[pphysch]

The broader story here, which the article totally omits, is that the CIA is responsible for fueling and arming extremist groups such as ISIS as a means to take down "enemy regimes" in the region like Syria and Iran, in the wake of the largely failed military occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq.

The subject of this article was probably involved in such nasty clandestine work, which could partly explain why he was so nihilistic/unhappy.