From: abemarf@aol.com (Martin F. Abernathy) Newsgroups: alt.mindcontrol,alt.conspiracy,alt.politics.org.cia Subject: 'The Government Is Not Going To Admit To It'... Date: 16 Oct 2002 12:27:14 -0700 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Lines: 151 Message-ID: NNTP-Posting-Host: 216.19.126.132 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Trace: posting.google.com 1034796435 30044 127.0.0.1 (16 Oct 2002 19:27:15 GMT) X-Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com NNTP-Posting-Date: 16 Oct 2002 19:27:15 GMT Path: rsl2.rslnet.net!cyclone.bc.net!newsfeed.stanford.edu!postnews1.google.com!not-for-mail Xref: rsl2.rslnet.net alt.mindcontrol:3416 alt.conspiracy:112305 alt.politics.org.cia:3635 Chuck Knapp, press secretary for Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.), said that a particularly tricky letter for his office to respond to came from a constituent saying the government had implanted an electronic device in her head. "If the government is indeed implanting devices in our constituents' heads, we're sure the government is not going to admit to it," Knapp reflected, partly joking. ------------ Roll Call: August 12, 2002 Monday LENGTH: 910 words HEADLINE: A Growing Conspiracy: Theories Abound in Hill Mail BYLINE: By Rachel Osterman BODY: The government installing a computer chip in a woman's brain. The FBI engaging in massive coverups. A letter from God. These and other messages are part of a stream of conspiracy-related mail that Congressional offices say they have received since the events of Sept. 11 catapulted the intelligence community to front-and-center news. Nearly every Member's office has long gotten its fair share of spoof letters, but even the most seasoned mail openers have seen a spike in communications alleging sinister government plots. "We've been getting a lot," said Jobeena Brown, Rep. Albert Wynn's (D-Md.) staff assistant. "They talk about things like seeing terrorists in their neighborhood, they're paid by the CIA, the FBI shot so-and-so, and so on." Responding to conspiracy mail has presented both quandaries and lighthearted moments for the interns and staffers charged with sorting and answering letters. Most offices view every constituent correspondence as important, since their authors are considered very likely to vote. So, if they can, legislative assistants answer them - and often seriously. Rep. Adam Smith's (D-Wash.) office, for example, frequently sends a reassuring letter to conspiracy theorists. "I can assure you that the war on terror is not a phony war that has been planned to acquire global leadership," the letter reads. Katherine Lister, Smith's press secretary, explained that the office tries to treat every constituent with respect. "The way we've responded to those letters is we say we're doing our best in Congress to get information," she explained. That might work well with Smith, who sits on the Armed Services Committee and can assert his familiarity with the intelligence community. But not all offices have that luxury. Staffers for Rep. Gene Taylor (D-Miss.) often find themselves with research projects when they receive letters alleging government plotting. "We look up the information and try to give them all the facts" if the authors are constituents, Chief of Staff Wayne Weidie said. Not all Members require that their offices honor constituent spoof mail with replies. "We've got a couple of regulars who write about various conspiracies," said Hal Weatherman, who helps keep track of mail directed to Rep. Sue Myrick (R-N.C.). If those authors have a "legitimate constituent service" request, the office responds. But a lot of times such mail is unanswerable, Weatherman said. At Wynn's office, staffers have a policy of filing the conspiracy mail in folders labeled "miscellaneous." "There's nothing we can really say to them," explained Staff Assistant Brown. "But just in case they show up at the office one day, demanding their letters, we want to keep them." Those same staffers charged with reading the allegations of conspiracy theorists often do some theorizing themselves on what kind of people would take the time to author elaborate mail. Many staffers surmise that the letter writers - who are usually male - are lonely, bored while in jail (quite a few return addresses are from prisons), or schizophrenic. But Virginia Revere, a psychologist who has a private practice in Alexandria, Va., said the writers of spoof mail are usually "borderline," meaning they are neither clinically schizophrenic nor are they fully normal. Schizophrenics, she said, tend to be more withdrawn. "They're good enough to live in the world, but not good enough to live in a functional way," Revere explained. Revere added that many conspiracy theorists find themselves either attracted to extremist groups or are so isolated - a distinction she makes from loneliness - that they draw illogical conclusions. "In a sense it's creative, and in a sense it's way, way out," she said. Just like there is no single formula for offices' responding to the conspiracy mail, the letters, e-mails and phone calls staffers receive allege a variety of sinister wrongdoing. Weidie, Taylor's chief of staff, recalled a recent phone call that claimed misdeeds on the part of federal agencies. "They said they were in Disney World one time and served [Osama] bin Laden breakfast," Weidie explained. Chuck Knapp, press secretary for Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.), said that a particularly tricky letter for his office to respond to came from a constituent saying the government had implanted an electronic device in her head. "If the government is indeed implanting devices in our constituents' heads, we're sure the government is not going to admit to it," Knapp reflected, partly joking. Indeed, some staffers readily say that conspiracy mail injects lightheartedness into their days. Andrew Montgomery, a 22-year-old intern for Wynn, said he received one letter that was so outlandish he decided to take it home for his reading pleasure. The letter, like many of its kind, alleged massive government coverup and was titled "Top Secret." Jose Garza, a 23-year-old legislative correspondent for Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-Texas), said he received a letter a couple of days ago from a man asserting he was God and warning of a coming holy war. He said he found it funny enough to share with others in his office. "I printed the e-mail from God and put it on one of my co-worker's desks so he would know," Garza joked. "It definitely beats people who have complaints or problems," Garza added. "You read everything and take it all seriously at first. Then after a while it makes the job more enjoyable." ====== MARtin F. ABErnathy -- Providence, RI -- 10/16/02 -- abemarf@aol.com