2019 has undoubtedly been a hotbed for all manner of conspiracy theories and other Internet madness. This is the year that Edward Snowden decided to put a nail in the coffin of one huge conspiracy theory that has persisted for decades. The now-famous data leaker’s new memoir is out and in the pages of Permanent Record, he lays out just how much contact that government officials have had with extraterrestrial life. Even more boldly, the author sets the record straight on the moon landings too. “For the record, as far as I could tell, aliens have never contacted Earth, or at least they haven’t contacted US intelligence,” Snowden said in an excerpt published by CNN. “In case you were wondering: Yes, man really did land on the moon. Climate change is real. Chemtrails are not a thing.”
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So, obviously there’s a lot to unpack there. There are some major conspiracies he addresses in a few short sentences. Let’s get the moon landing one out in front. Snowden says that man really did walk on the moon. There have been countless conspiracy buffs on the Internet and IRL that have talked about all the factors that lead them to doubt that historical moment. In spite of all that would be evidence, the world’s most famous leaker thinks its nothing more than hot air at this point.
According to his research into US intelligence records, aliens have not contacted us to his knowledge. (Pour one out for those very energetic kids that decided to storm Area 51 earlier this Summer.) Now, I suppose that would leave the door open to extraterrestrial life contacting other governments, but this all dissolves into a puddle of nonsense the further you drill down deeper into it. Still, it is kind of a bold claim to put down in ink for the world to see, but the man has never lacked for nerve.
As for those other assertions, it is good to have some definitive answers on those as well. He mentioned the possibility of more informations on aliens, but that it would have to be so tightly guarded that even people with top-level clearance wouldn’t know about it. (I mean there could be an MIB headquarters somewhere, I suppose. It isn’t likely, but hey what about this year has been “normal.”) A quote from his appearance on the Joe Rogan podcast puts the whole thing in perspective. “Everybody wants to believe in conspiracy theories because it helps life make sense.”
Now, that is something that I feel like we can all agree upon.
Image credit: JORG CARSTENSEN/DPA/AFP via Getty Images
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WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 26: (L-R) Ryan Graves, executive director of Americans for Safe Aerospace, David Grusch, former National Reconnaissance Officer Representative of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena Task Force at the U.S. Department of Defense, and Retired Navy Commander David Fravor testify during a House Oversight Committee hearing titled "Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Implications on National Security, Public Safety, and Government Transparency" on Capitol Hill 26, 2023 in Washington, DC. Several witnesses are testifying about their experience with possible UFO encounters and discussion about a potential covert government program concerning debris from crashed, non-human origin spacecraft.
