“The IC generates an enormous amount of intel but insight remains limited. You don’t always get what you pay for.”
“The whole IC is antithetical to democracy and the idea of oversight being exercised by the people.”
I am wont to draw upon movie scripts to illustrate. Two come to mind here, the first from the 2006 James Bond movie “Casino Royale,” in the scene where Bond (Daniel Craig) and Vesper Lynd (Eva Green, woo-hoo!) first meet on the train. I think these lines of hers in that scene are underappreciated:
Vesper – “And since your first thought about me ran to 'orphan' that’s what I’d say you are. Oh, you are… And that makes perfect sense since MI6 looks for maladjusted young men that give little thought to sacrificing others in order to protect Queen and country. You know former SAS types with easy smiles and expensive watches. Rolex?”
Bond – “Omega.”
Vesper – “Beautiful.”
And this one from further back, 1975’s “Three Days of the Condor”:
Mr. Wabash (John Houseman): “Why aren't you further along?”
Higgins (Cliff Robertson): “With the Company, sir?”
Wabash: “You seem perfect for it. Are you perfect for it, Mr. Higgins?”
Higgins: “I try to be, sir.”
Wabash: “You were recruited out of school?”
Higgins: “No, interviewed in Korea. You served with Colonel Donovan in the OSS?”
Wabash: “I sailed the Adriatic with a movie star at the helm. It doesn't seem like much of a war now, but it was. I go even further back than that. Ten years after the Great War, as we used to call it, before we knew enough to number them.”
Now these are drawn from fiction, but in turn based on some realities, namely that the “IC” goes way back, and it is staffed with more than its fair share of ideologically driven psycho- and sociopaths, from the upper reaches of the political and economic establishment. The Dulles brothers (see Stephen Kinzer’s “The Brothers”) are prime examples: Kennedy was smart and bold enough to fire Allen as Director of the CIA after the Bay of Pigs disaster, and it’s a national embarrassment that the airport outside Washington, DC is named after his older brother John Foster, Secy of State under Eisenhower. The airport might well have been named after Oliver North for that matter (and bad enough that the non-partisan National Airport in DC was renamed after Reagan, God bless the cult-worshiping hearts of the Republicans, if they had any).
That there are eighteen(!) known(!) intelligence agencies is disturbing enough, but that also only hints at the pervasiveness of the intelligence juggernaut. It’s infiltrations into academia, into industry, into the arts and culture (e.g, the “Paris Review”) give a hint at the depth and breadth of the intelligence, surveillance, propaganda, and even clandestine enforcement arm of The Empire.
That line from another movie (and book), “Catch-22” by Joseph Heller, “Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you,” isn’t there just for laughs.
... sooo ein riesen Aufwand!!! An Personal, Geld und Zeit. Allein die manpower dahinter ließe auch wsl in zweistelligen Millionen Stunden schätzen pro Jahr für eine "Tätigkeit", welche dazu geführt hat, was USA nun ist: ein von Angst und Paranoia gebeuteltes Land...eure Landesväter wie Jefferson, Madison und andere stehen sich im Grab um mit 180/min...
... what a massive effort!!! In terms of personnel, money, and time. The sheer manpower behind it alone could probably be estimated in the tens of millions of hours per year for an "activity" that has led to what the USA is now: a country plagued by fear and paranoia... your Founding Fathers like Jefferson, Madison, and others are spinning in their graves at 180 rpm... wollte the entire World is suffocating, cos we're really pissed by all that bullshit!!!
I've been saying for some time now that if the Founders could be brought back from the grave--a good trick, admittedly--after they got over the shock of how much the world has changed and took a close look at the current rat's nest in the nation's capital, they would personally take up arms and ride against it. [They'd have to steal some horses from D.C. Metro Police Dept. I guess. It would take too long to master driving a tank! :-)]
Everyone, this is the beginning of the solution. The New Epic 100% Truthful movie 🎥 🍿 there is a great free musical but still going to be a very controversial movie, The Resurrection of Thomas Massie (Summer 2026), posted here, well worth it:
Your reviews of this new movie would be highly appreciated. Bill Astore also stars in it with his July 4th Declaration against the termites of war narrated 10-20 minutes into it. Check it out this evening after dinner.
If our “leaders” — and I’m referring to the whole gaggle of clueless folks making important policy decisions, meaning 535 legislators — aren’t “intelligent” or objective enough to take advantage of our IC work, it seems reasonable to want to replace these do-nothing know-nothings with better elected officials. Is that extreme?
No.., and John I'll go a step further I'd rather take the first "535" random citizens in alphabetical order, or any order for that matter in the Phone Book Directory minus the real Yellow Pages..! :/ :o)
I’ve suggested this many times, somewhat tongue-in-cheek. But you’re right. At least put regular folks in these positions. No more professional, career politicians!
While I was on active duty (1967-71), my fellow dissident soldiers and I always considered "military intelligence" a laugh-worthy OXYMORON. You recall the old complaint about cable TV, "500 channels and nothing worth watching"? Well, we have 18 "intel" agencies and don't even get reliable "intel"! Not that I favor improved pinpointing of overseas targets, mind you. It was claimed within past few days that those Iranian school girls were incinerated at outset of the US/Israeli war against Iran due to "outdated intel." OUTDATED INTEL!! Yeah, Mr. Musk, maybe you shoulda looked into efficiency issues in this "community" (kinda has a warm & fuzzy feel to it, huh?). How much time must have passed since--assuming this was ever the true case--that building had some military application?? The Mossad has proved sickeningly effective in locating targets for overseas assassinations. I'm sure that the Muslim world is crawling with Mossad operatives or internal traitors in their employ. Was this attack on the school intentional then? Well, the Secretary of War is an avowed "Crusader," meaning he would like to see every Muslim in the world torched. Do I exaggerate? His actions speak even more loudly than his wretched words. :-(
Bear in mind, the only intel released to the public is that which conforms to official policy. Even so-called "leaks" are officially approved by "management". What is actually known within the IC is rarely consistent with what is said or acted upon by the President.
The biggest problem with the IC is the politicization at the top of most of those 18 agencies. The heads of those agencies are usually political appointees (Executive Level)* who, in turn, appoint numerous deputies and assistants whose job it is to ensure that all reports and briefings prepared at the working (GS) level are consistent with current political policies.
I've had my own reports and briefings reviewed and edited by "management" to the extent that I barely recognized them. Some of them were watered down to the extent that the primary message was lost or even contradicted.
Case in point: Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. Almost all the IC workers knew that Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction, yet Colin Powell was forced to brief the U.N. Security Council that Hussein did have them - because that was the "official policy".
Bottom Line: An intelligence agency headed by a political hack is a total waste of money.
===========================
*And have no experience in intelligence and know nothing about the business other than what they have seen on TV.
Hello Bill Astore.... The Biggest problem is that Intel Community is that the Intel Community is headed up by Political Operatives, and the 'Opinions' must bend to their Will....
Hello Bill... Mossad is as effective as it is because is because it is Patient, and Exploits ( Bribery ) the Fissures in the target Societies.... Interesting Tidbit, about Israeli Society... About 1/4 are Soviet Expats which contributes to their Ruthlessness... Examine the Choice of Words for their Actions...
Bill, not to worry.
If the NDAA (with Section 219) passes, we'll just have one: Mossad
LOL. Just what we need.
Apparently Mossad was the basis for Trump's attack on Iran so it looks like we're already there. (sarc)
“The IC generates an enormous amount of intel but insight remains limited. You don’t always get what you pay for.”
“The whole IC is antithetical to democracy and the idea of oversight being exercised by the people.”
I am wont to draw upon movie scripts to illustrate. Two come to mind here, the first from the 2006 James Bond movie “Casino Royale,” in the scene where Bond (Daniel Craig) and Vesper Lynd (Eva Green, woo-hoo!) first meet on the train. I think these lines of hers in that scene are underappreciated:
Vesper – “And since your first thought about me ran to 'orphan' that’s what I’d say you are. Oh, you are… And that makes perfect sense since MI6 looks for maladjusted young men that give little thought to sacrificing others in order to protect Queen and country. You know former SAS types with easy smiles and expensive watches. Rolex?”
Bond – “Omega.”
Vesper – “Beautiful.”
And this one from further back, 1975’s “Three Days of the Condor”:
Mr. Wabash (John Houseman): “Why aren't you further along?”
Higgins (Cliff Robertson): “With the Company, sir?”
Wabash: “You seem perfect for it. Are you perfect for it, Mr. Higgins?”
Higgins: “I try to be, sir.”
Wabash: “You were recruited out of school?”
Higgins: “No, interviewed in Korea. You served with Colonel Donovan in the OSS?”
Wabash: “I sailed the Adriatic with a movie star at the helm. It doesn't seem like much of a war now, but it was. I go even further back than that. Ten years after the Great War, as we used to call it, before we knew enough to number them.”
Now these are drawn from fiction, but in turn based on some realities, namely that the “IC” goes way back, and it is staffed with more than its fair share of ideologically driven psycho- and sociopaths, from the upper reaches of the political and economic establishment. The Dulles brothers (see Stephen Kinzer’s “The Brothers”) are prime examples: Kennedy was smart and bold enough to fire Allen as Director of the CIA after the Bay of Pigs disaster, and it’s a national embarrassment that the airport outside Washington, DC is named after his older brother John Foster, Secy of State under Eisenhower. The airport might well have been named after Oliver North for that matter (and bad enough that the non-partisan National Airport in DC was renamed after Reagan, God bless the cult-worshiping hearts of the Republicans, if they had any).
That there are eighteen(!) known(!) intelligence agencies is disturbing enough, but that also only hints at the pervasiveness of the intelligence juggernaut. It’s infiltrations into academia, into industry, into the arts and culture (e.g, the “Paris Review”) give a hint at the depth and breadth of the intelligence, surveillance, propaganda, and even clandestine enforcement arm of The Empire.
That line from another movie (and book), “Catch-22” by Joseph Heller, “Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you,” isn’t there just for laughs.
... sooo ein riesen Aufwand!!! An Personal, Geld und Zeit. Allein die manpower dahinter ließe auch wsl in zweistelligen Millionen Stunden schätzen pro Jahr für eine "Tätigkeit", welche dazu geführt hat, was USA nun ist: ein von Angst und Paranoia gebeuteltes Land...eure Landesväter wie Jefferson, Madison und andere stehen sich im Grab um mit 180/min...
... what a massive effort!!! In terms of personnel, money, and time. The sheer manpower behind it alone could probably be estimated in the tens of millions of hours per year for an "activity" that has led to what the USA is now: a country plagued by fear and paranoia... your Founding Fathers like Jefferson, Madison, and others are spinning in their graves at 180 rpm... wollte the entire World is suffocating, cos we're really pissed by all that bullshit!!!
I've been saying for some time now that if the Founders could be brought back from the grave--a good trick, admittedly--after they got over the shock of how much the world has changed and took a close look at the current rat's nest in the nation's capital, they would personally take up arms and ride against it. [They'd have to steal some horses from D.C. Metro Police Dept. I guess. It would take too long to master driving a tank! :-)]
Everyone, this is the beginning of the solution. The New Epic 100% Truthful movie 🎥 🍿 there is a great free musical but still going to be a very controversial movie, The Resurrection of Thomas Massie (Summer 2026), posted here, well worth it:
vocl.com/profile/324043
Your reviews of this new movie would be highly appreciated. Bill Astore also stars in it with his July 4th Declaration against the termites of war narrated 10-20 minutes into it. Check it out this evening after dinner.
This new excellent Thomas Massie and Freedom movie can also be seen at our New Patriot Party VOCL forum link 🔗 here:
https://vocl.com/profile/324043
If our “leaders” — and I’m referring to the whole gaggle of clueless folks making important policy decisions, meaning 535 legislators — aren’t “intelligent” or objective enough to take advantage of our IC work, it seems reasonable to want to replace these do-nothing know-nothings with better elected officials. Is that extreme?
https://no-contract-no-vote.us
No.., and John I'll go a step further I'd rather take the first "535" random citizens in alphabetical order, or any order for that matter in the Phone Book Directory minus the real Yellow Pages..! :/ :o)
I’ve suggested this many times, somewhat tongue-in-cheek. But you’re right. At least put regular folks in these positions. No more professional, career politicians!
While I was on active duty (1967-71), my fellow dissident soldiers and I always considered "military intelligence" a laugh-worthy OXYMORON. You recall the old complaint about cable TV, "500 channels and nothing worth watching"? Well, we have 18 "intel" agencies and don't even get reliable "intel"! Not that I favor improved pinpointing of overseas targets, mind you. It was claimed within past few days that those Iranian school girls were incinerated at outset of the US/Israeli war against Iran due to "outdated intel." OUTDATED INTEL!! Yeah, Mr. Musk, maybe you shoulda looked into efficiency issues in this "community" (kinda has a warm & fuzzy feel to it, huh?). How much time must have passed since--assuming this was ever the true case--that building had some military application?? The Mossad has proved sickeningly effective in locating targets for overseas assassinations. I'm sure that the Muslim world is crawling with Mossad operatives or internal traitors in their employ. Was this attack on the school intentional then? Well, the Secretary of War is an avowed "Crusader," meaning he would like to see every Muslim in the world torched. Do I exaggerate? His actions speak even more loudly than his wretched words. :-(
Bear in mind, the only intel released to the public is that which conforms to official policy. Even so-called "leaks" are officially approved by "management". What is actually known within the IC is rarely consistent with what is said or acted upon by the President.
The biggest problem with the IC is the politicization at the top of most of those 18 agencies. The heads of those agencies are usually political appointees (Executive Level)* who, in turn, appoint numerous deputies and assistants whose job it is to ensure that all reports and briefings prepared at the working (GS) level are consistent with current political policies.
I've had my own reports and briefings reviewed and edited by "management" to the extent that I barely recognized them. Some of them were watered down to the extent that the primary message was lost or even contradicted.
Case in point: Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. Almost all the IC workers knew that Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction, yet Colin Powell was forced to brief the U.N. Security Council that Hussein did have them - because that was the "official policy".
Bottom Line: An intelligence agency headed by a political hack is a total waste of money.
===========================
*And have no experience in intelligence and know nothing about the business other than what they have seen on TV.
"The intelligence was fixed around the policy."
BINGO!
Hello Bill Astore.... The Biggest problem is that Intel Community is that the Intel Community is headed up by Political Operatives, and the 'Opinions' must bend to their Will....
Yes, there's that, but the IC exerts a gravitational pull of its own. Like a black hole.
Hello Bill... Mossad is as effective as it is because is because it is Patient, and Exploits ( Bribery ) the Fissures in the target Societies.... Interesting Tidbit, about Israeli Society... About 1/4 are Soviet Expats which contributes to their Ruthlessness... Examine the Choice of Words for their Actions...
Agreed