I start with the Russian mindset that has them as the victims of incomprehensible conspiracies brought on by their enemies. They live and breathe conspiracies against them because nothing they hear and see from their own leadership is true. Every impulse they have is to disbelieve what their own eyes and ears tell them, and they think everyone else behaves the same way. That gives them license to foment conspiracies against everyone else. Their world is seen as if through the lens of a psychiatric ward for the criminally insane. Consequently, never know what to believe, or from whom. That makes them vulnerable to 'deep fakes' that can be exploited. Mindfucking is all part of the game, and it's especially bad when they have no access to an honest broker who can help them sort things out. In that respect, they are as Trumpian as the GOP.
Intelligence agencies play the long game because the consequences of actions taken in the past are their points of departure for where they want to go now. The question is where the tipping points are for certain outcomes. Some outcomes are better than others, and in our situation, we experienced worse outcomes whenever we allowed domestic politics to interfere with decisions to halt or proceed
with outcomes that would have been more consistent with our national interest and security. By way of example, we allowed sentimental affection for France cloud our judgment about allowing them to return to Indochina after World War II. We replenished their military with cast-off weaponry that we would have salvaged. The excuse was that we were fearful that France would 'go communist' on post-war elections.
We misread popular uprisings in Iran and the Dutch East Indies.
We supported Chiang Kai-Shek long after it became clear that KMT rule in China was doomed. We did get a few things right, in the Balkans and in the eastern Mediterranean. We won the Cold War by setting a better example for Eastern European countries than Russia did. We used our wealth and power to rebuild Europe. We supported the establishment of the State of Israel against the Arabists and antisemitism in the American State Department. None of the other Middle Eastern countries can match Israeli accomplishments, and in return we won ourselves a powerful ally.
We remade Japan and saved South Korea.
Doubtless, we could have done better in some instances, in Latin America, for instance, but we got the important stuff right. I believe that this was largely due to the fact that in the postwar world our foreign policy was more people-centered than it was during our `war on terrorism' that reached full flower under the second Bush administration, but which really began much earlier when we decided to make the Shah of Iran our protégé and surrogate in West Asia. We lost our way, and we have paid a fearful price for that error; and the source of that error, I believe, letting the big international oil companies dominate American policy for their own financial benefit.
Russian paranoia has been written about for some time. I recall it was a 2 semester class in the past.
Arthur, Basically i agree with your well made points here. But i have for about 60 of my 82 years been concerned about federal agencies and their clandestine an "secret" operations.
I opt for for more light on these subjects.
REPORTERS and Whistleblowers are necessary to keep us free.
It seems you have a clear picture of The Empires goals.
In an open society, too much information that ought not be disclosed to those who would exploit our weakness, and bandied about for malicious purposes can lead to the very evils we are trying to protect against. Right now we are trying to defend our governmental institutions against Trumpian nihilism. Governance is not a faculty debate, and cannot be conducted in a goldfish bowl. Our enemies mean us real harm. Unnecessary secrecy is bad, but lack of discretion and naivete can be worse. As long as we are ruled by our own emotions, extrinsic controls over what information can be made public knowledge may be necessary, because we are rarely at our best in judging the merits of our own cause. It's a balancing act compounded by contradiction, ambiguity, and opacity regarding what we can know for sure. Too much information compromises our ability to choose effectively. Second guessing everything gets nothing accomplished.
This is fascinating, confusing, wtf stuff. I'm in the wilderness just trying to get my old mom from day to day as she creeps closer to the end of her days yet I'm still worried about where the hell MY life will end in all of this
"However, for those serious about the rational and logical discourse of unresolved historical questions, who are not afraid to be given answers that are at once disturbing, well reasoned, and imminently readable, {Mark} Lane's book {Plausible Denial : Was the CIA Involved in JFK's Death? {New York, Thunder Mouth's Press, 1988, 419 pp.} is a must.
To describe the book using Rumpole of the Bailey's phrase "a rattling good yarn" is to say that it is as engrossing as a John le Carre or Len Deighton novel. But the spies Lane talks of here are not cold warriors defending the free world from the international communist conspiracy, but rather possible conspirators themselves in an American coup d'etat."
The abridged Bantam audiobook version of the NY Times bestseller Plausible Denial, 150 minutes running time, on two cassettes (remember them?!) approved by the author, is available on Ebay --- in fact I just received one to replace the copy I had, which was partially trashed by my double-cassette CD/Radio player --- for a nominal cost, used "in excellent condition" for $4.50 plus $5.00 shipping is the low price on there as of seconds ago.
Those who do not remember the past, are condemned to relive it.
----- George Santayana
Another path into this particular labyrinth of shattered mirrors, complete with Watergate burglars Frank Sturgis (erstwhile Colonel in the Cuban Air Force, aka Frank Fiorini) and the infamous E. Howard Hunt, as Mark Lane's book is about the case of Hunt vs. Liberty Lobby, Inc.
^^^^ On Joseph Trento, whose article about former CIA official Victor Marchetti was part of the mix.
I just noticed the Spartacus article has "1995" instead of "1985" for the date of the jury's verdict.
One more, for those willing to dig deeper, as it's a lengthy discussion of the case and its
implications, that is the case Liberty Lobby lost (with a $650,000 judgment against them, in 1980s dollars that would have bankrupted them), which led to the case where Mark Lane essentially put the
CIA on trial. The casemine.com linked article also serves as a tutorial in libel law, helping to prepare us for the E. Jean Carroll versus Donald "Herr Gropenfuehrer" Trump defamation/sexual assault trial scheduled for later this month in New York.
Tradecraft is a world unto itself beginning with recruitment through retirement. Yet President/CinC George W Bush put the DIRCIA in change of Af in the late hours of 911. The same man who rejected the overtures from Mullah Omar months before 911 as well as advised W not to receive him or the traditional gifts he brought.
One can say 911 bears many similarities to the Bay of Pigs along with other misadventures championed by the IC. As an aside, it is also a contributory to scores of MIA in SEA and manifested with the late Sen. McCain saying let it be. aka spitting on the credo of leave no man behind. May he rot in his skyguy's hell along side of those in DoD who ordered the execution of circa 4000 (yes, 4000) MWDs in SEA, most in front of their partners.
I think you covered all the bases, Lucian. The message: don’t take anything from the intelligence world that comes into the public view very seriously.
Once again, Lucian, this is where your expertise informs us far beyond what the main stream media is able to do. And this is far, far beyond the simplicity of our fathers in WWII with their battle tactics and rather limited air surveillance, very dependent on weather and cloud cover. And a quantum leap beyond what my grandfather and grand uncles experienced in WWI when humans were just beginning to fly, pigeons and cavalry were still used to send messages.
It also brings forth the arguments concerning these leaked materials and Dan Ellsberg (Pentagon Papers), Snowden and Julian Assange- were/are they traitors or good human beings attempting to do what they believe are best for mankind?
I have this discussion with my 91 year old dearest friend, as mentioned previously, paratrooper, Korea, 11th Division, which pisses him off no end that the 82nd and 101st got all the glory, but then I digress. He praises Snowden saying the boy attempted to go through internal channels about his concerns but was shut down. Anyone who has worked in government knows the bureaucratic inertia and coverup. I take the government's side, he Snowden's. But I also understand his position and there is much truth to it. Ellsberg got hit with the 1917 Espionage Act along with other charges of theft and conspiracy (just like Snowden), carrying a total maximum sentence of 115 years. Because of governmental misconduct and illegal evidence-gathering, and the defense by great attorneys, a judge dropped the charges. Get a tRump appointed judge today and Ellsberg would be in prison for life. Assange much more grey.
Whistleblowers are the life and blood of freedom. Give Daniel Ellsberg, Eric Snowden, Julian Assange, Chelsa Manning, Reality Winner. Samuel Shaw and Richard Marvin, HERO MEDALS.
BOOK Donald Trump 3 more times and Rudy also. And Ginni and her boyfriend Lenoard.
Would gut Snowden, then sit with him as he bled out with your shiny medal around his traitorous neck. Oh, in his Moscow apartment as a citizen of Ru.
Advise you google John Oliver's interview w/Snowden as well as how Snowden contributed to shielding the #daeshbags (ISIS) from the US, the west and the Rojava Kurds which resulted in the slaughter of the Yezidis as well as countless others across SWA. FTR: This is common knowledge.
Assange is a perv. Pervs don't get medals, they get Justice.
The case involving E. Howard Hunt, former CIA agent, Watergate burglar, who attempted extortion
of the Nixon White House, in Hunt v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., tried in a federal district court in south Florida,
with the jury concluding the CIA was *probably* involved in the JFK assassination. That was expressed by the jury's forewoman, after the verdict was rendered --- naturally the local news media wanted no part of her statement, and relegated it to a brief video clip on the late-late news. The national news media, feckless and determined to avoid inconvenient facts, did its best to bury the case and the verdict.
But attorney Mark Lane, defense attorney for Liberty Lobby in the civil case, wrote an account that became a NY TImes bestseller, a neat irony indeed!
My first thought was WTF!?
My second thought was "when weak appear strong and when strong appear weak" by Suz Tzu. So, a misinformation leak.
And I also thought "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" was a mind fuck. The venerable Mr. LeCarre ain't got nothing on this shit.
Smart stuff, Lucian--and entertaining to boot. A great take.
Thanks, DC Intel dude.
Since Mr Stein kissed it, nothing can be added or substracted.
So reassuring, to have you absorbing this dizzying stuff and rendering it in English.
My thoughts exactly. Ditto that!
I start with the Russian mindset that has them as the victims of incomprehensible conspiracies brought on by their enemies. They live and breathe conspiracies against them because nothing they hear and see from their own leadership is true. Every impulse they have is to disbelieve what their own eyes and ears tell them, and they think everyone else behaves the same way. That gives them license to foment conspiracies against everyone else. Their world is seen as if through the lens of a psychiatric ward for the criminally insane. Consequently, never know what to believe, or from whom. That makes them vulnerable to 'deep fakes' that can be exploited. Mindfucking is all part of the game, and it's especially bad when they have no access to an honest broker who can help them sort things out. In that respect, they are as Trumpian as the GOP.
Intelligence agencies play the long game because the consequences of actions taken in the past are their points of departure for where they want to go now. The question is where the tipping points are for certain outcomes. Some outcomes are better than others, and in our situation, we experienced worse outcomes whenever we allowed domestic politics to interfere with decisions to halt or proceed
with outcomes that would have been more consistent with our national interest and security. By way of example, we allowed sentimental affection for France cloud our judgment about allowing them to return to Indochina after World War II. We replenished their military with cast-off weaponry that we would have salvaged. The excuse was that we were fearful that France would 'go communist' on post-war elections.
We misread popular uprisings in Iran and the Dutch East Indies.
We supported Chiang Kai-Shek long after it became clear that KMT rule in China was doomed. We did get a few things right, in the Balkans and in the eastern Mediterranean. We won the Cold War by setting a better example for Eastern European countries than Russia did. We used our wealth and power to rebuild Europe. We supported the establishment of the State of Israel against the Arabists and antisemitism in the American State Department. None of the other Middle Eastern countries can match Israeli accomplishments, and in return we won ourselves a powerful ally.
We remade Japan and saved South Korea.
Doubtless, we could have done better in some instances, in Latin America, for instance, but we got the important stuff right. I believe that this was largely due to the fact that in the postwar world our foreign policy was more people-centered than it was during our `war on terrorism' that reached full flower under the second Bush administration, but which really began much earlier when we decided to make the Shah of Iran our protégé and surrogate in West Asia. We lost our way, and we have paid a fearful price for that error; and the source of that error, I believe, letting the big international oil companies dominate American policy for their own financial benefit.
Historically insightful posting. Thanks.
Russian paranoia has been written about for some time. I recall it was a 2 semester class in the past.
Arthur, Basically i agree with your well made points here. But i have for about 60 of my 82 years been concerned about federal agencies and their clandestine an "secret" operations.
I opt for for more light on these subjects.
REPORTERS and Whistleblowers are necessary to keep us free.
It seems you have a clear picture of The Empires goals.
Thanks for scribbling.
In an open society, too much information that ought not be disclosed to those who would exploit our weakness, and bandied about for malicious purposes can lead to the very evils we are trying to protect against. Right now we are trying to defend our governmental institutions against Trumpian nihilism. Governance is not a faculty debate, and cannot be conducted in a goldfish bowl. Our enemies mean us real harm. Unnecessary secrecy is bad, but lack of discretion and naivete can be worse. As long as we are ruled by our own emotions, extrinsic controls over what information can be made public knowledge may be necessary, because we are rarely at our best in judging the merits of our own cause. It's a balancing act compounded by contradiction, ambiguity, and opacity regarding what we can know for sure. Too much information compromises our ability to choose effectively. Second guessing everything gets nothing accomplished.
Espionage always makes my head hurt. Thanks Lucian.
This is fascinating, confusing, wtf stuff. I'm in the wilderness just trying to get my old mom from day to day as she creeps closer to the end of her days yet I'm still worried about where the hell MY life will end in all of this
Well, hang in there. It's hard to see things clearly at times like these, but it gets better.
Games. War games.
Good one.
No comment. Or if l made one, I’ll deny it.
Plausible denial is what you want, excellent!
And it has a history:
www.groverproctor.us/jfk/jfk91a.html
^^^^^^^
"However, for those serious about the rational and logical discourse of unresolved historical questions, who are not afraid to be given answers that are at once disturbing, well reasoned, and imminently readable, {Mark} Lane's book {Plausible Denial : Was the CIA Involved in JFK's Death? {New York, Thunder Mouth's Press, 1988, 419 pp.} is a must.
To describe the book using Rumpole of the Bailey's phrase "a rattling good yarn" is to say that it is as engrossing as a John le Carre or Len Deighton novel. But the spies Lane talks of here are not cold warriors defending the free world from the international communist conspiracy, but rather possible conspirators themselves in an American coup d'etat."
The abridged Bantam audiobook version of the NY Times bestseller Plausible Denial, 150 minutes running time, on two cassettes (remember them?!) approved by the author, is available on Ebay --- in fact I just received one to replace the copy I had, which was partially trashed by my double-cassette CD/Radio player --- for a nominal cost, used "in excellent condition" for $4.50 plus $5.00 shipping is the low price on there as of seconds ago.
Those who do not remember the past, are condemned to relive it.
----- George Santayana
Another path into this particular labyrinth of shattered mirrors, complete with Watergate burglars Frank Sturgis (erstwhile Colonel in the Cuban Air Force, aka Frank Fiorini) and the infamous E. Howard Hunt, as Mark Lane's book is about the case of Hunt vs. Liberty Lobby, Inc.
www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1985-02-07-8501040830-story.html
HUNT LOSES LIBEL CASE is their headline,
spartacus-educational.com/JFKtrento.htm
^^^^ On Joseph Trento, whose article about former CIA official Victor Marchetti was part of the mix.
I just noticed the Spartacus article has "1995" instead of "1985" for the date of the jury's verdict.
One more, for those willing to dig deeper, as it's a lengthy discussion of the case and its
implications, that is the case Liberty Lobby lost (with a $650,000 judgment against them, in 1980s dollars that would have bankrupted them), which led to the case where Mark Lane essentially put the
CIA on trial. The casemine.com linked article also serves as a tutorial in libel law, helping to prepare us for the E. Jean Carroll versus Donald "Herr Gropenfuehrer" Trump defamation/sexual assault trial scheduled for later this month in New York.
www.casemine.com/judgement/us/5914c36cadd7b049347c6537
Joe Trento is an old friend.
Why am I not surprised?!
Tradecraft is a world unto itself beginning with recruitment through retirement. Yet President/CinC George W Bush put the DIRCIA in change of Af in the late hours of 911. The same man who rejected the overtures from Mullah Omar months before 911 as well as advised W not to receive him or the traditional gifts he brought.
One can say 911 bears many similarities to the Bay of Pigs along with other misadventures championed by the IC. As an aside, it is also a contributory to scores of MIA in SEA and manifested with the late Sen. McCain saying let it be. aka spitting on the credo of leave no man behind. May he rot in his skyguy's hell along side of those in DoD who ordered the execution of circa 4000 (yes, 4000) MWDs in SEA, most in front of their partners.
I think you covered all the bases, Lucian. The message: don’t take anything from the intelligence world that comes into the public view very seriously.
You mean like the Pentagon Papers?
Once again, Lucian, this is where your expertise informs us far beyond what the main stream media is able to do. And this is far, far beyond the simplicity of our fathers in WWII with their battle tactics and rather limited air surveillance, very dependent on weather and cloud cover. And a quantum leap beyond what my grandfather and grand uncles experienced in WWI when humans were just beginning to fly, pigeons and cavalry were still used to send messages.
It also brings forth the arguments concerning these leaked materials and Dan Ellsberg (Pentagon Papers), Snowden and Julian Assange- were/are they traitors or good human beings attempting to do what they believe are best for mankind?
Different agendas present Different answers to your question. Ellsberg is easy. The others not so much.
I have this discussion with my 91 year old dearest friend, as mentioned previously, paratrooper, Korea, 11th Division, which pisses him off no end that the 82nd and 101st got all the glory, but then I digress. He praises Snowden saying the boy attempted to go through internal channels about his concerns but was shut down. Anyone who has worked in government knows the bureaucratic inertia and coverup. I take the government's side, he Snowden's. But I also understand his position and there is much truth to it. Ellsberg got hit with the 1917 Espionage Act along with other charges of theft and conspiracy (just like Snowden), carrying a total maximum sentence of 115 years. Because of governmental misconduct and illegal evidence-gathering, and the defense by great attorneys, a judge dropped the charges. Get a tRump appointed judge today and Ellsberg would be in prison for life. Assange much more grey.
Whistleblowers are the life and blood of freedom. Give Daniel Ellsberg, Eric Snowden, Julian Assange, Chelsa Manning, Reality Winner. Samuel Shaw and Richard Marvin, HERO MEDALS.
BOOK Donald Trump 3 more times and Rudy also. And Ginni and her boyfriend Lenoard.
Especially Reality Winner. What a travesty of justice!
Would gut Snowden, then sit with him as he bled out with your shiny medal around his traitorous neck. Oh, in his Moscow apartment as a citizen of Ru.
Advise you google John Oliver's interview w/Snowden as well as how Snowden contributed to shielding the #daeshbags (ISIS) from the US, the west and the Rojava Kurds which resulted in the slaughter of the Yezidis as well as countless others across SWA. FTR: This is common knowledge.
Assange is a perv. Pervs don't get medals, they get Justice.
Totally agree with you.
The authenticity of the Pentagon Papers was established at the time.
In case you all didnt know, PER THE CIA,
the Wagner group using Taliban members from Yemen and financed by China blew up the Nord Stream Pipe Line.
HA HA
But im sticking with Seymour Hersch. A REPORTER WITH CREDIBILITY.
IN MEMORY OF GARY WEBB AND CHARLES C BOWDEN
Before you get too carried away with the reporting of Seymour Hersch (sic), consider this:
www.kennedysandking.com/john-f-kennedy-articles/sy-hersh-falls-on-his-face-again-and-again-and-again
Cogent, lucid, fact-based criticism, that's what you want.
My head is spinning!
Another notorious example from recent history:
www.casemine.com/judgement/us/5914c36cadd7b049347c6537
The case involving E. Howard Hunt, former CIA agent, Watergate burglar, who attempted extortion
of the Nixon White House, in Hunt v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., tried in a federal district court in south Florida,
with the jury concluding the CIA was *probably* involved in the JFK assassination. That was expressed by the jury's forewoman, after the verdict was rendered --- naturally the local news media wanted no part of her statement, and relegated it to a brief video clip on the late-late news. The national news media, feckless and determined to avoid inconvenient facts, did its best to bury the case and the verdict.
But attorney Mark Lane, defense attorney for Liberty Lobby in the civil case, wrote an account that became a NY TImes bestseller, a neat irony indeed!
Thank you, Lucian, so good and clear as usual.
Excellent sitrep. Thanks