, Shadowrun and many many more.

And you do web dev to? Man, maybe we should start an RI - Web Developers Union or Association...

Wow! That is some serious personal background info §ê¢rꆧ. I feel lucky to have not had a more tumultuous childhood.

Thanks for contributing to this thread and to the community at large.

[ § ]

I can be known here by my posts, where I don't worry too much about revealing personal information, because I enjoy making friends in the community, and you have to share of yourself, if you want to make friends. I may have came for the research, sure, but I think I've stayed for the community. I lurked for quite a while before signing up.

OTOH, I do keep personally identifying information out of my posts. Because pairing the personal information with personally-identifiable information is potentially risky, in the long term. Because you can never take it back. No I'm not special or deluded into thinking I'm so important, but... take the What if Danny Casaloro asked you for help? thread, for example:

I'd like to think I'd help him, really, and the more unknown I am to whatever potential enemies there are, the better. I could be more helpful if I'm not a transparent entity online, I think.

In the flesh, I'm usually the one in a mask or covering my face whenever I'm at a protest gathering, and people always razz me about that. It's for the same reason. I've seen the goons out taking pictures of people, gathering intel. Sure they can find out who I am but that's no reason to make it easy

Of course the personal information is more dangerous, when and if it were paired with my identity, because it gives a portrait of my mind. But I don't see any way around that, short of making up an identity and going with that. Which I haven't, because I like the people here, and I don't wish to lie to them.

So, if you searched my posts you'd find out:

I'm a thirty-nothing mostly self-employed male, recently married, not in the greatest health, recently moved to Portland from Chicago. I make websites and play online role-playing games, and I build them too as a hobby. (Yeah, I know that might sound suspicious here, but I assure you I am able to separate reality from fantasy, and I don't play ARGs). I spend far too much time online, and I believe pursuing knowledge for its own sake is a worthwhile occupation.

I grew up where there may have been some mind control stuff on the periphery, my dad was a member of a christian identity cult, and I remember spending summers being indoctrinated with apocalyptic sermons, racist diatribe and bible studies, as well as watching endless videos and hanging around the 'chapel' - but fortunately my mom kept custody of me when my parents divorced and my exposure to it was fairly minimal. I say 'may' because the cult was pretty weird and I was young and not looking for such things, but reading stuff on RI has opened my eyes to the possibility there may have been more to the cult than I saw at the time. At this stage I'm not investigating it because it is kind of painful - my father went batshit insane with this stuff, and I'm disowned by him and have nothing to do with him (the feeling is mutual).

I mostly had rejected the conspiratorial worldview, along with the trash the christian identity cult and my father was peddling, until, well, September 11th.

I chose the name §ê¢rꆧ because I hoped to learn secrets, hidden history and the lore of conspiracies. And I have, but the more I learn it seems the less I know for certain.

I am open to sharing more personally-identifiable information with some members on a case-by-case basis, hell I ordered Jeff's book to my house.
If you need web or graphic design please consider sending me a PM, I will work cheaply and give you my best (especially if you don't send me an i rs form 1099 ), because I am a poor landless peasant and could use the work, and I've been at it for about 9 years and am pretty good.

[ § ] [ § ] [ § ]

An aside: I'm sorry I suggested you were prof. pan, zap. I don't normally throw such things out, but I had a strong hunch, based on how you showed up and 3/4 of your posts were about sock puppets, and the way you launched the attack on HMW, like someone with a history. Of course later I read there was some history, the teapot story, and I suppose that could account for your vitriol. You know they say you can learn more about someone by the insults they choose to sling. I ask you this, on the sanctity of your username (really all we have here), do you employ sock puppets yourself, or do you have another username on RI?

[elfismiles]

Thanks Psynapz. A lot of info there.

I think a lot of us would probably be more prosperous if we spent a fraction of the time we spend at RI on "career paths". Oh well, I'm constantly fighting with myself about the amount of time I spend here. I get fed up with some stuff and then, here I am again.

There are just too many interesting people talking about important interesting things.

Okay, I guess I gotta share some more of myself here shortly.

But before that ... Hooray EarthShips!

I definitely agree that there's no reason to make it easy for the perps to identify us. With that said, I'll share details which are unlikely to be useful in narrowing down my meat:

I'm in New England. I work on the Internet all day, often for money. I'm not on anybody's payroll, nor am I subject to anyone's blackmail or, as far as I can tell, personally-directed mind control. In other words, I'm nobody's agent but my own, and anything I say online here or elsewhere is just because I want to share in the ongoing unfoldment of understanding.

<snip>

I have filmmaking and broadcast video production experience, but I can't decide what of all things floating around in my head to weaponize into a memetic payload of mass instruction. I'm open to any and all ideas.

[NaturalMystik]

I don't recall if I realized you were into RPGs and such. I certainly played my share over the years; a lot during childhood but probably even more in my "adult" life. Usually go through phases. And like most gamers I've created my own sci-fi campaign worlds. I still have a huge shelf full of old RPGs including original sets of other games like Paranoia, the Illuminati card game, Car Wars, old D&D adventure modules, rules sets like Traveller, Gama World, Shadowrun and many many more.

Slot me in that category too! Gamma World was awesome. My fav though was Call of Cthulhu. I still can't get enough of it. I'm always looking for RPGs to play on the old computer, still nothing stands up to the original gold box AD&D games. Pool of Radiance!! Right now I'm playing "Iron Gaia: Virus", as I'm hoping to start making a game soon and I was checking out rpg engines. Iron Gaia is definitely worth checking out, decent story and fun puzzles.

http://www.ghostlightgames.net/ig/

[DrVolin]

A bit more about who I am in RI terms. As a kid I was a nuts and bolts UFOlogist, collected UFO books and magazines, etc. I read Crowley, Lovecraft, Charles Fort, Annie Besant, Rudolf Steiner...

When I was about 10, I picked up George Leonard's Somebody Else is on the Moon. I pored over the photographs and I thought if this was true, it was dynamite. I followed the space program assiduously. I remember waiting all day in front of the television to see the Apollo-Soyuz docking. My father had a very extensive collection of National Geographics dating back to the 50s. I was able to find good prints of most of the photographs Leonard was using as evidence. I saw that the geometric patterns he was calling buildings and mining machinery dissolved into very natural looking rocks and craters at higher resolution. That was the first conspiracy theory I investigated.

A couple of years later, the fathers in school had assigned us readings from the new testament, among them the Epistles of Paul to the various young churches. When called on in class to comment on one of the Epistles, I said that in combination with the Acts, I thought it demonstrated fairly clearly that Paul was a Roman agent. Fortunately for me, the catechism teacher was an old retired missionary with divergent eyes who always regaled us with tales of the exorcisms and other occult battles he had waged in Venezuela in the 50s and 60s. He said, "do go on". I started by explaining that Paul is the only Epistolary writer in the new testament who names names in what are secret letters to secret organizations. His eyes went a bit more divergent. That was the first conspiracy theory I developed.

From an early age, I was aware that things are not always what they seem, especially in politics. While my father was not a conspiracy nut, he did ask good questions, and he asked them out loud. For example, he never bought the American explanations for their involvement in Viet Nam. When the Soviets invaded Checkoslovakia in 1968, he cancelled his subscription to Soviet Union Today in protest. When Nixon escalated in Viet Nam in 1969, he cancelled Life. My mother once brought home South African oranges. My father drove back to the store to return them. Israeli products were likewise banned from the house, and for the same reason.

As I became politically aware, I was trained to ask questions, to ask them out loud, and through my readings, I had trained myself to reject very few possibilities a priori. Some would say that was a dangerous combination. As a result, I gave serious thought to such conspiracies as the burning of the Reichstag, the first roman Triumvirate, and the Kennedy assissinations.

But when 9/11 hit, I simply assumed it was the work of Islamist terrorists. For two years, I didn't ask myself many questions about that day. I followed the Afghanistan invasion closely, and thought it very unfortunate, but justified. The turning point for me was Colin Powell's speech to the Security Council. I simply could not buy his "evidence" of WMD in Iraq. I could understand why the Americans would want to finish the job they had started in 1990, but I couldn't understand why they were asking us to accept a blatant lie and pretend that we couldn't see though it. Why not just come out and say "we need to finish the job"?

As I listened to Powell, some things that had been nagging me started falling into place. I had suspected from the start that the first invasion of Iraq was a sucker punch, delivered at an unsuspecting Saddam who thought he had back channel blessing from Bush 41. The day that Iraq invaded Kuwait, I pulled out a map of the region (thanks again to my father's National Geographic collection), some of my Strategy and Tactics back issues (the counters for Raid on Tripoli proved useful), my factbooks, and I set up the scenario on Larry Bond's Harpoon. The news was not good. After running a number of simulations, I estimated that the Iraqis would be in control of the Saudi oilfields within about 48 hours, and I really didn't see any reasons why they shouldn't grab them, for security if nothing else. I was half expecting a simultaneous coup against Yeltsin in Moscow. To my shock, nothing of the sort happened. The Iraqis stayed in put in Kuwait, a move that flew in the face of the most basic and elementary military logic.

In November 2000, I watched live as the numbers on my television screen changed instantly as ABC reported that FOX had given Florida to Bush. I knew enough about Roman politics to make the connection between the governor and his brother. I knew enough about the Kennedy victory in 1960 not to be surprised at a bit of electoral fraud in a close presidential contest. But given that this was the return of the Bushes to the White House, I knew instantly that it was a coup. Perhaps that's why I wasn't so suspicious of 9/11. For me, the coup had already taken place. I thought 9/11 might even be a reaction against it.

But Powell's speech crystalized everthing. I started looking behind the things that were behind the ones I had been looking behind so far. What I am finding is a century long, violent struggle for control of the executive branch, a lot of greed, and a even more stupidity.

[hava1]

i am actually a troll, trying to get banned.

[OP ED]

makes two of us.

[OP ED is hava's sockpuppet]

[daba64]

Wow, DrVolin, thanks for the post. Fascinating stuff. More stories from your childhood, please.

As much as I rail against revealing myself, I really do enjoy other people's personal stories.

[Nordic]

It might be kind of ironic, but one of the reasons I think the way I do is because of my military right-wing father. My Dad was a career Army officer, and was involved in a lot of top secret weapons development. So I grew up totally aware that there was a lot of secret stuff going on with the governnment. Then, every now and then, he would tell me about something that the government could do. Which is funny, because he was incredibly tight-lipped about his work, and remains so to this day, even though he's in his 70's now.

One day he said "did you know that a human body and a pig will explode at the same frequency of sound?" Just sorta threw that out there. When I asked him what he was talking about, he said if you apply a powerful enough sound vibration to a body, they can explode, and that a pig's body and a human's body will explode at the same frequency. How interesting.

Then he told me, back before we ever invaded Iraq, that most of the war games the Pentagon was doing involved Iraq, and getting rid of their tank army. Their tank army had gotten too big. It was, if I remember correctly, 3rd largest in the world behind the U.S. and the Soviet Union. So they wanted to get rid of Saddam's tank army. Which they did, quite effectively, in luring Saddam into Kuwait so they had an excuse to destroy his tank army.

He didn't mean to be spilling any secrets, he just occasionally wanted to talk to me about stuff. We had almost nothing in common, so if I took interest in what he was doing, I think he was flattered.

Then he told me, years before 9/11, that we had a system wherein we could land a plane, on a dime, anywhere we wanted, remotely. Using what we now know as GPS. I was amazed that a pilot didn't even have to be controlling the plane, and that it could land within something like three inches of where they wanted it to go.

Just last fall he told me he was actually directly employed by military intelligence in the late 50's in Germany (where I was born). I'd recently been suspecting this, piecing together some anecdotal things he'd told us over the years that didn't quite fit in to his "official" assignments.

Then he told me he voted for JFK which really blew my mind. Because he's a rabid right-winger.

During the Reagan years he would say Reagan was just a puppet. Even though he was a die-hard Republican. He would also say "we have the best government money can buy".

He did stuff in Vietnam, too, that was all about weapons development, letting the S. Vietnamese try out the new stuff, and be the guinea pigs for us.

He did the classic revolving door thing, when he retired from the Army, went to work for a huge contractor, working on the exact same project (still top secret) that he worked on while in the Army.

So yeah, I've always grown up knowing there's a lot going on behind the curtain. Knowing about psychological tactics, PSYOPS, propaganda, everything else.

What's funny is my Dad still doesn't see propaganda when it's right in front of his face. I guess that's why they put him in those fields, because you can push his buttons and he'll take a bullet for you. He means well, but he's been completely manipulated into believing the patriotic bullshit. He seriously thought everything he did was for the good of America. He's as idealistic as I am, just his world is completely upside-down from mine.