Some days I think that I have the best job in the world. Yesterday was one of those days.
An old man called into the reference desk with a rambling story in which a question was buried somewhere. Most people might have stopped him at some point, said that we couldn't help him directly, and then offer to save him time and refer elsewhere. This tactic is probably the most appropriate for our resources and his. However, I chose to listen to him and prod him with the occasional request for clarification or play him for a tune that he didn't know was in front of him. That's a good reference interview. But after an hour I couldn't get anything out of him. He is old and had trouble seeing the forest for the trees; everything was a detail that meant a roadblock to the overall picture for me. He was working it backwards, going from the inside out, instead of starting with a broad, general overview of the entire problem and working our way in, like I'm used to doing. What made me stay on the line, though, was his story.
For the sake of privacy and ethics, I can't relate it here. I know that's a tease and a half, so I'm sorry. Yet, it involved some high-ranking antics from a war that involved most of the world a long time ago (hint-hint). The interesting part was that the things he was saying were pretty far-fetched. He sounded genuine and he didn't seem senile, so I wanted to believe his unbelievable tale. He actually came and visited the library later that evening when I wasn't there. I spoke to my boss who handled him and we discussed the merits of his plight. She said that he had a really tight case with his version and produced a lot of credible and genuine documents. We're talking signed by dudes who were appointed by the president. It's hard not to believe him. But still...
The argument boils down to a conspiracy, which are always fun to play out, but almost always fall into much ado about nothing. Evidence is conveniently never found, and victims are described as morally or ethically suspect or just plain stupid. This guy doesn't seem to be any of these. When we extrapolate his situation, it requires us to guess about motives and events that may or may not have happened. It would require a lot of further research, which is maddening, because we don't have the time or resources to devote to this and neither does he. Every time more information is needed, ten questions pop up that necessitate investigation. Each one of those poses the same risk.
On top of his story, there lies a threat. Information is a dangerous product. He claims to have obtained classified information that resulted in a congressional aide being fired. He also claims to have had files from his house stolen (not the important stuff) and an arson attempt on his property. He swears that people are surveilling him from his street. If true, this makes a person think twice about getting in too deep with him. He's probably just paranoid, but the logical leaps a person must take with his story say otherwise; this is the kind of thing that people could try to keep quiet.
But why? If it happened so long ago, why not give an honest assessment and admit wrongs, forgive and move on? What would someone today have to profit from suppressing the truth of some despicable action over sixty years ago? These all make the intrigue much greater.
I know that this is all frustrating and not much fun to read since you don't have any details. So I guess I'll just make up something along the same lines.
During World War II, secret operations needed to remain secret. However, oversight was necessary by congress to make sure that money isn't being wasted or stolen. But what if it was? What if you wanted to use it for your own purposes? How much could someone cover up? Enough to make a company profitable? Enough to make retirement accounts for all involved? It's like stolen loot. But what if the loss of it resulted in honorable people losing their lives? How do you explain that? How many people can keep a secret? What if the score was too big to hide? How is this done? Well, if you had connections here, there and everywhere, you could take it away from another department of the government, declare their records as classified for national security reasons until some far off date in the future, and when the truth comes out you'll be dead after hopefully living a long, happy, and guiltless life. Well, it's 2008 and things are being declassified left and right. And some people are still alive who continue to give a damn.
Well, now come on! That sounds ridiculous. So many people would have to be culpable, and what would their reward be? Even now? But that's what we're left with. These things don't point to errors or massive incompetence, which would be unbelievable, too. No, this requires purposeful human deception. This is how mysteries are made. Mysteries that will never be solved. The bureaucracy is too big, the affected too small. People like this old man, who is looking for justice based on principle, are really looking for an explanation at which we can only guess. It makes me a little sad to think that almost everyone doesn't believe him, and that he has such an uphill battle to climb in the waning years of his life. But it is his quest and I'm glad to have heard about it and maybe be a rung of help along the way. I would love to participate in uncovering a bizarre truth or righting a long-running wrong. I just don't think it's going to happen here, unless some hero historian is willing to step up and field this one.
These conspiracies are so attractive, because they lead the imagination in wild directions. These have unexplained facts and documents that shouldn't normally be in existence. So why are they? Well, follow them down the rabbit hole and you'll eventually chase it down a hallway that ends with doors and windows that are bricked up. Someone had to do it. That's the intriguing part.
An old man called into the reference desk with a rambling story in which a question was buried somewhere. Most people might have stopped him at some point, said that we couldn't help him directly, and then offer to save him time and refer elsewhere. This tactic is probably the most appropriate for our resources and his. However, I chose to listen to him and prod him with the occasional request for clarification or play him for a tune that he didn't know was in front of him. That's a good reference interview. But after an hour I couldn't get anything out of him. He is old and had trouble seeing the forest for the trees; everything was a detail that meant a roadblock to the overall picture for me. He was working it backwards, going from the inside out, instead of starting with a broad, general overview of the entire problem and working our way in, like I'm used to doing. What made me stay on the line, though, was his story.
For the sake of privacy and ethics, I can't relate it here. I know that's a tease and a half, so I'm sorry. Yet, it involved some high-ranking antics from a war that involved most of the world a long time ago (hint-hint). The interesting part was that the things he was saying were pretty far-fetched. He sounded genuine and he didn't seem senile, so I wanted to believe his unbelievable tale. He actually came and visited the library later that evening when I wasn't there. I spoke to my boss who handled him and we discussed the merits of his plight. She said that he had a really tight case with his version and produced a lot of credible and genuine documents. We're talking signed by dudes who were appointed by the president. It's hard not to believe him. But still...
The argument boils down to a conspiracy, which are always fun to play out, but almost always fall into much ado about nothing. Evidence is conveniently never found, and victims are described as morally or ethically suspect or just plain stupid. This guy doesn't seem to be any of these. When we extrapolate his situation, it requires us to guess about motives and events that may or may not have happened. It would require a lot of further research, which is maddening, because we don't have the time or resources to devote to this and neither does he. Every time more information is needed, ten questions pop up that necessitate investigation. Each one of those poses the same risk.
On top of his story, there lies a threat. Information is a dangerous product. He claims to have obtained classified information that resulted in a congressional aide being fired. He also claims to have had files from his house stolen (not the important stuff) and an arson attempt on his property. He swears that people are surveilling him from his street. If true, this makes a person think twice about getting in too deep with him. He's probably just paranoid, but the logical leaps a person must take with his story say otherwise; this is the kind of thing that people could try to keep quiet.
But why? If it happened so long ago, why not give an honest assessment and admit wrongs, forgive and move on? What would someone today have to profit from suppressing the truth of some despicable action over sixty years ago? These all make the intrigue much greater.
I know that this is all frustrating and not much fun to read since you don't have any details. So I guess I'll just make up something along the same lines.
During World War II, secret operations needed to remain secret. However, oversight was necessary by congress to make sure that money isn't being wasted or stolen. But what if it was? What if you wanted to use it for your own purposes? How much could someone cover up? Enough to make a company profitable? Enough to make retirement accounts for all involved? It's like stolen loot. But what if the loss of it resulted in honorable people losing their lives? How do you explain that? How many people can keep a secret? What if the score was too big to hide? How is this done? Well, if you had connections here, there and everywhere, you could take it away from another department of the government, declare their records as classified for national security reasons until some far off date in the future, and when the truth comes out you'll be dead after hopefully living a long, happy, and guiltless life. Well, it's 2008 and things are being declassified left and right. And some people are still alive who continue to give a damn.
Well, now come on! That sounds ridiculous. So many people would have to be culpable, and what would their reward be? Even now? But that's what we're left with. These things don't point to errors or massive incompetence, which would be unbelievable, too. No, this requires purposeful human deception. This is how mysteries are made. Mysteries that will never be solved. The bureaucracy is too big, the affected too small. People like this old man, who is looking for justice based on principle, are really looking for an explanation at which we can only guess. It makes me a little sad to think that almost everyone doesn't believe him, and that he has such an uphill battle to climb in the waning years of his life. But it is his quest and I'm glad to have heard about it and maybe be a rung of help along the way. I would love to participate in uncovering a bizarre truth or righting a long-running wrong. I just don't think it's going to happen here, unless some hero historian is willing to step up and field this one.
These conspiracies are so attractive, because they lead the imagination in wild directions. These have unexplained facts and documents that shouldn't normally be in existence. So why are they? Well, follow them down the rabbit hole and you'll eventually chase it down a hallway that ends with doors and windows that are bricked up. Someone had to do it. That's the intriguing part.
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1 comment:
Dude, this sounds so much like and X-Files episode that it scares and excites me at the same time.
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