Admittedly this is conspiracy theory speculation that might suggest I’m in need of a fitting for a tin-foil hat. Still……

There was “bigly” news yesterday. Two big items in fact. One was that our erstwhile President demonstrated yet again what a vile, misogynistic P.O.S. he his - even a boatload (a big one too) of Republicans took part in the push back. The other was that a Wall Street Journal reporter (Shane Harris) published what could turn out to be an explosive piece about a GOP researcher named Peter Smith. He’s not someone who before now has been in the public consciousness, but here’s a short story that tells a little more about him - http://www.ibtimes.com/who-was-peter-w-smith-gop-operative-implied-michael-flynn-tie-seek-clinton-emails-2559672

In a diary I published last night I focused on how the information in Harris’ article meant that Mike Flynn was screwed. I didn’t start writing until after watching Rachael Maddow’s show, during which she had a chat with Mr. Harris. It was noted both before and during the interview that Smith himself is now silent – he died ten days after his interview with Harris. Not much was, or has been made of how he died – he was after all up there in years. If I remember correctly his age was noted & somewhere around eighty years old. So on the face of things, his death could reasonably be expected to have been from natural causes related to his age.

OTOH, these are not normal circumstances. Smith actually sought out the reporter (Harris) and was quite open about what he’d done as well as firm in his belief it was all proper and in the service of what was to him (Smith) a worthy cause. Harris admitted he would liked to have talked more. However, he was well into his reporting on the story (a longer, more complicated discussion I won’t get into here) and since he’d gotten plenty from Smith to that point he moved on to other aspects of his work on the story, assuming he’d get to talk more with Smith. But Smith died.

As I said, Smith was old & if he apparently just up & died that in and of itself wouldn’t be all that surprising. But it’s important to again note that Smith sought out the reporter. Smith was open and frank about who he spoke to and the actions he took to try and get Russian help to hack/obtain more Clinton emails, and how to make sure they were released. That included discussing the Flynn link and the fact he (Smith) had been open with others about what he did and who was involved. Is it tin-foil hat time to wonder if Smith was just as open with friends about having spoken with the WSJ, and more importantly what he’d told the reporter? After all, Smith not only wasn’t making any attempt to hide the fact he was working to get Russian help to obtain still more Clinton emails. He was PROUD of his efforts, and as I keep saying enough so he sought out a reporter he’d heard was working on the story and spoke on the record about it.

This is the first (public at least) meaningful link to a key Trump person talking/working with someone who was getting help from Russian hackers. Another tantalizing aspect of Harris’ conversation with Maddow last night is that there’s more that is possible, even likely been going on with investigators looking that might not even be about Smith! Anyway, I can’t help but think about Putin’s history and ruthlessness.

First of all we know Putin was actively involved in the Russian interference in our election – he didn’t merely order it but orchestrated and took an active part as it was happening. We also know that a lot of people who have crossed Putin have wound up dead. There are many examples of brutal murders (and attempted ones) of people Putin wanted silenced – that were public in the sense that he wanted to send a “this can/will be you” message to critics. He’s of course denied any responsibility for shootings, poisonings and so on but everyone knows who was responsible. However, one must also keep in mind two things – most of these but importantly not all have taken place in Russia or Russian spheres of influence. Some assassinations have taken place in western Europe. But the second thing is even more important to consider – Putin will murder people to protect his own butt/interests but he’s ex-KGB. He was also Spetnaz which is Russian Special Forces. IOW he’s well acquainted with all manner of ways to cause death, and even doing so in a way that makes it look like an accident. Or natural causes. The KGB “wet-works” department put a lot of effort into killing people and making it look like they just, to use a phrase I used earlier “up and died.”

Is it so crazy to think that if Putin got word that some old guy, even an American was not just talking to a reporter from a respected news outlet, but doing so openly and on the record AND naming names that included a big one (Flynn) already being targeted by investigators looking for collusion between the Trump Campaign and Russia? And that he (Putin) would want the guy shut the hell up? Remember, Smith was proud of what he’d done and clearly eager to get public credit for it. Now, some might say that Putin ordering the murder of an American on American soil would be “crossing the line.” To that I say it’s virtually certain that the Soviet Union did that type of thing (albeit quietly – as might have happened to Smith) in the past. More to the point though is that Putin has already gotten away with so much. Is it crazy to think he’d figure that as long as it was made to look like “natural causes” he’d get away with it now? After all, Smith was old and outside select GOP circles not well known. His death could easily be dismissed as just another older person dying. Without a really good autopsy with someone looking for specific things Smith’s death stood good odds of passing forensic muster.

I have no problem believing Putin would order a hit on Smith before he could do any more talking to the WSJ or anyone else. Putin has proven over and over again he will do whatever he has to including order deaths (and back when he was younger personally carry them out) to protect his interests. Given the institutional expertise the KGB was known to have, and given some of the public assassinations that have been carried out with poisons (radioactive and others) that have proven impossible to trace it’s clear all those files weren’t destroyed. So what if it crosses the line? So what if it’s audacious? Given what he’s gotten away with so often on so many fronts (IOW matters having nothing to do with the U.S.) Putin’s no more immune to hubris than anyone else. In fact, he’s probably far more susceptible than most leaders to succumbing to it. But if Putin did order Smith murdered it won’t wind up biting him in the hind-end unless some serious forensic work was done when Smith died. Even now it might not be too late, although it would be that much tougher to prove a month later.

So tell me, is it time for me to put on a tin-foil hat?