The CIA director’s son who died fighting for Russia in Ukraine was part of Rainbow Family, a roving hippie collective that gathers and camps outside for full moon cycles. 

I encountered them in late 2023 in northern Portugal protesting a lithium mining project. Their nude bathing in the rivers and propensity to pick fruit from farmers’ trees made them controversial guests in the tiny village. Many were intensely spiritual and preachy, lecturing farmers against wearing shoes that disconnected them from energy in the soil.

Reporter and writer. I cover energy, climate change and geopolitics. Contact me via my website www.alexanderckaufman.com and subscribe to kaufman.substack.com.