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Comment by arca_vorago | Hacker News Reader

It's worth noting an abnormal amount of high level persons in the military industrial complex are Knights of Malta, particularly the CIA heads. Just an fyi.

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I think this is different. Malta the EU country doesn’t seem to have much in common with that Rome-based sovereign order of Malta organisation, other than the name of course.

Yes and no.

The now-Rome-based order used to actually rule over Malta, before being forced out by Napoleon Bonaparte and relocating to Italy. It's unlikely they will ever regain ownership of the island, but they are still considered almost a sovereign state, despite not actually holding any territory. They do have a sizeable presence on Malta, including a free lease on their historic fort, which is used for their activities and considered extra-territorial like an embassy.

The independent government has traditionally been friendly towards them, as they were towards the Catholic Church in general. During the Cold War, it is alleged the order used the island as a safe base for espionage activities directed towards Italy, usually in concert with other NATO organisations. A number of shady Italian personalities had links to the order and owned properties on the island; this is why Maltese corruption is hardly a surprise to most Italian researchers.

This does not appear to be entirely the case[0].

>The Parliament of the Republic of Malta has ratified today the agreement set out in 1998 between the Maltese Government and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, pursuant to which Fort St. Angelo, the oldest fort in Malta, shall be granted in concession to the Order for a period of 99 years.

Please do not construe this rebuttal as an agreement with the GP that the SMOM is some kind of Illuminati organization. From what I can gather, it looks like the group is a quasi-sovereign Red Cross type entity today.

[0]https://www.orderofmalta.int/2001/03/13/two-centuries-order-...

Conspiracy Thinking and Pattern Recognition

https://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/conspiracy-thi...

“We conclude that illusory pattern perception is a central cognitive mechanism accounting for conspiracy theories and supernatural beliefs.”

Since 1798, Knights of Malta have been based in Rome (where they have their tiny extraterritorial palaces). They have nothing to do with the island of Malta anymore.

> They have nothing to do with the island of Malta anymore.

Allegedly. ALLEGEDLY !!!

Do you have any citation for this? It sounds, well, made up. Also as mentioned The Knights of Malta haven't had anything to do with the island for over 200 years.

I went about my day and just got back. I had no idea this would strike such a nerve. Yes, here is my citation, though it's unlikely to be seen now that I've been massively flagged for pointing out something relevant. I think anyone who is genuinely curious would find some very interesting things in this treaty between the government of Malta and the SMOM.

https://foreignaffairs.gov.mt/en/Treaties%20Series/Documents...

Beyond that there is a rich history of the relationship between SMOM and the government of Malta, the SMOM and other orders that reside on Malta, and how they connect to the Vatican/Rome.

Really it was something I noticed when researching the history of the OSS and CIA, that so many CIA people were also SMOM. That's what led me down the path of reading up on them.

This doesn't really seem to back up what you were saying though, about the CIA and the Order of Malta. This is just pretty much setting up an embassy.

And? What is the significance and why is it worth noting?

Because it's an interesting anomaly, considering the apparent corruption.

Why is everyone so quick to offense when someone mentions the CIA outside of tech?

It doesn't have anything to do the island of Malta

Okay, thanks.

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