My point being they that the conditioning/feedback-loop may exist even in the case where the people involved are not aware of it. It is possible to have agents working independently, on their own compartmentalized pieces of the larger mission, each being influenced in a (apx) similar manner.Given the history of the NSA (and FBI) I would wager there probably is a significant amount of conspiracy in the department.
Money is a powerful conditioning force, and humans miss the "obvious" things that are influencing them all the time.
Money is a powerful conditioning force, and humans miss the "obvious" things that are influencing them all the time.