No Collusion? Or GOP Treason?

I'm still betting there was collusion, and if nothing else, GOP house members are engaging in corrupt and apparent treasonous behavior in covering up for Trump.

The GOP report does address that Trump Tower meeting, allowing that it showed “poor judgment” on the part of the Trump campaign. As we learned from Trump Jr.’s emails, those top Trump campaign officials went to the meeting in the full expectation of receiving dirt on Hillary Clinton, supplied by the Russian government. But the GOP report brushes this off, concluding there was “no evidence that the Trump campaign colluded, coordinated, or conspired with the Russian government.”

But the Democratic response fills in some extremely important context — and it may involve the president himself, though we cannot know one way or the other right now.

According to the Democratic response, right after Trump Jr. set up the specifics of the meeting, he had two calls with a number in Russia belonging to Emin Agalarov. Between those two calls, the Democratic response recounts, Trump Jr. received a third call from a blocked number. Who might it have been?

Democrats wanted to find out, but Republicans blocked it from happening, according to the Democrats’ response. “We sought to determine whether that number belonged to the president, because we also ascertained that then-candidate Trump used a blocked number,” Schiff said during our interview. “That would tell us whether Don Jr. sought his father’s permission to take the meeting, and [whether] that was the purpose of that call.” Schiff added that Democrats asked Republicans to subpoena phone records to determine whose number it was, but Republicans “refused,” Schiff said. “They didn’t want to know whether he had informed his father and sought his permission to take that meeting with the Russians.”

Trump has denied he knew or heard about the meeting. So naturally, any investigator would want to find out if Trump Jr. spoke to his father at the very moment he was arranging the meeting.

Again, we don’t know who made that third call. But if Trump Jr. did inform his father of the meeting in between calls with Emin Agalarov, it would be absolutely explosive news. First, it would mean the president has lied about his knowledge of the Trump Tower meeting. Second, it would show he was an active participant in a manner of speaking, though he wasn’t in the room.

If the Democratic response is accurate, what we know is that Republicans didn’t want to find out one way or the other. “It speaks to all the majority was determined to ignore, and the fundamental unseriousness of what they did,” Schiff said.

There is at least some reason to suspect that Trump may have known about the meeting. As the Democrats point out in their response, on June 7, the day after Trump Jr.’s conversations to set up the meeting, Trump told a crowd: “I am going to give a major speech on probably Monday of next week and we’re going to be discussing all of the things that have taken place with the Clintons. I think you’re going to find it very informative and very, very interesting.”

The Trump Tower meeting happened two days later, and didn’t produce the promised dirt — and the “major speech” never took place.

Also:

The Russian lawyer who met with Trump campaign officials in Trump Tower in June 2016 on the premise that she would deliver damaging information about Hillary Clinton has long insisted she is a private attorney, not a Kremlin operative trying to meddle in the presidential election. But newly released emails show that in at least one instance two years earlier, the lawyer, Natalia V. Veselnitskaya, worked hand in glove with Russia’s chief legal office to thwart a Justice Department civil fraud case against a well-connected Russian firm.

Ms. Veselnitskaya also appears to have recanted her earlier denials of Russian government ties. During an interview to be broadcast Friday by NBC News, she acknowledged that she was not merely a private lawyer but a source of information for a top Kremlin official, Yuri Y. Chaika, the prosecutor general.  

Rep. Adam Schiff lays out some evidence for collusion and this is new:

Russians sought to establish a secret back channel with Trump campaign through NRA in May 2016 according to an email from Paul Erickson to Rick Dearborn & Jeff Sessions. They sought to make “first contact” at the NRA convention.

If This Happened in the Obama administration, This Would Be the Biggest Scandal Ever

... instead, it's totally lost in the corrupt madness of the Trump administration:

In Trump's first year, FISA court denied record number of surveillance orders

More surveillance orders were denied during President Donald Trump's first year in office than in the court's history.

Annual data published Wednesday by the US Courts shows that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance (FISA) Court last year denied 26 applications in full, and 50 applications in part.

That's compared to 21 orders between when the court was first formed in 1978 and President Barack Obama's final year in office in 2016.

26 rejected in one year versus 21 over 38 years. That's a >50 fold increase in improper warrant applications.

This totally suggests that Trump is trying to spy improperly on political enemies that aren't legitimate surveillance targets, because his administration is corrupt and/or incompetent as fuck.

Funny how we used to care about such things.

FunTime New Worst President Ever Happy Hour!

David Cay Johnston:

You have studied and written about Donald Trump for three decades. What does the public need to know about his background, to understand his behavior as president?   

Here are the key things people should know about Donald Trump. He comes from a family of criminals: His grandfather made his fortune running whorehouses in Seattle and in the Yukon Territory. His father, Fred, had a business partner named Willie Tomasello, who was an associate of the Gambino crime family. Trump's father was also investigated by the U.S. Senate for ripping off the government for what would be the equivalent of $36 million in today's money. Donald got his showmanship from his dad, as well as his comfort with organized criminals.

I think it is very important for religious Americans to know that Donald Trump says that his personal philosophy of life is revenge. He has called anyone who turns the other cheek -- which is a fundamental teaching of Christ in the Sermon on the Mount -- a fool, an idiot or a schmuck. Trump is a man who says things that are absolutely contrary to the teachings of the New Testament. He also denigrates Christians. Yet you see all of these ministers endorsing him.

I've followed Donald for 30 years. I don't see any evidence that he has changed, and he certainly hasn't repented, which is a fundamental Christian obligation.

He is a racist through and through. He has been found in formal judicial proceedings to discriminate against nonwhites in rentals and employment.

It's important to understand that Trump is aggressively anti-Christian, despite claiming to be one. He is bluntly a racist. Most importantly, he is literally ignorant about almost everything.

(snip)

As Malcolm Nance and others have warned, Russia's interference in the 2016 election and likely infiltration of Trump's inner circle could be one of the worst intelligence disasters in American history, a failure of Benedict Arnold or Rosenberg proportions.  

Let me be very clear and quotable about this. At an absolute minimum, Donald Trump has divided loyalties, and the evidence we already have suggests that Donald Trump is a traitor. In fact, I would say that the evidence we already have, the public materials such as emails for example, strongly indicate that Donald Trump is a traitor. However, I don't even think he understands what he's done.

-------------------------------
And...

Charles Pierce:

The President Is a Few Bulbs Short of a Chandelier.

Trump melts down—and is cut off by the hosts of—Fox & Friends.

This is the most remarkable thing ever said to a President of the United States: “We could talk all day but looks like you have a million things to do.”

Brian Kilmeade is one of the co-hosts of the Fox News Channel’s morning show, Three Dolts on a Divan. The president* watches this show every day because what else does he have to do, right? It was one of the Fox shows that created him as a viable national political figure, and one of the few shows anywhere completely committed to sustaining him as such.

On Thursday morning, he called in, and, over the next several minutes, had what can be gently called an “episode.” In no particular order, he threatened to bring the Justice Department under his personal control; praised his magnificent performance in office; defended his nominee to run the VA even though said nominee already had pulled his name from consideration; threw Michael Cohen overboard; admitted he had spent that fateful night in Moscow at the Miss Universe pageant; ranted about the crimes of James Comey, the perfidy of Jon Tester, and the rank dishonesty of the media; and explained to the nation that Abraham Lincoln had been a Republican, which, “people don’t realize.” And then Kilmeade cut him off.  (snip)

 -----------------------------

Trump is very fucking corrupt:

More than at any time in history, the president of the United States is actively using the power and prestige of his office to line his own pockets: landing loans for his businesses, steering wealthy buyers to his condos, securing cheap foreign labor for his resorts, preserving federal subsidies for his housing projects, easing regulations on his golf courses, licensing his name to overseas projects, even peddling coffee mugs and shot glasses bearing the presidential seal.

For Trump, whose business revolves around the marketability of his name, there has proved to be no public policy too big, and no private opportunity too crass, to exploit for personal profit.

Nowhere has the self-enrichment been more evident than at his Washington hotel, which quickly filled up with the very lobbyists and swamp creatures Trump had railed against during his campaign. Oil companies, mining interests, insurance executives, foreign diplomats, and defense contractors all rushed to book their annual conferences at Trump’s hotels and resorts, where Cabinet members graciously addressed them. After hiking the nightly rate to $653 — 32 percent higher than other local luxury hotels — Trump collected $2 million in profits from the property during his first three months in office.

By last August, the hotel’s bar and restaurant had hauled in another $8 million in revenue. And although Trump has pledged to give away any money his hotels earn from foreign governments, the plan contains a lucrative loophole: Employees at his hotels admit that they make no effort to identify guests who represent other countries, meaning that much of the foreign money spent at Trump’s properties flows directly into his own pockets.

On March 28, a federal judge allowed a lawsuit to go forward that charges Trump with violating the Constitution by accepting money from foreign governments at his D.C. hotel. In fact, although Trump refuses to disclose the details of his myriad business operations, he continues to enjoy access to every dime he makes as president. Instead of setting up a blind trust to avoid conflicts of interest, as other presidents have done, Trump put his two grown sons in charge of his more than 500 business entities. His sons regularly brief Trump about how the enterprises are doing, enabling him to personally monitor how his decisions in office affect his bottom line.

What’s more, only 15 days after this “eyes wide open” trust was set up, Trump amended the fine print to allow him to take money out of the operation any time he pleases. The loophole, buried on page 161 of the 166-page form, stipulates that any “net income or principal” can be distributed to Trump “at his request.” Far from putting his wealth in a blind trust, Trump asked the public for its blind trust, effectively sticking his money in a piggy bank in Don Jr.’s room that he is free to raid at any hour of the day or night.

Trump’s children are working hard to cash in on his time in office — especially with foreign investors. At taxpayer expense, they have flown to Uruguay, the Dominican Republic, Dubai, and India in search of licensing and real-estate deals, trading on the president’s influence in exchange for investments.

But the biggest complication of Trump’s presidency — and the one he works hardest to keep secret — is the way his entire business operation is mired in massive debt. Rather than being independently wealthy, public records show, Trump and the business partnerships in which he is a leading investor owe big banks and foreign governments at least $2.3 billion — far more than his disclosure reports indicate.

His largest single loan — for nearly $1 billion — is from a syndicate assembled by Goldman Sachs that includes the state-owned Bank of China. If either Trump or Jared Kushner, who tried to shake down Qatar’s finance minister for a loan, winds up needing to negotiate new terms on his ballooning debt, America could find itself being dictated to by a foreign government — all because the White House, thanks to Trump’s business model, has become a true House of Cards.

What follows is 501 days of official corruption, from small-time graft and brazen influence peddling to full-blown raids on the federal Treasury. Given how little Trump has disclosed about his finances, this timeline of self-dealing is undoubtedly only a fraction of the corruption that will eventually come to light. But as even this initial glimpse makes clear, Trump isn’t draining the swamp — he’s monetizing it.

Dean Radin-- Pan-Consciousness and Magic

This podcast interview with Dean Radin, who studies the paranormal, magic and pan-consciousness ideas, is really good and worth a listen.

He discusses the ideas in this article I posted a couple weeks back, that consciousness is a fundamental property of the universe.

It sounds crazy, of course, and easy to dismiss. But it does make some degree of sense as it can explain certain phenomena we don't understand very well. One thought I had in support of this concept is Remote Viewing. If RV is real, and it seems like there is some real phenomenon behind it (even though conventional science dismisses it), then the best explanation for it is some sort of pan-consciousness across the universe that people can tap into. It sounds nuts but clearly this whole field seems nuts at first.

Also this paranormal discussion still makes me wonder if there was some bizarre "magick" or mystical aspect to 9/11, since that day was so freaking weird.

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan Announces He's Not Running for Re-Election

This seems like a sound analysis:

One can hardly imagine a more obvious signal that Ryan fears the prospect, if not of losing his own seat, than of losing the majority and hence his speakership. In the past, speakers — understanding the demoralizing impact that premature white-flag-waving would have on their troops — had the good sense to wait until after the election to announce that they would exit the leadership of their party.

Ryan’s move has several consequences.

First, Democrats (who were heavily spending to defeat Ryan) can declare victory in that race and save the money it would have taken to knock out a sitting speaker. Get ready for Democrats’ taunts that Ryan lacked the courage to stand before the voters with a record like his.

Second, this is a flashing light to donors and candidates on both sides. For Republican money-men, the message is: Don’t throw away cash trying to save the House. (One wonders whether Ryan, previously a strong fundraiser, will still be able to get donors to open their wallets when he’s abandoning ship.) For Democrats, it will be further encouragement to add to the record number of candidates and to get on board for a Democratic sweep. In a wave year with the GOP leaderless, why not throw your hat into the ring?

Third, this will be seen in some quarters as a sign that Ryan cannot bear defending the president from potential impeachment. It has been a chore to act as Trump’s lead apologist, ignoring Trump’s outbursts and justifying his zigzags. Trump is now going down a protectionist road that Ryan deeply opposes. As much as this is a sign of no confidence in his House majority, it is effectively an admission: “I can’t take it anymore!” Imagine how much more stressful it will be if and when the special counsel returns a report that makes the case for impeachment.

Fourth, as we have noted, it is highly unlikely that Trump is going to deliver any more items on the GOP domestic wish-list. With tax cuts under his belt, Trump shows little interest or ability to proceed with arduous negotiations on infrastructure, health-care fixes, entitlements or much of anything else. Trump surely is not going to abandon his base to push for comprehensive immigration reform. Ryan seems to agree with our analysis that the GOP has gotten whatever it is going to get from this president.

Fifth, Ryan’s departure makes his refusal to remove from committees characters such as Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) — who colluded with the White House in smearing the FBI and wrecking the intelligence-oversight system — all the more inexplicable. Why not take the heat to do the right thing, especially if Ryan is not going to run anyway? The lack of political courage still stuns onlookers who regarded Ryan at one time as a genuine policy wonk and serious leader.

In sum, Ryan retreats from the scene after loading the country up with debt and leaving virtually every other agenda item save tax cuts undone. He fantasized that in backing Trump, who lacks conservative principles (or any principles), he’d have carte blanche to enact the entire GOP agenda. He made his Faustian bargain with Trump on the false assumption that Trump would be compliant, take direction from House Republicans and demonstrate enough discipline to get through a slew of initiatives.

That did not come to pass, because Ryan, in making his disastrous decision to place party over country and corporate tax cuts over defense of democratic values, failed to comprehend the depth of Trump’s unfitness and the centrality of character in determining a president’s success.

Instead of achieving the entire GOP agenda, Ryan will leave a besmirched legacy defined by his decision to back, enable and defend Trump, no matter how objectionable Trump’s rhetoric and conduct. Ryan has come to embody the nasty scourge of tribalism that dominates our politics.

The inability to separate partisan loyalty from patriotic obligation — or to assess the interests of the country and the need to defend democratic norms and institutions — is proving to be the downfall of the Republican Party and the principle threat to our liberal (small “l”) democracy. And no one is more responsible for this than Ryan. No one.

Another Day, Another Trump Freakout

Yesterday:

The FBI raid on the home and office of Trump fixer and attorney-sort-of-at-law Michael Cohen has predictably triggered President Trump. In addition to raging against Robert Mueller both on camera and on Twitter, Trump is reportedly subjecting everybody around him to angry tirades.

In case you don’t have time to read all the tirade coverage, here are the best quotes from freaked-out sources, ranked in ascending order:

5. Quote: “There was fear in Trump’s orbit that the president is liable to erupt in anger in coming days, escalating his attacks against Mueller at a time when his attorneys are negotiating a possible interview.” Source: “Trump’s orbit”

4. Quote: “Mr. Trump’s advisers have spent the last 24 hours trying to convince the president not to make an impulsive decision that could put the president in more legal jeopardy and ignite a controversy that could consume his presidency.” Source: “several people close to Mr. Trump”

3. Quote: “He’s sitting there bitching and moaning. He’s brooding and doesn’t have a plan.” Source: “a Republican close to the White House”

2. Quote: “He’s losing his shit,” the operative added. “We’re at a different level now.” Source: “a GOP operative close to the White House”

1. Quote: “Jesus take the wheel.” Source: “a former White House official”

Today:

In what is almost certainly a global first for any world leader, early this morning, President Trump used his Twitter feed to announce he is launching missile attacks in Syria.

So much for the element of surprise (snip)

Ten minutes later, Trump fired off another pair of tweets, in which he casually confessed to obstruction of justice (snip) 

The key phrase here is “No Collusion or Obstruction (other than I fight back).” When you say “other than,” you are conceding it fits into the larger category, while identifying it as an exception: I didn’t eat the cookies you left out, other than the one that already had a bite out of it. In this case, however, “fight back” is an exception large enough to encompass all Trump’s efforts to impede the investigation into Russian interference on behalf of his campaign.

Everything from demanding James Comey let Michael Flynn go free to firing Comey to dangling pardons for Paul Manafort is fighting back against the investigation. He is rebranding obstruction of justice as Trump fighting back.

Of course, Trump already admitted a year ago, on camera, he fired Comey to stop the Russia investigation, so it’s hardly a Tom Cruise-Jack Nicholson moment. The confession came as a kind of side thought to his larger point, which is that his presidency is “very calm and calculated.” Because obviously.

And on and on...

Worst and most moronic president ever...

So much winning...

Advances in Interstellar Travel

The man interviewed here, Robert Schroeder explains a plausible physics-based theory for faster than speed of light travel. It is quite fascinating and exciting.



It's based on a double membrane view of the universe, involving gravitational particles that exist primarily in another dimension, which is consistent with modern physics theory.  The large Hadron Collider is trying to find evidence of the K-K particles he refers to in his theory.

He says one could make a light year trip in minutes.

What I like about this guy, besides his easy explanations of modern quantum physics, is that he basically accepts that UFO sightings are evidence of advanced ET species visiting us, which is my thinking too. Also, I should note his theory explains many of the phenomena associated with UFOs

What's really interesting to think about is, if this guy can come up with this theory and it works, first, we are really not that far off from having interstellar travel with our current technology.  But second, our human civilization is really still kind of a mess. So it does make you wonder about what kind of ET civilizations have been coming here to visit mankind (and messing with us), what state they are in back home. Maybe they are not as enlightened as we typically like to think. You could even imagine competing nations within one alien planet coming here and fucking with us. 
 
Schroeder also posits that there is some galactic federation that controls how ET species interact with us, and keep them from making themselves obviously known to us, so that we develop more or less on our own. That seems like wishful thinking to me, but it's certainly possible.

Watcher of the Skies-- Hints of Ultimate Truths?

Either way, just a great rock song, and great live performance.

"Watcher Of The Skies"

Watcher of the skies watcher of all
His is a world alone no world is his own,
He whom life can no longer surprise,
Raising his eyes beholds a planet unknown.

Creatures shaped this planet's soil,
Now their reign has come to an end,
Has life again destroyed life,
Do they play elsewhere, do they know
more than their childhood games?
Maybe the lizard's shed its tail,
This is the end of man's long union with Earth.

Judge not this race by empty remains
Do you judge God by his creatures when they are dead?
For now, the lizard's shed it's tail
This is the end of man's long union with Earth.

From life alone to life as one,
Think not now your journey's done
For though your ship be sturdy, no
Mercy has the sea,
Will you survive on the ocean of being?
Come ancient children hear what I say
This is my parting council for you on your way.

Sadly now your thoughts turn to the stars
Where we have gone you know you never can go.
Watcher of the skies watcher of all
This is your fate alone, this fate is your own.

Some hints at evil ETs (lizards) becoming (forming) mankind... the watcher = quarantine race and quarantine breakout at the end?

50th Anniversary of King's Assassination

Today is the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which took place April 4th, 1968.

As you likely know, the official story of King's assassination is very wrong. 

According to research by Dr. William Pepper, detailed in his two books (“Orders to Kill: The Truth Behind the Murder of Martin Luther King” and “An Act of State: The Execution of Martin Luther King”), it was a government-sponsored killing with specific help from the FBI. 



King was a major threat to the US regime and they were especially concerned with his anti-Vietnam war efforts.

A good essay on King and his killing is here. 

"13 Reasons to Believe UFO's Are Real"

A basically reasonable overview on the latest in UFO-ology.

Sections in this piece:

1. The Government Literally Just Admitted It’s Taking UFOs Seriously

2. Harry Reid Says We’re Not Taking Them Seriously Enough

3. Scientists Are Suddenly Much More Bullish About the Possibility of Life Out There

4. They’re Especially Bullish About These Planets

5. And There Is “Documentation”

6. That “Asteroid” Looks an Awful Lot Like a Rocket Ship

7. These Masters of the Universe Are Obsessed (They Are Also All Men)

8. As Are Some Prominent Military and Government Folks

9. (And This Genius Thinks He Can Talk to Them)

10. There Have Been Enough Well-Known Encounters to Fill Encyclopedias

11. And Continuing Right Up to the Present Day

12. We Even Have Some Pretty Developed Theories About Why We Haven’t Heard From ET Yet

13. And in the Meantime, Aliens Can Be Whatever We Want Them to Be

I tend to be much less skeptical about all this and just think the best explanation is they are here, and are watching us and likely have manipulated our history in various subtle ways...

Crooked Kushner

Just another lovely member of the crooked Trump Crime Family--

Officials from China, the United Arab Emirates and at least two other countries privately talked about ways they could control Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and close adviser, a Washington Post report said on Tuesday, citing current and former U.S. officials.

The foreign officials, also from Israel and Mexico, sought to take advantage of Kushner’s business arrangements, financial difficulties, and lack of foreign policy experience, according to unnamed U.S. officials the report said were familiar with intelligence reports on the matter.

...  This, of course, is cited as one of the reasons that Kushner lost the top security clearance he never should have had in the first place. But does anyone really believe that the president* will abide by this decision? My guess? He and Jared will be chatting over the presidential daily briefing paper by the middle of next week. Hell, somebody in the White House has to read the thing.

And there is the big, trumpeting elephant in the middle of the Oval Office. Every good reason to keep Jared Kushner’s grasping little paws off vital national security information also applies quite well to the current president* of the United States.

Business arrangements? Check. Financial difficulties? Check? Lack of foreign policy experience? Many, many checks. Also, too: vulnerable to pressure and/or blackmail? Well, yes, thank you. Why did you ask?

By that criterion, Jared Kushner is a rank amateur. But an enthusiastic one.

From Reuters again: Trump’s national security adviser, H.R. McMaster, learned that Kushner had contacts with foreign officials that he did not officially report or coordinate through official channels, the report said. The foreign officials’ beliefs of Kushner’s vulnerabilities were items raised in McMaster’s daily intelligence briefings, the report said. Slick, compromised, and stupid is no way to go through life, son.

It's all just fucking nuts. Seriously, it's outrageous, and is just another scandal in the Trump White House that has spawned on average 2 scandals every fucking day since they started, and overall about 20 huge fucking scandals. These are some seriously corrupt and dumb motherfuckers.

And now this more recent news of corrupt fuckery with our pals in the House of Saud:

UNTIL HE WAS stripped of his top-secret security clearance in February, presidential adviser Jared Kushner was known around the White House as one of the most voracious readers of the President’s Daily Brief, a highly classified rundown of the latest intelligence intended only for the president and his closest advisers.

Kushner, who had been tasked with bringing about a deal between Israel and Palestine, was particularly engaged by information about the Middle East, according to a former White House official and a former U.S. intelligence professional.

In June, Saudi prince Mohammed bin Salman ousted his cousin, then-Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, and took his place as next in line to the throne, upending the established line of succession.

In the months that followed, the President’s Daily Brief contained information on Saudi Arabia’s evolving political situation, including a handful of names of royal family members opposed to the crown prince’s power grab, according to the former White House official and two U.S. government officials with knowledge of the report. Like many others interviewed for this story, they declined to be identified because they were not authorized to speak about sensitive matters to the press.

In late October, Jared Kushner made an unannounced trip to Riyadh, catching some intelligence officials off guard. “The two princes are said to have stayed up until nearly 4 a.m. several nights, swapping stories and planning strategy,” the Washington Post’s David Ignatius reported at the time.

What exactly Kushner and the Saudi royal talked about in Riyadh may be known only to them, but after the meeting, Crown Prince Mohammed told confidants that Kushner had discussed the names of Saudis disloyal to the crown prince, according to three sources who have been in contact with members of the Saudi and Emirati royal families since the crackdown.

What Was So Toxic at the Pentagon?

I knew it was bad at Ground Zero, but hadn't heard of this happening at the Pentagon site:

Special Agent Melissa Morrow died on Thursday.

Kansas City, MO - FBI Special Agent Melissa Morrow, 48, died on Thursday from a 9/11 related illness.

On September 11, 2001, agent Morrow was assigned to the Evidence Response Team at the FBI's Washington Field Office, according to Kansas City Star. ODMP reports that she spent 10 weeks collecting evidence in contaminated conditions at the site of the terrorist attack on the Pentagon.

In 2013 she also responded to a six-alarm fire at a warehouse containing contaminated evidence from the Pentagon, according to Kansas City Star.

Agent Morrow later developed brain cancer as a result of those conditions, which ultimately killed her. Her death is classified as a line of duty death.

Agent Morrow served in the FBI at the Kansas City field office at the time of her passing.

Former FBI agent Ali Soufan tweeted:

Ali H. Soufan ‏ Verified account @Ali_H_Soufan Mar 23

FBI SA Melissa Morrow passed away on Thursday. She was a 9/11 first responder and was exposed to toxins at the Pentagon. Melissa is the 11th FBI Agent lost due to such exposures. Remember the many who continue to suffer from the health impacts of 9/11.

11 FBI agents died from 9/11 exposures at the Pentagon? Or altogether? Would make more sense if most were at GZ...

Like, Universal Consciousness, Man

Fun stuff to think about:

Consciousness permeates reality. Rather than being just a unique feature of human subjective experience, it’s the foundation of the universe, present in every particle and all physical matter.

This sounds like easily-dismissible bunkum, but as traditional attempts to explain consciousness continue to fail, the “panpsychist” view is increasingly being taken seriously by credible philosophers, neuroscientists, and physicists, including figures such as neuroscientist Christof Koch and physicist Roger Penrose.

“Why should we think common sense is a good guide to what the universe is like?” says Philip Goff, a philosophy professor at Central European University in Budapest, Hungary. “Einstein tells us weird things about the nature of time that counters common sense; quantum mechanics runs counter to common sense. Our intuitive reaction isn’t necessarily a good guide to the nature of reality.”

David Chalmers, a philosophy of mind professor at New York University, laid out the “hard problem of consciousness” in 1995, demonstrating that there was still no answer to the question of what causes consciousness.

Traditionally, two dominant perspectives, materialism and dualism, have provided a framework for solving this problem. Both lead to seemingly intractable complications. “Physics is just structure. It can explain biology, but there’s a gap: Consciousness.”

The materialist viewpoint states that consciousness is derived entirely from physical matter. It’s unclear, though, exactly how this could work. “It’s very hard to get consciousness out of non-consciousness,” says Chalmers. “Physics is just structure. It can explain biology, but there’s a gap: Consciousness.”

Dualism holds that consciousness is separate and distinct from physical matter—but that then raises the question of how consciousness interacts and has an effect on the physical world.

Panpsychism offers an attractive alternative solution: Consciousness is a fundamental feature of physical matter; every single particle in existence has an “unimaginably simple” form of consciousness, says Goff. These particles then come together to form more complex forms of consciousness, such as humans’ subjective experiences.

This isn’t meant to imply that particles have a coherent worldview or actively think, merely that there’s some inherent subjective experience of consciousness in even the tiniest particle.

Panpsychism doesn’t necessarily imply that every inanimate object is conscious. “Panpsychists usually don’t take tables and other artifacts to be conscious as a whole,” writes Hedda Hassel Mørch, a philosophy researcher at New York University’s Center for Mind, Brain, and Consciousness, in an email. “Rather, the table could be understood as a collection of particles that each have their own very simple form of consciousness.”