The above photo was taken when I was assigned to the Marine Security Guard (MSG) detachment (det) in Rio de Janeiro, Brasil from 1999 to 2000. From there, I was transferred to the MSG det in Lima, Peru from 2000 to 2001. I’ll share more about that transfer in a bit.
Prior to MSG service, I had no idea that United States (U.S.) consulates and embassies were essentially fronts for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Colloquially, spies, contractors, and subcontractors affiliated with the Agency are known as “spooks.”
Back then, I didn’t know how much my fellow Marines knew about spooky business having taken place in South America. We didn’t sit around discussing it. Still, one wonders as to whether or not these individuals would’ve even cared had they known.
Personally, cognitive dissonance experienced from conflicting beliefs when discovering truth led to disillusionment with the mythology I learned about the U.S. as a child. I genuinely thought that the nation to which I was committed was morally and ethically superior to other nations.
Allow me to explain. Morals are of or relating to principles of right and wrong in behavior. As a system of moral values, ethics are principles of conduct governing an individual or a group. Simply, morals tell people what’s right or wrong and ethics are rules by which we pledge to live.
Without use of critical thinking, I once used a cognitive framework that was illogical and unreasonable (collectively “irrational”). To understand my former belief about U.S. moral and ethical superiority, consider the following syllogism:
Form (modus ponens) –
If p, then q; p; therefore, q.
Example –
If the system of governance in the U.S. is good, then it’s acceptable for the U.S. to influence the governments of other nations to be more like the U.S.
The system of governance in the U.S. is good.
Therefore, it’s acceptable for the U.S. to influence the governments of other nations to be more like the U.S.
Although the cognitive premises I once used resulted in a logical conclusion, subjective morality rendered my belief unreasonable. This is because what one nation considers good may not be a common interest of another country. To better understand this matter, here’s another syllogism:
Form (modus tollens) –
If p, then q; not q; therefore, not p.
Example –
If South American nations invite influence of the U.S. to put its proverbial hands into the affairs of these sovereign countries, then the U.S. should, must, or ought to touch South American nations by way of consulate and embassy fronts for the CIA.
South American nations don’t invite influence of the U.S. to put its proverbial hands into the affairs of these sovereign countries.
Therefore, the U.S. shouldn’t, mustn’t, or oughtn’t to touch South American nations by way of consulate and embassy fronts for the CIA.
When a modus ponens belief clashed with the realization of a modus tollens belief, I experienced cognitive dissonance—discomfort when attitudes contradict one another and cause tension. As well as disillusionment, I believed that the U.S. may be the baddies of the world.
In Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), one’s unfavorable beliefs about a situation are what caused the unpleasant consequence I experienced on MSG duty. To make matters worse, I self-disturbed with unhelpful assumptions regarding why other MSGs seemed to favor the CIA.
Still, not all spooks were unscrupulous actors. I imagine that there may’ve been some officers in disguise who genuinely believed in the diplomatic mission of the U.S. in South America. It’s not irrational to maintain that some of them thought they were doing well for the U.S. and the world.
Interestingly, many of these people used false identities and covert job descriptions when facilitating their missions. One wonders about whether or not the deceptive practice needed to fulfill one’s occupational duties suggests the moral and ethical nature of one’s job itself.
Regarding such deception one source states, “There’s cover for status—e.g., saying you’re a ‘Foreign Service officer’ [FSO] to justify your presence in whatever country you’re operating in—and cover for action, which is why you’re up to what you’re up to, in the moment.”
I met plenty of “FSO” characters when on MSG duty. Whether or not they considered their proverbial hands touching the sociopolitical affairs of other nations as being akin to a form of sovereign molestation remains unknown. Also, one imagines that they wouldn’t care either.
What is clear is that both Brasilians and Peruvians with whom I spoke voiced concern about the U.S. having a long history of its fingerprints in North (e.g., Mexico), Central (e.g., El Salvador), and South (e.g., Columbia) American nations. Many of those people didn’t want to be touched.
Thinking of this matter, I’m reminded of a song that I heard when serving on the MSG program. On occasion, I endured sweat-soaked clothes when dancing to it. To better understand, it may help to know that in Spanish tócame (sometimes spelled: toca me) means touch me.
La Cubanita released the track “Toca Me” in 1998, though I didn’t hear it until living in South America (1999-2001). Notably, people on the dance floor were enthusiastic when the vocalist sang, “Cuba, Colombia, Perú, Ecuador, El Salvador, Panamá, Santo Domingo, y Puerto Rico!”
Would it surprise you to learn that the CIA has a history of influence in a number of those areas? Recently, I discovered a TikTok video that lists various CIA coups in South America. One isn’t surprised that there’ve been attempts to cancel the video platform when such truth is revealed.
In a separate YouTube video, more in-depth exploration of U.S.-backed coups is presented. In any case, I was ordered to Peru shortly after the Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori and his head of Peru’s National Intelligence Service, Vladimiro Montesinos, fled the country.
According to one source, the CIA had its hands in the affairs of Peru and in regard to matters for which I provided security during that turbulent time in Lima. I won’t bore you with the publically-available details herein. Simply know that the spooks touched Peru.
Unlike the enthusiasm on the dancefloor while “Toca Me” played when I lived in South America, people were disinclined to appreciate how the CIA impacted them when touching their sovereign countries south of the U.S. Thankfully, one source now reports:
The Central Intelligence Agency on Tuesday [2/4/2025] became the first major national security agency to offer so-called buyouts to its entire workforce, a CIA spokesperson and two other sources familiar with the offer said, part of President Donald Trump’s broad effort to shrink the federal government and shape it to his agenda.
If hands are strangling the CIA to reshape it toward a shrunken version of the behemoth that has proverbially molested the world with its grubby hands is truly taking place, I applaud this effort! May the world know more peace, even if only for the next four years, due to these buyouts.
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As the world’s foremost electronic dance music (EDM)-influenced REBT psychotherapist—promoting content related to EDM, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
References:
Discogs. (n.d.). La Cubanita. Retrieved from
Distant.elephant. (2023, November 30). Every CIA coup in South America [Video]. TikTok. Retrieved from https://www.tiktok.com/@distant.elephant/video/7307473704630504747
Goldstein, J. M. (2021, November 9). The CIA is trying to recruit Gen Z—and doesn’t care if they’re all over social media. Washingtonian. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonian.com/2021/11/09/how-gen-z-and-the-tiktok-generation-are-becoming-spies/
Harris, J. (2023, February 9). American-backed coups, mapped [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/_wIOqHSsV9c?si=mI4aspJsSeYz7QQ9
Hollings, D. (2024, January 3). Are we the baddies? Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/are-we-the-baddies
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Lillis, K. B. and Collins, K. (2025, February 4). CIA sends ‘buyout’ offers to entire workforce. CNN. Retrieved from https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/04/politics/cia-workforce-buyouts/index.html
Trip – The Sound of the Future, The. (2023, August 22). DJ Lucho presents La Cubanita - Toca Me (Latin mix) (1998) [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/eRxD85XYGjs?si=aCluyhC4lutScKL8
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