What would you look up if you had access to the entire database of the United States Secret Service? War crimes? Institutional abuses of powers? The truth behind conspiracy theories? Well, you’re in luck. Whistleblower and former CIA employee Edward Snowden has done a lot of that for you.
In 2013, Snowden leaked highly classified information from inside the National Security Agency, revealing a global surveillance program of private citizens. But it appears that this is not the only thing he looked up. In his new book, Permanent Record, he mentions several conspiracy theories he checked while working for the agency.
According to Snowden, alien intelligence has never contacted Earth – or at least not the US, there is no such thing as chemtrails, the Moon landing is real, and so is global warming. (We can’t wait to see what conspiracy theory people will invent to explain such a denial from a whistleblower.)
Snowden also talked about these conspiracies in the latest episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, a popular audio and video podcast, telling host Joe Rogan that no aliens are being hidden by the US government. It looks like the plan to storm Area 51 was always destined to fail.
"I know, Joe, I know you want there to be aliens," Snowden says frankly in the podcast. "But the idea that we're hiding them – if we are hiding them – I had ridiculous access to the networks of the NSA, the CIA, the military, all these groups. I couldn't find anything."
"If it's hidden, and it could be hidden, it's hidden really damn well, even from people who are on the inside," he added.
Snowden also discussed why conspiracy theories are so appealing; how surprisingly reassuring it is to think that someone else is in control (relinquishing your own), and that things are happening for a reason. Despite how nefarious those reasons may turn out to be.
Snowden finished by discussing the very real dealings of the US Secret Service in the post-9/11 world, which continues to affect us today. But at least you know they are not hiding aliens.
