The Berlin Crisis of 1961

Section I - INTELLIGENCE HIGHLIGHTS

General Petraeus Hangs Up Uniform, Warns on Budget. General David Petraeus warned against sacrificing U.S. military capabilities to ease America's budget woes, as he retired from the Army on Wednesday ahead of becoming CIA director.

Petraeus, 58, rose through the ranks to become arguably the U.S. military's brightest star, credited for helping to turn around the Iraq war and for helping to halt the momentum of Taliban militants in Afghanistan. He led U.S. troops in both conflicts and briefly oversaw the entire the region as head of the U.S. military's Central Command.

"Dave has, over the last decade, advised two Presidents, changed the course of two wars, transformed our military, and perhaps most important of all, reminded Americans once again, that with the right ideas and the right leadership, almost anything is possible," Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at the retirement ceremony.

Mullen added: "Afghanistan is now a more secure and hopeful place than a year ago." [Read more:  Reuters/31August2011] 

Pan Am Flight 103 - Lockerbie Bombing - al-Megrahi CIA Files Published by PaperlessArchives.com. BACM Research/PaperlessArchives.com has announced the publishing of CIA files related to the Pan Am Flight 103, Lockerbie Bombing.

The files can be downloaded for free at: http://www.paperlessarchives.com/panam103cia.html

The files date from 1984 to 1999. These are the most recent files on Pan Am 103 released by the CIA. This set of files is unique because it includes memos on the direct handling of an intelligence source. This type of information is exempt from the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and is not often released by the Agency.

The files cover information received by the CIA on Abdel Basset al-Megrahi. Al-Megrahi is the only person ever convicted in the Pan AM 103 case. The Scottish government in 2009 allowed al-Megrahi to be released from custody and returned to Libya, because of his failing health. With the recent fall of Muammar Qaddafi's regime, there have been renewed calls for al-Megrahi to be returned to Scottish custody or extradited to the United States and put on trial. [Read more:  Webwire/31August2011] 

Taiwan Ex-Spy Chief Cleared of Corruption Charge. Taiwan's ex-spy chief and right-hand man of jailed former president Chen Shui-bian was cleared Tuesday of embezzling diplomatic funds during Chen's term in office, a court said.

Chiou I-jen, a former head of the National Security Bureau, was acquitted of pocketing $500,000 - earmarked for expanding Taiwan's participation in international affairs - in 2005, due to a lack of evidence.

The Taipei district court said the money went to an unidentified third party.

This is the latest in a series of legal victories for Chen and former top officials in his government. The ex-president is currently serving a prison term of 17 years and six months on two bribery convictions. [Read more:  AP/31August2011] 

US Counterterror Chief: al-Qaida on 'Steady Slide.' White House counterterrorism chief John Brennan said al-Qaida is "on a steady slide" after the death of al-Qaida's latest second-in-command in Pakistan.

Brennan told The Associated Press on Wednesday that it's a "huge blow" in the first official White House comment since Atiyah Abd al-Rahman's reported killing by CIA drone strike in Pakistan's tribal areas last week.

"Al-Qaida is sort of on the ropes and taking a lot of shots to the body and the head," Brennan said.

"This is a time not to step back and let them recover," a message he says he's sending to his counterparts in Pakistan. [Read more:  Boston/31August2011] 

More Secrets Of Bin Laden Raid Are Revealed. More details of the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound are emerging - this time concerning the long-range communications and planning for the assault - with the sources coming from an intelligence agency and the aerospace industry.

Bin Laden's compound in Pakistan and a safe flight route to the site and back for helicopters were identified with mapping and imagery data fused by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), says Letitia Long, who was appointed director of the organization a year ago. She spoke Aug. 31 to a Washington meeting for Women in Defense. [Fulghum/AviationWeek/1September2011] 

Counterterror Veteran is New Deputy FBI Director. A 24-year FBI veteran with extensive counterterrorism experience, Sean Joyce, has been named the law enforcement agency's new deputy director.

Elevated to the No. 2 post within the FBI by Director Robert Mueller, Joyce replaces Timothy Murphy, who is retiring after 23 years with the bureau.

Since last year, Joyce has been executive assistant director of the national security branch, responsible for the FBI's national security and intelligence operations.

He earned the Attorney General's Award for Exceptional Service in 2004 for work on a counterterrorism squad in Dallas. In 2008, he was named chief of the counterterrorism division's international terrorism operations section, with responsibility for international terrorism matters within the United States. [Read more:  AJC/1September2011] 

Inside a Flawed Spy Machine as Gadhafi's Rule Crumbled. Reams of confidential documents reveal mounting desperation and disarray among top leaders of Col. Moammar Gadhafi's regime this past spring as power slipped through their fingers.

The files, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, were discovered in the office of Libya's spy chief and two other security agencies after the personnel fled their desks as civil war deepened. The documents expose an ossified culture within Libya's police state that proved largely incapable of switching gears to fight an actual war. Propaganda skills failed to translate into battlefield analysis, leaving soldiers furious and, in some cases, surprisingly clueless. [Levinson&Coker/WSJ/2September201] 

Top CIA Official: Obama "Changed Virtually Nothing." PBS's Frontline is airing an examination of "Top Secret America" on September 6. The show includes a rare and lengthy interview with 34-year-CIA-veteran John Rizzo, who is described as "the most influential lawyer in CIA history." 

Here is one quote they include from Rizzo: "With a notable exception of the enhanced interrogation program, the incoming Obama administration changed virtually nothing with respect to existing CIA programs and operations. Things continued. Authorities were continued that were originally granted by President Bush beginning shortly after 9/11. Those were all picked up, reviewed and endorsed by the Obama administration." [Read more:  Salon/1September2011]

"Stealth" Boat Could Revolutionize Naval Warfare. A stealth boat that moves through water at high speeds and with near invisibility could revolutionize the Navy's ability to carry out special operations on water.

The craft, called The Ghost, moves by generating a layer of gas around submerged surfaces, greatly reducing friction. It's unique design makes it ideal for special operations, according to DiscoveryNews. The ship can reach speeds of 60 miles per hour and has a shape designed to reduce its visibility to radar, similar to the Navy's "Sea Shadow" project of the 1980s.

Gregory Sancoff, president and chief executive officer of Juliet Marine, said the U.S. government is interested and his company is working with a defense contractor to build a 150-foot model. The friction reducing gas technology, called supercavitation, works by generating a low-pressure zone around the ship's surface.

The Ghost keeps a low radar profile the same way stealth planes do, by making the radar waves bounce off of its surface.

Sancoff said The Ghost is ideal for missions close to coasts, such as getting special operations teams into and out of areas quickly. It could also be deployed against pirates and even used to attack on aircraft carriers and destroyers. [Read more: Wilson/NBCDFW/30August2011]

CIA Shifts Focus to Killing Targets. Behind a nondescript door at CIA headquarters, the agency has assembled a new counterterrorism unit whose job is to find al-Qaeda targets in Yemen. A corresponding commotion has been underway in the Arabian Peninsula, where construction workers have been laying out a secret new runway for CIA drones.

When the missiles start falling, it will mark another expansion of the paramilitary mission of the CIA.

In the decade since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the agency has undergone a fundamental transformation. Although the CIA continues to gather intelligence and furnish analysis on a vast array of subjects, its focus and resources are increasingly centered on the cold counterterrorism objective of finding targets to capture or kill. [Read more: Miller&Tate/WashingtonPost/1September2011]

Ten Years After 9/11, Report Details Gaps in Intelligence Networks. Nearly 10 years after the 9/11 attacks U.S. intelligence agencies are still struggling to strengthen the information sharing networks that broke down in 2001, according to the latest report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).

"Counterterrorism requires the close coordination of intelligence and law enforcement agencies, but there remain many institutional and procedural issues that complicate cooperation between the two sets of agencies," states the report, issued earlier this month by the nonpartisan research arm of Congress.

The 33-page overview of outstanding intelligence issues that Congress needs to address focuses on several key barriers that prevent the CIA, the FBI, the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the National Security Agency (NSA), the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), and nearly a dozen other agencies and branches of the military from seamlessly gathering and sharing information about terrorists and their plots. [Read more: Yager/TheHill/20August2011]

DOD Works to Boost Smartphone Security. As the Defense Department seeks innovation made possible by smartphones and other mobile computing platforms, it's also working to ensure DOD users of those devices employ them securely, a defense official said.

"Because of the pervasiveness of the [mobile computing] market, everyone has one, everyone wants one, but we often don't look at how the device works - we take it home and start loading pictures on it," Robert E. Young, division chief of outreach and communications for the Defense-wide Information Assurance Program, said during a recent interview with the Pentagon Channel and American Forces Press Service.

"We do want this innovation in the Department of Defense so we don't want to say no," he added, "but we want to do it safely and securely.

Issues that concern the department, Young said, include the huge memory capacities of some of the new smart devices and users' general lack of knowledge about how smartphones and tablets work and how they could be compromised.

"With all the different operating systems out there," Young said, "every patch, every update changes each device and the vulnerabilities within [and users] are going to have to weigh that risk."

Young said the department is evaluating how people are really using the devices - whether they're using smartphones to check email or tablets to read memorandums or policies.

"What are you doing with the device? Is the camera disabled, are you taking pictures of people? I take a picture of you, I upload it and now you're tagged and all of a sudden everyone knows where you are. So it leads to a digital footprint that connects to the device - anywhere, anytime, any device," he said.

"In a split-second it's up and online," he added. "And once on the net - always on the net."

Part of the answer is to educate, and raise mobile technology awareness for military members, DOD's civilian workforce and their families, Young said.

As part of this effort, he added, the department is taking a cohesive approach to adopting mobile technology.

"We have a Commercial Mobile Device Working Group and we take best practices from [the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency], the [Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity] and from our intelligence community partners" and share information, Young said. [Read more: Pellerin/AFPS/29August2011]

Hackers Steal SSL Certificates for CIA, MI6, Mossad. The tally of digital certificates stolen from a Dutch company in July has exploded to more than 500, including ones for intelligence services like the CIA, the U.K.'s MI6 and Israel's Mossad, a Mozilla developer said Sunday.

The confirmed count of fraudulently-issued SSL (secure socket layer) certificates now stands at 531, said Gervase Markham, a Mozilla developer who is part of the team that has been working to modify Firefox to block all sites signed with the purloined certificates.

Among the affected domains, said Markham, are those for the CIA, MI6, Mossad, Microsoft, Yahoo, Skype, Facebook, Twitter and Microsoft's Windows Update service.

"Now that someone (presumably from Iran) has obtained a legit HTTPS cert for CIA.gov, I wonder if the US gov will pay attention to this mess," Christopher Soghoian, a Washington D.C.-based researcher noted for his work on online privacy, said in a tweet Saturday. [Read more: Keizer/ComputerWorld/4September2011]

Section II - CONTEXT & PRECEDENCE

9/11 Attacks Forced Changes in US Intelligence, al-Qaida. Among governmental institutions, the U.S. intelligence community was one of the most deeply scarred by the events of September 11, 2001. It was the intelligence agencies' job, after all, to detect and intercept attacks on American interests at home and abroad. The intervening 10 years has seen major changes at both the U.S. spy agencies and the terrorist groups they track.

Michael Hayden was in his office as the director of the National Security Agency, the nation's electronic intelligence arm that intercepts communications, when the planes struck on September 11th. He got an urgent call from his counterpart at the Central Intelligence Agency, Director George Tenet, that morning.

"He simply said, 'Mike, what do you have?' I said, 'George, they're celebrating,'" Hayden recalls. "We could hear the kind of congratulatory messaging throughout the al-Qaida network throughout the world. And I said, 'George, I don't have anything hard, but it's clear who did this.' We all knew. We all knew it was al-Qaida." [Read more: Thomas/VOA/31August2011]

From Terror Group Founder to Libyan Rebel Military Commander. The same man who triumphantly led Libyan rebels into Gadhafi's compound last week first came to the attention of the U.S. intelligence community years ago - as a founder of a terror group.

Abdelhakim Belhaj, who was recently appointed to Tripoli's rebel military council, was one of the original founders of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, an anti-Gadhafi group which was later designated by the U.S. State Department as a terrorist organization with links to al Qaeda, according to U.S. government reports.

"We proudly announce the liberation of Libya and that Libya has become free and that the rule of the tyrant and the era of oppression is behind us," a victorious Belhaj told reporters after the storming of Gadhafi's Bab al-Aziziya compound last week. Ousting Gadhafi had been the main objective of the LIFG since its inception in the early 1990s, even if some of the fighters believed that meant putting Americans in the crossfire.

The group carried out operations against the Libyan government including at least four suspected assassination attempts against Gadhafi in the 1990s and was also believed to be connected to a series of suicide bombings in Casablanca, Morocco, in 2003, the U.S. State Department reported. As relations between the U.S. and Gadhafi improved in the mid-2000s, some LIFG leaders cultivated relationships with top al Qaeda leaders including Osama bin Laden and were suspected of funneling fighters to Iraq to carry out operations against U.S. soldiers.

When the LIFG was designated a terror organization in 2004, it was meant as a "gesture of solidarity" with the Libyan government, according to a March 2011 congressional report.

Contrary to several U.S. government reports, Libyan rebel ambassador to the U.S., Ali Aujali, told ABC News that the LIFG was never connected to al Qaeda and did not carry out terrorist operations.

"They were only opposed to Gadhafi during his rule and paid the price for that by being oppressed by the regime," Aujali said.

The CIA first publicly voiced its concerns about the connection between the LIFG and al Qaeda in 2004 when then-director George Tenet testified before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and listed the LIFG among groups that represented an "immediate threat... [that] has benefited from al Qaeda links." [Read more: Ferran&Momtaz/ABCNews/29August2011]

The Intelligence Spam Machine. Shortly before the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Phoenix in July, the Homeland Security Department's Office of Intelligence and Analysis issued an ominous threat assessment. The 12-page document, marked "for official use only," included maps and satellite photos of the venue: a convention center and a prominent hotel.

It had all the trappings of a terrorism warning. There was just one problem: there was no real threat.

"The FBI, DHS, and Phoenix metropolitan-area law-enforcement agencies have identified no credible terrorist threats to the MLB ASG or its associated events and venues," the document said. "Nevertheless, we assess that the MLB ASG's high profile could make it a desirable target for terrorists or individuals seeking to cause casualties and to exploit media coverage to promote their cause."
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This exercise in futility has been repeated so often over the years that the office built with hundreds of millions of tax dollars is no longer taken seriously by many intelligence experts and law-enforcement agencies. A year after Sept. 11, the Homeland intelligence and analysis office was created to keep state and local law enforcement informed about domestic terror threats. The operation, intended to bring together the many limbs of the intelligence monster, has become feared for something else: spam.

"They produce almost nothing you can't find on Google," says Chet Lunner, a former Homeland Security deputy undersecretary. [Read more: Becker&Schulz/Newsweek/4September2011]

The Terrible Missed Chance. Special Agent Harry Samit of the FBI's Minneapolis field office knew he was looking into the eyes of a terrorist. It was early afternoon on Friday, Aug. 17, 2001. Across from him sat Zacarias Moussaoui, a 33-year-old French-born student arrested the day before for overstaying his visa. Moussaoui had paid more than $8,000 in cash that summer to sit in a cockpit simulator in a flight school in the suburbs of Minneapolis and learn - in a matter of days - the basics of how to fly a 747-400. Samit, a former intelligence officer at the Navy's celebrated Top Gun flight school, felt sure the man across the desk from him was a Muslim extremist who was part of a plot to hijack a commercial jetliner filled with passengers. "The trick," Samit wrote, in a soon-to-be-released excerpt of a book he's written about the case, "was getting Moussaoui to admit this and reveal details and associates to allow us to stop the plot."

Surely, the bureau brass in Washington would share his concern, Samit thought. He was wrong.

That same day, halfway across the country in the fluorescent-lit hallways of the J. Edgar Hoover FBI headquarters building in Washington, counterterrorism supervisors were treating Samit's first reports about Moussaoui with skepticism, even contempt. Michael Maltbie, a D.C. counterterrorism specialist, insisted repeatedly in the days after the arrest that there was no clear link between Moussaoui and Al Qaeda - the link needed for a warrant. Maltbie thought Moussaoui was a "dirty bird," he later told investigators, but favored deporting him to France.

Believing a hijacking might be imminent, Samit appealed to his boss in Minneapolis, Special Agent Greg Jones. Jones picked up the phone on Aug. 27 and called Maltbie at FBI HQ.

Moussaoui, he said, might be part of a plot "to get control of an airplane and crash it into the World Trade Center or something like that."

Maltbie scoffed. "You have a guy interested in this type of aircraft," Maltbie replied, according to FBI documents. "That is it." (Maltbie declined requests for an interview.)

At least Maltbie was paying attention. Michael Rolince, who ran the FBI's International Terrorism Operations Section, was arguably the bureau's most important go-between with the White House on domestic terrorist threats in the summer of 2001. He tells Newsweek he spent "less than 20 seconds" being briefed on the Moussaoui case that August. His office was inundated with terrorism probes, he said; since Moussaoui was in custody already, he posed no immediate threat. "Did it rise to the level of something that I would take upstairs?" Rolince asks. "The answer is no."

At CIA headquarters, alarm bells were ringing loudly. CIA Director George Tenet was briefed on Moussaoui within days of the arrest, receiving a paper with the eye-catching headline "Islamic Extremist Learns to Fly." But the FBI's acting director that summer and the bureau's most senior counterterrorism official were left in the dark. [Read more: Shenon/Newsweek/4September2011]

Section III - COMMENTARY

Is America Safer Since 9/11? The 10th anniversary of the horrific attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, should serve as a day of remembrance and mourning. The American people should come together next Sunday and commemorate that awful September morning, which marked the most vicious and unprovoked attack on the homeland since World War II. Yet they should also remember that despite the ringing alarm bells and terrifying prophecies, the United States has enjoyed a decade almost free of terrorism. There are several good reasons to feel confident and optimistic.

First, over the past 10 years, every now and then a terrorist, mostly a lone wolf, has succeeded in carrying out a successful attack on U.S. soil. However, in comparison to crime-related death, car accidents and coronary diseases, the number of casualties caused by terrorism is negligible. While it is quite common to criticize the intelligence community and the law enforcement agencies, they must be doing something right.

For some reason when it comes to terrorism we expect the government to provide us with 100 percent guarantees for safety. This is an unrealistic expectation. Yet the men and women of the National Security Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, military, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Transportation Security Administration and police, as well as many other agencies should be very proud of their impressive successes in meeting the high expectations of the American people and should be thanked by each and every one of us. If for a minute, we take a step back and look at the bigger picture, we should all agree that the risks associated with driving to work every day, should be a much bigger source for concern than terrorism.

Second, the killing of Osama bin Laden, following a meticulous intelligence operation and a courageous assault by SEAL Team 6, was a significant milestone. However, more important, the capabilities of Al-Qaeda had been diminished dramatically over the passing decade as a result of the decisive actions taken by the United Sates and its allies. [Read more: Pedahzur/UT/2September2011]

Taiwan Is Losing the Spying Game. Much ink has been spilled in recent months over the Obama administration's reluctance to sell Taiwan the 66 F-16C/D fighters it has been requesting since 2007. A final decision is expected by Oct. 2, and while many observers predict that political considerations will lead Washington to nix the deal, another factor may be at work: the penetration of almost every sector of Taiwanese society by Chinese intelligence. For the U.S. government and defense manufacturers, any arms sale to Taiwan carries the risk that sensitive military technology will end up in Beijing.

This worry is not new. Anyone who has followed developments in Taiwan over the years knows how deeply Chinese forces have infiltrated Taiwan's military, especially its senior officers. For years American officials have looked on in amazement as newly retired Taiwanese generals traveled to China for a round of golf, were wined and dined by their counterparts in the People's Liberation Army, and no doubt had their inebriated brains picked for information.

Taiwan's reputation has not been helped by a string of embarrassing cases involving members of the armed forces or civilians who spied for China. Some of the programs compromised involved American assistance, such as the Po Sheng "Broad Victory" upgrade to the military's command and control infrastructure. Even more damaging are the instances when culprits got away with a light sentence. Earlier this year Lai Kun-chieh, a software engineer, received a mere slap on the wrist for attempting to pass information about the PAC-3 Patriot missile defense system to China. [Read more:  Cole/WSJ/31August2011] 

Can Petraeus Handle the CIA's Skepticism on Afghanistan? When David Petraeus takes over as CIA director next week, he will confront a tricky problem: CIA analysts who will be working for him concluded in a recent assessment that the war in Afghanistan is heading toward a "stalemate" - a view with which Petraeus disagrees.

The analysts made their judgment in "District Assessment on Afghanistan," completed in July, the same month Petraeus quit his post as U.S. commander there. He disagreed with the analysts' pessimistic reading, as does Gen. John Allen, the new commander in Kabul; Gen. James Mattis, the Centcom commander; and Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. [Read more:  Ignatius/WashingtonPost/1September2011]

CIA Must Reshape the Middle East. Greg Miller and Julie Tate have a must-read article in the Washington Post today detailing the CIA's post-9/11 transformation from an agency focused on simply gathering intelligence to one that is playing a large role in actually killing and capturing terrorists.

The article contains numerous revelations about this top-secret world, including the fact the CIA operates about 30 Predator and Reaper drones which have "killed more than 2,000 militants and civilians since 2001"; that the Counter-Terrorism Center, which operates the drones, has ballooned from 300 to 2,000 employees or about 10 percent of the agency's workforce (a number which is supposed to be classified!); that 20 percent of CIA analysts are working as "targeters"; that last year there were 118 drone strikes, or roughly one every three days; and that Special Operations units working with the CIA had ventured into Pakistan least five times before the Osama bin Laden attack, while Counterterror Pursuit Teams - comprised of Afghan militias recruited by the CIA - have made many more penetrations of Pakistani territory. Moreover, these activities are set to intensify: major drone campaigns are already expanding in Yemen and Somalia.

Although the inevitable civil liberties activists are quoted raising concerns about the agency's activities, all of this sounds to me like a very welcome development - and a better use of agency resources than producing endless briefing papers that are often little more than a rehash of articles policymakers can read in the New York Times​ or the Economist. What concerns me is the agency may be overly focused on one piece of the counter-terrorism fight - killing or capturing terrorists - while ignoring the larger political framework that creates more terrorists. Indeed, in some instances, the CIA's quest for "actionable" intelligence has led it to cooperate with the intelligence services of Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and other states of a decidedly illiberal bent. (At least that's the way Egypt was before Mubarak's overthrow.) This risks putting the CIA at odds with, or simply making itself irrelevant to, the most important change sweeping the Middle East - the Arab Spring.  [Read more: Boot/CommentaryMagazine/2September2011]

Intelligence vs. Evidence Gathering: Knowing the Difference. There is a new brouhaha stirring among civil libertarians and Islamic organizations in light of the recent Associated Press story regarding the working relationship between the NYPD and the CIA. The article focused on the Intelligence Division of the NYPD and the deputy commissioner who runs it. David Cohen is a former career employee of the Central Intelligence Agency who was appointed by Commissioner Ray Kelly in 2002.

Terms like "rakers" and "mosque crawlers" were bantered about painting a picture of unrestrained spying on the citizenry by the government. The authors, Adam Goldman and Matt Apuzzo, described a purported super-secret section of the Intelligence Division called the "Demographics Unit" whose responsibility was to send undercover officers into predominantly Muslim neighborhoods and gather information by observing the neighborhood.

Immediately following story's release, several spokespersons for the Council on American Islamic Affairs (CAIR), and the Islamic Leadership Council voiced their outrage at what they termed "profiling." CAIR staff attorney Gadeir Abbas went so far as to call on the Justice Department and the Senate Intelligence Committee to investigate the NYPD.

It was not too long ago that these same organizations were accusing the police of entrapment and the use of informants in several thwarted terrorist plots, such as "the Bronx Four" and the "Christmas Tree Bomber" in Portland.

As the former Deputy Inspector General of the Criminal Intelligence Division in New York State prisons, I was assigned to work in the NYPD Intelligence Division from 2002-05. In all of my time there, working on numerous cases regarding terrorism and homegrown radicalization, I never heard anyone use the terms "rakers" or "crawlers" when describing human intelligence gathering. In recent conversations with former colleagues who also worked in the Intelligence Division, none of us could recall ever seeing the "Demographics Unit."

So what is true in the article? [Read more: Dunleavy/Algemeiner/4September2011]

Section IV - Research Request, Obituaries, Books, Employment and Coming Events

Research Request

Daughter Seeking information on father, James 'Eich' Eichelberger, who served in OSS/CIA 1950s-60s Cairo, Beirut, Congo

Am contacting AFIO members who could help provide more background about my dad. He was in OSS (French Underground) during WWII, then served the CIA in Cairo Egypt 1952-1956. We also lived in Beirut from 1956-1960. Not sure if he was working for the Agency at this time- he may have been consulting for oil industry. During this period he also was partners with ex–intelligence officer Miles Copeland. After my parents were divorced 'Eich' worked for the CIA in the Congo during the 60s – not sure which years. Would appreciate any input that could help fill in some of the missing pieces.
Please contact: Anne Eichelberger Tazewell at aetazewell@earthlink.net or call her 919 619-0195. Callers or emailers may remain anonymous, if preferred.

Obituaries

Susan Finn. Hyattsville native Susan Finn died Aug. 18 at the age of 99.

Born in Washington, D.C. in 1911, Finn lived almost a century with a loving attitude, impeccable sense of humor and a penchant for baseball.

Finn moved to Hyattsville in the 1960s and lived at 3900 Oglethorpe St. until the late 1990s.

She retired from the CIA as a key punch operator in the 1970s. She was an avid bowler, continuing the sport well into her 80s and attended the International Horse Show every year.

Finn's great nephew Jon Wolz remembers her fondly as a loving aunt who always greeted people with a warm, "How are you doing, darling?"

At the age of 17 she eloped with her husband Charles Finn in the Cascades Mountains in New York.

As a child, Finn's parents owned a seafood restaurant on 26th and L streets in the District. Her parents rented out a room in the house, which she said was once rented to baseball great Christy Mathewson.

One of her favorite memories was going to a Washington Senators double header as a child and seeing the team win both games.

She is survived by four grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and seven great-great grandchildren.

Interment was at Arlington National Cemetery. Red more: Maucione/HyattsvillePatch/31August2011]

John Waszkiewicz. John H. Waszkiewicz passed away on Monday, August 29, 2011 after a year long battle with cancer. He was born in North Braddock, PA on October 17, 1943 to John E. and Roselyn Waszkiewicz. In addition to his parents, John was predeceased by his brother, Raymond (Marlene). John was a U.S. Navy veteran who served who served in Vietnam on the USS New. He retired from the Central Intelligence Agency in 1997. During his service with the CIA , John and his family made their homes in England, Nigeria, Greece, Egypt and Zambia. He and Jerri moved to Lakeland from Warrenton, VA in 1998. He is survived by his wife of 42 years, Jerilynn "Jerri"; daughter, Lisa Maria of Nashville, TN and son, Steven John (Maureen) of Charleston, SC. He was beloved Pap-Pap to grandchildren, Maggie Frances and Trevor John. Also survived by his siblings, Eugene (Marilynn), Edward (Nancy), Gerald (Lori) and Joanna Detweiler (Dean), all from the Pittsburgh, PA area. He leaves behind sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Marilynn Mollica and Jack Gillen of Lakeland; nieces, nephews and friends from around the globe. Funeral arrangements took place in Lakeland, FL. In lieu of flowers and in appreciation of the loving care given to him, donations may be made in his memory to Good Shepard Hospice 105 Arneson Ave., Auburndale, FL 33823. Donations can also be made online at: www.goodshepherdhospice.org. [Read more: WashingtonPost/3September2011]

Robert W. Harvie. Robert W. Harvie, 90, of Dunedin died Aug. 24, 2011. Survived by his wife of 55 years, Peggy; daughter, Anne; sons, Robert Jr.; John (Karen); grandchildren, Maureen and Ian of Maryland; two brothers Frank (Helen) and Stuart (Miriam) of California; nieces and nephews. He served as missionary to India (Presbyterian), various posts in government, U.S. Army (CBI) WWII; OSS, CIA , DOE. He earned a MA from Yale. Memorial service Saturday, Sept. 10th, 3 pm at First Presbyterian Church of Dunedin, 455 Scotland St., Dunedin, FL 34698. Memorial contributions may be made to First Presbyterian Church of Dunedin for The Dana Beck Fancher Missions Committee, in the name of Robert Harvie. www.fpcdunedin.org 727-733-2318.  [Read more:  StPetersburgTimes/2September2011]

Charles Burdell Merrell. Charles Burdell Merrell, of Orem, passed away peacefully on August 22, 2011. Burdell was born March 5, 1928 to Vern and Katheryn Merrell in Miami, Arizona. As a young man Burdell was called to serve in the Central States Mission where he met his future wife, Nyal Andrus. They were married March 16, 1951 in the Salt Lake Temple. Immediately following, he was called to serve in the Army and was sent to Salzburg, Austria where Nyal soon followed. He returned to Utah after military service and entered BYU. After receiving his Masters degree he was recruited to the CIA , and the family moved to Virginia. He worked for the "Company" for 23 years, which included assignments that took him and his family to South America for six years. Burdell served his community and church in many capacities; including PTA President, seminary teacher, Bishop of the Falls Church Ward and others. After retirement, he moved back to Orem, Utah and pursued a nursing career at Utah Valley Hospital. Burdell was preceded in death by his son Kevin Merrell and three siblings: Nelda Harmon, Dan Merrell and Melvin Merrell. He is survived by his wife Nyal, his siblings: Florine Whiting, Carl Merrell and Barbara Stephenson, his children: Durk (Joan) Merrell, Jacki (Chad) Neibaur, Kendra (Ralph) Scoresby, Blair (Elizabeth) Merrell, Stuart Merrell, Quinn (Lachell) Merrell and Barry (Annette) Merrell. [Read more: TheDeseretNews/24August2011]

Kathleen D. Bianco. Kathleen D. Bianco, 89, died August 11, 2011, in McLean, VA. Her husband of 60 years, Angelo C. Bianco, and her children were at her side.

Born in Marlboro, MA, on December 1, 1921, she was a graduate of St. Ann's Academy in Marlboro and Regis College in Weston, MA, where she earned a degree in Romance languages. She was recruited by the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) as an intelligence analyst and was posted in Rome, Italy. She continued her career with the Central Intelligence Agency ( CIA ) after its formation in 1947, serving in Washington, D.C., and abroad along with her husband. Following her retirement from the CIA , she worked for more than 20 years as a substitute language teacher and tutor for Langley High School's language department. She belonged to St. Luke Catholic Church, The OSS Society and the Regis College Alumni Association.

She was the sister of the late Joseph DeSimon; and the daughter of the late Cristano and Maria DeSimone.

In addition to her immediate family, she is survived by 12 grandchildren and one great-grandchild. She is also survived by one brother, Emilio DeSimone of Marlboro, MA; brother-in-law Albert Bianco of Pittston; sisters-in-law, Constance DeSimone of Marlboro, MA and Rose Bianco of Roanoke, VA; as well as several nieces and nephews.

A Mass of Christian Burial was held Aug. 18 at St. Luke Catholic Church, McLean, VA. [Read more: TheTimesLeader/21August2011]

Patricia Anne Bolstad. Patricia Anne (Williams) Bolstad, of Hudson, passed away on Saturday, August 13, 2011 at Evergreen Commons in East Greenbush at the age of 87. Born in Manhattan on May 26, 1924, she was the daughter of the late Melvin and Grace (Odell) Williams. During World War II she served in the U.S. Navy. After her discharge, she worked for the British Admiralty in Manhattan. She later worked for the Central Intelligence Agency, during the Korean Conflict. She met her future husband in Hawaii, where he was stationed with the Air Force while she was working in the CIA office there. They were married in the Bronx, where they started their family, later moving to Poughkeepsie, and finally Hudson. Patricia worked for several years for the Conservation Service office, then as a service representative in the Social Security office in Hudson for many years. Following her retirement, she returned to work at Columbia Memorial Hospital as a switchboard operator for another 10 years. She was a member of St. Mary's Church in Hudson and the Catholic Daughters of America. She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She was a warm and generous woman, with a great sense of humor, and a friend to many. She was predeceased by her husband, Jarvis "Jay" Bolstad, in 2002. [Read more: AlbanyTimesUnion/18August2011]

Julian Caballero, Jr. Julian Caballero, Jr., Of Warrenton, VA, died on Friday, August 5, 2011. Retired from the CIA as Director of Research and Development and a veteran of the US Army. Survived by his sons Julian M. and Robert O. (Jill) Caballero, his siblings Maria S., Joe, Henry, George, Gloria and Elizabeth, his grandchildren Christopher M., Julian M. (Che), Dante V., Dana, Danielle and Libby and his dear friends Carol and Dan Kohler. He was preceded in death by his parents Julian and Maria Caballero, his Wife Carole C., a brother Edward and sister Maria L. [Read more: WashingtonPost/9August2011]

Carol Craft. Carol Ann Craft, 66, of Summerville, beloved daughter, sister, mother, grandmother and aunt, passed away at the Hospice Center of Charleston, SC, on August 15, 2011 with her family by her side. Carol was born to Michael and Mary Yursco in Monessen, PA on September 5, 1944. She began a long and fulfilling career in the federal service, beginning in the CIA immediately following her graduation from Monessen High School, and ending with her retirement from the Foreign Service in 1999. Carol had a deep love for all people- family, friends, and strangers alike, and found great contentment working as a school bus driver for the Durham School Services from November 2004 until June 2011. Ms. Craft is survived by her daughters: Carmen Ellison of Washington and Michelle Block of Summerville; a sister, Veronica Kelly of Summerville; three nieces and four grandchildren. [Read more: CharlestonPost&Courier/17August2011]

Stephens J. Crosby. Stephens Jackson Crosby of Potomac, MD, formerly of Albuquerque, NM, and Covina, CA, on August 13, 2011. Beloved husband of the late Anne Schoonover Crosby, he will be greatly missed by daughters Madeline A. Crosby ("Lynn") of Lincoln, MA, and Magara Lee Crosby ("Gale") of Duarte, CA, son Stephens J. Crosby, Jr. ("Jay") and daughter-in-law Kelly Crosby of Potomac, MD, sister Magara Crosby Finn of Columbus, NC, and grandchildren Lara, Liese, Troy, Patrick and Kimberly. Born on January 29, 1932, in Orange, NJ, to Lemuel Stephens Crosby and Magara Goddin Waldron, Steve grew up in Towaco, NJ. While attending the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he met his future wife Anne Doyle Schoonover, a Wellesley student. Steve obtained his B.M.E. at age 20 and his M.M.E. at age 21, both from MIT. After a move to Ohio, Steve served three years active duty in the Air Force at the Propulsion Laboratory at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. In 1956 the family moved to Covina, CA, where Steve worked at Aerojet General and Space General, and Anne became a first grade teacher. In 1967 Steve joined the Central Intelligence Agency, initially serving in the Directorate of Science and Technology; in 1971 Steve, Anne, and Jay moved to Potomac, MD. Steve had a distinguished 25-year career at the CIA, serving in many positions, including as Deputy Director of two different major collection programs and as Deputy Director of the Program and Budget Office. In his final assignment as Deputy Chief of the Arms Control Intelligence Staff, Steve met a long-standing personal ambition by becoming involved in arms control and disarmament, participating in the substantial reassessment necessitated by the demise of the former Soviet Union. Steve received numerous medals from the CIA, including the CIA Citation Intelligence Medal of Merit for his career of service; he was the first recipient of the Strategic Arms Control Intelligence Staff Medallion. Steve and Anne retired to Albuquerque, NM, in 1992, where Steve pursued his hobby of woodworking, played tennis and volleyball, and participated as a volunteer in the VITA income tax preparation service for low-income and elderly taxpayers. Together, Anne and Steve studied Spanish and fulfilled their dreams to travel to Spain and Ireland. Charitable donations honoring Steve may be made to the Roadrunner Food Bank, 5840 Office Blvd. NE, Albuquerque, NM 87109 (http://www.rrfb.org). Services private.  [Read more: WashingtonPost/21August2011]

William Francis Fitzgerald. William Francis Fitzgerald passed away peacefully in his sleep surrounded by family on August 8, 2011. He is survived by his wife, Jean; his sons, Bill, Gordon, Jim; and daughter, Elaine Burris. Bill was born in Somerville, MA on May 20, 1925. It was here that he met and married the love of his life Jean Elaine MacKay. At the age of 17, he enlisted in the US First Army's 7th Corp, 4th Division, 12th infantry regiment (IVY), 3rd Battalion, Company 1 which landed on Utah Beach. His unit fought through the "Hedge Rows", the Hurtgen Forrest, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Battle of the Bulge. He was selected to fight along with the French resistance in the liberation of Paris and received a Medal of Valor from the French. He was also awarded the Bronze Star, two Purple Hearts, battle field ribbons and marksman ranking. After the war, he graduated from Boston University with a degree in Geology. His work with the US Geological Survey took him all around the eastern US. He worked for the CIA before relocating to Southern California's TRW, where he retired after too many stop lights keeping him from getting to work on time. Bill was an avid runner with the Masters and seniors track clubs. He set numerous Worlds, National and State records for his age group; 40s through 50s. In 2001, he was inducted in the USATF Masters Hall of Fame. Bill was above all, a family man who took pride in his granddaughters, Elaine, Jennifer, Megan, and Stephanie; his grandsons, Jimmy, Michael and Robert; his great-granddaughter, Emalyn and great-grandson Alex. He is also survived by his sister, Gerry Cahill; brothers-in-law, Frank Cahill and Donald MacKay; sister-in-law, Ruth MacKay; and nephews and nieces, too many to mention, that adored his irreverent personality. [Read more: DailyBreeze/11August2011]

Geneve Marjorie Hausner. Beloved wife, mother, and grandmother, Geneve Marjorie Hausner passed away on Sunday, August 7 at the age of 81 as a result of bladder cancer.

Geneve was born in Western Springs, IL on December 19, 1929 to Ethel and Fred Edwards. She was the first in her family to attend college and she graduated from Illinois State U. with a BA degree in Latin American Studies. Eventually, Geneve moved to Washington D.C. where she worked for the CIA and met Arthur Hausner, a physicist with Harry Diamond Laboratories, Department of the Army. They were married for 53 years.

In March 2010, Gen and Art moved to Scotts Valley to be near their daughter, son-in-law, and grandchildren. Geneve reveled in cooking delicious meals from many world cultures for her family. She enjoyed gardening and had a special touch with flower arranging. She had a soft spot for all animals, and enjoyed bird watching in particular and nature in general. She was active in theater productions in her early adult life, and throughout her life she loved a good play. She truly knew how to live lightly on Earth, and re-used items her entire life and recycled items since the 1960s when recycle centers emerged.

Geneve is survived by her husband Arthur Hausner, her daughter Bethany Kilzer [married to Paul Kilzer], grandchildren Arden and Allie, and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her son Robert and her sister Martha. [Read more: SantaCruzSentinal/17August2011]

Eugene Hynes. Lt. Col. Eugene (Gene) T. Hynes, 91, passed away on August 18, 2011. He had an impressive Army career, enlisting in the Army at the age of eighteen and working his way to First Sergeant by age twenty one. After completing OCS, he served on General George Patton's staff during WWII. He served on General Westmoreland's staff during Vietnam and ran a covert CIA operation in Laos prior to Vietnam. Gene was a true officer and a gentleman. He was a devote Catholic and a Fourth Degree Knight in the Knights of Columbus. Gene was preceded in death by his wife, Mary Hynes, and his son, John Hynes. He is survived by his son, Eugene Jr. and his wife Mary Ann, son Denis and Susan, and daughter, Connie Hynes. Gene has five grandchildren, John Hynes Jr. and his wife Jeanette, Sara Robins and her husband Dave, Amber Carrillo and her husband David, Steve Canas and Christopher Hynes. He has seven great grandchildren, Maya and Grant Robins, Nolan and Connor Hynes, Shanay Dean, and Andre and Angel Carrillo. Gene is loved by his family and friends and will be dearly missed. [Read more: ElPasoTimes/19August2011]

Hiram Johnson Jackson Jr. Hiram Johnson Jackson, Jr., 72, of Supply died Wednesday, August 31, 2011,at Brunswick Novant Medical Center. He was born in Houston, Texas on October 12, 1938, a son of Hiram J. Jackson, Sr., and Esther Robinson Jackson.

He retired as an engineer from NASA & CIA after 35 years of service.

He was veteran of the US Air Force and a graduate of the University of Houston. He was a member of the NARFE Intracoastal Chapter 2266 and the Calabash Elks.

He was also a member of the North Myrtle Beach Concert Band, North Myrtle Beach Big Band, Brunswick County Band, Brunswick Big Band, and the Harbortowne Fest Band in Wilmington.

Surviving are his wife, of 27 years, Marlene Draughon Jackson; brother, John R. Jackson of Houston, sisters, Betty Joyce Howard (Robert) of Houston, Sandra Shepherd of Atlanta, Deborah Ekwo (Maurice) and Mozelle Davis, (Arthur), all of Houston. [Read more: WilmingtonStarNews/2September2011]

Harold Edward (Hal) Padgett. Harold (Hal) Edward Padgett, a resident of Land Fall passed away August 24, 2011, at the age of 84. He was born August 11, 1927, in Algona, Iowa, to Robert L. and Ella J. Padgett. Hal graduated from Algona High in 1943. He moved to California in 1945 and joined the United States Army. He was stationed at the Templedorf Airdrome in Berlin, Germany with the occupying forces of England, France, and Russia. He served in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) as photographer. Upon his discharge he was interviewed by Richard Helms of the OSS (later to become the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency) He graduated from the University of California at Berkeley in 1951 with honors and election into Phi Beta Kappa. Director Helms selected him to the first Officers' Training Course of the Clandestine Services in the Directorate of Operations. He served for 30 years and was stationed in Germany, Laos, Vietnam and France. He completed his career as Deputy Director of Logistics in the CIA. He was critically wounded in the bombing of the Embassy in Saigon, Vietnam in 1965 for which he received the Distinguished Service Award from then Director Richard Helms. He retired in 1986, lived for several years in Vienna, Va. and moved to Wilmington, NC in the lovely enclave of Land Fall in 2005.

He is survived by his brother, Robert (Bob), four nephews (Mark, Neil, J. Warren, & Richard) and families and Wanda Guffey, a dearly loved long time friend in Land Fall. [Read more: WilmingtonStart/31August2011]

Charles Stockton. Charles Delaney "Chuck" Stockton, 82, passed away Aug. 29, 2011. Born Oct. 15, 1928 he was the son of the late Dorothy Pearl and Cecil Stockton. He was predeceased by a brother, Ronald, and a grandson, Jason. He is survived by Kathy, his loving wife of 43 years; sons, Don (Chris), and Gary (Liz); daughters, Susan Lilley (Bryan) and Jen Akers (Kurt); sisters, Hester Stockton, and Joyce DeBolt (Russ), and a brother, Robert (Carolyn). "Pa Chuck" is also survived by seven grandchildren, Matthew and Mark Stockton, Cory and Ryan Stockton, Evan Lilley, Brody and Seth Akers, and three great-grandchildren. Chuck graduated from Bladensburg High School in Maryland and attended University of Maryland and George Washington University. He enlisted in the Army and served mostly in the Philippines. He worked for the CIA for 40 years as a cartographer. He had a love of model trains, wood carving, camping, Disney World, roller coasters even at 70, and puzzles. He had a special love for the Outer Banks of North Carolina. [Read more: TheVirginianPilot/1September2011]

Hugh Maplesden, Sr., 80, of Silver Spring, Maryland, died on Thursday, September 1, 2011. Hugh retired from NSA after 37 years of service. He was a loving husband, father, grandfather, and brother that was loved very much and will be sorely missed.

He was preceded in death by wife, Barbara Maplesden; two brothers, Robert and William Maplesden; and granddaughter, Heather Applewhite. He is survived by wife, Mildred Maplesden; six children: Mark Maplesden of Silver Spring, MD; Jane Weaver of Rio Rancho, NM; Hugh Maplesden of Gaithersburg, MD; Victoria Luther of Silver Spring, MD; Julia Neher of San Diego, CA; and Tracy Rice of Ostrander, OH; eight grandchildren: Justin Villianueva of Seattle, WA; Jessica Blackburn of San Diego, CA; Victoria, Elizabeth, Katherine, David Maplesden of Urbana, MD; Krysta and Kyle Luther of Maine; and beloved sister: Betty Gates of Athens, AL.

A service to celebrate Hugh's life will be held Saturday, September 10, 2011, at 4 p.m. at Spencerville Adventist Church, 16325 New Hampshire Ave., Silver Spring, MD 20905. A reception will be held at the church immediately following the service for family and friends. [Read more: TheWashingtonPost/4September2011]

Dedriche McKinstry "Charley" Broome III (U.S. Navy (Ret.)). A Mass of Christian Burial for Dedriche McKinstry Broome, 86, will be celebrated 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, September 6, 2011, at Our Lady of the Hills Catholic Church, with burial in Fort Jackson National Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 5 until 7:00 p.m. Monday, September 5, 2011, at Dunbar Funeral Home, Dutch Fork Street Chapel.

Mr. Broome died Friday September 2, 2011. Born in Columbia, he was a son of the late Dedriche McKinstry Broome Jr. and Bertha Lorena Draffin Broome. He served 24 years as a U.S. Naval aviator in active duty during World War II, Korea and Air Reconnaissance in Vietnam. His proudest service was with Fighter Squadron VF-44 in the Korean Theater. He continued civil service at the Department of Defense in naval intelligence for 15 years as a Satellite Reconnaissance Analyst.

His life's passion was his family, friends, church, country, golf and fishing. He was a member of Knights of Columbus, Our Lady of the Hills Catholic Church, Coldstream Country Club "Old Guard Golf Club", and Lake Murray Coast Guard Auxiliary.

Surviving are his wife of 64 years, Anna Laura Broome; son, Dedriche M. Broome IV (Mimi) of Sumter; daughters, Pam Basehore (Fred) of Wake Forest, N.C., Deborah Crosier (Ray) of Clifton, Va., Michelle Sammons (Jeff) of Miamisburg, Ohio; eleven grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by one grandchild.
The family would like to thank the doctors and staff of NHC Parklane for their care and compassion. [Read more: TheState/4September2011]

Books 

'Top Secret America': A Look at the Military's Joint Special Operations Command. The CIA's armed drones and paramilitary forces have killed dozens of al-Qaeda leaders and thousands of its foot soldiers. But there is another mysterious organization that has killed even more of America's enemies in the decade since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

CIA operatives have imprisoned and interrogated nearly 100 suspected terrorists in their former secret prisons around the world, but troops from this other secret organization have imprisoned and interrogated 10 times as many, holding them in jails that it alone controls in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Since 9/11, this secretive group of men (and a few women) has grown tenfold while sustaining a level of obscurity that not even the CIA has managed. "We're the dark matter. We're the force that orders the universe but can't be seen," a strapping Navy SEAL, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said in describing his unit.

The SEALs are just part of the U.S. military's Joint Special Operations Command, known by the acronym JSOC, which has grown from a rarely used hostage rescue team into America's secret army. When members of this elite force killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in May, JSOC leaders celebrated not just the success of the mission but also how few people knew their command, based in Fayetteville, N.C., even existed.

This article, adapted from a chapter of the newly released "Top Secret America: The Rise of the New American Security State," by Washington Post reporters Dana Priest and William M. Arkin, chronicles JSOC's spectacular rise, much of which has not been publicly disclosed before. Two presidents and three secretaries of defense routinely have asked JSOC to mount intelligence-gathering missions and lethal raids, mostly in Iraq and Afghanistan, but also in countries with which the United States was not at war, including Yemen, Pakistan, Somalia, the Philippines, Nigeria and Syria.

"The CIA doesn't have the size or the authority to do some of the things we can do," said one JSOC operator.

The president has given JSOC the rare authority to select individuals for its kill list - and then to kill, rather than capture, them. Critics charge that this individual man-hunting mission amounts to assassination, a practice prohibited by U.S. law. JSOC's list is not usually coordinated with the CIA, which maintains a similar but shorter roster of names. [Read more: Priest&Arkin/WashingtonPost/2September2011]

Hoover Institution Press Releases Book Highlighting Why America's Post-9/11 Intelligence System Remains Dysfunctional. Hoover Institution Press today released Eyes on Spies: Congress and the United States Intelligence Community by Amy Zegart. Zegart's commentary is especially poignant in light of thetenth anniversary of 9/11. As the nation evaluates whether we are safer today than we were ten years ago, Zegart examines surprising reasons for weaknesses in the US intelligence community and sheds light on why deficiencies continue to persist. She argues that congressional involvement in intelligence oversight is challenged less by which individuals or political parties control the White House and more by the basic flaws that exist in congressional practices and procedures. If policy makers hope to effect positive intelligence reform, Zegart points out that an understanding of the true root of the problem is necessary.

In Eyes on Spies, Zegart writes that intelligence oversight problems "are intimately tied to the two most valuable prizes in legislative politics: winning reelection and guarding congressional committee jurisdictions." Zegart reminds readers that intelligence is a complicated policy area that requires large up-front investments of time from members of Congress with little to gain politically; she asserts that controversial policies are often fraught with political risk and require toiling away in secret without any promise of public prestige. Because of this, Zegart argues, the average reelection-minded member of Congress is likely to spend as little time as possible on intelligence issues. Ultimately, Zegart affirms that, although the intelligence system is rationally designed to serve the reelection interests of individual legislators and protect congressional committee turf, it is poorly designed to serve the national interest. Further, she suggests that Congress make a number of internal changes to improve oversight. Protecting our nation from another 9/11 should be Congress's top priority; however, Zegart concludes that as long as members of Congress continue to protect congressional committee prerogatives and engage in every-man-for-himself calculations of political self-interest, the current inadequacies in intelligence oversight are unlikely to improve. [Read more: Zegart/BusinessWire/30August2011]

Deterring Enemies in a Shaken World. In an audacious operation that unfolded like a Hollywood thriller, the Navy Seals executed a daring raid deep into Pakistan to kill Osama bin Laden. The departing members of the Seals took not only the body of bin Laden but also a cache of invaluable intelligence on his organization, Al Qaeda. It is fitting that Eric Schmitt and Thom Shanker, veteran security correspondents for The New York Times, begin and end their insightful new book about United States counterterrorism efforts with this triumph. The United States, they argue, could not have pulled off the same raid 10 years ago. The bin Laden strike was the "logical culmination of nearly a decade of missteps, mistakes, trial and error under fire, and ultimately lessons not only learned but taken to heart." 

Their book, "Counterstrike: The Untold Story of America's Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda," is not just another book about Sept. 11, Iraq or Afghanistan. Rather, it focuses on the various military and civilian agency responses to terrorism. Along with insights gleaned from some of the biggest names in the business the reporters also talk to lesser-known, and usually more informed and informative, government officials who do much of the heavy lifting on counterterrorism. [Read more: Byman/NYTimes/4September2011]

The Art of Betrayal: Life and Death in the British Secret Service by Gordon Corera. The reputation of Britain's Secret Intelligence Service has suffered badly in the post-war period. Not only did the Soviets penetrate its inner sanctum, but even when MI6 landed a Soviet spy of their own - the womanising fantasist Oleg Penkovsky - they bungled it so badly that Penkovsky was captured, tortured, given a show trial and then shot by firing squad. 

In this highly readable and well-researched account of the Service, Gordon Corera, the BBC's security correspondent, argues that there was a brief revival in MI6's fortunes during the final period of the Cold War, when it recruited Oleg Gordievsky, a senior KGB officer, and Vasili Mitrokhin, the KGB's archivist. The treasure trove of intelligence these two produced was crucial in helping the West gain a deeper understanding of Moscow's weak points during the tumultuous events that led to the collapse of the Iron Curtain in 1989.

But it was MI6's contribution to defeating the Soviets - its success was celebrated over a quiet glass of champagne in the Cabinet Office - that worked against it. With the Evil Empire no more, it struggled to find a definable role for itself within the Whitehall machinery. Corera believes that this desire to justify its existence led MI6 to form its disastrous alliance with Tony Blair in the build-up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003. [Read more: Coughlin/TheTelegraph/5September2011]

Employment

Strategic Intelligence Analyst. To whom it may concern, I work for a government contracting firm and am looking for intelligence officers to fill vacancies on one of my contracts.

The position would be ideal for a retired strategic intelligence analyst who still has a clearance and wants to be active. I would appreciate any help you could provide.

Thank you. Replies to:
Thomas Irwin, CRA, Inc., at tirwin@cra-usa.net, Vice President, State & Local Programs, Chelsea Piers, Pier 62, Suite 312, New York, NY 10011, Office: 703.519.4510, Cell: 917.662.9401, www.CRA-USA.net

Coming Educational Events

EDUCATIONAL EVENTS IN COMING TWO MONTHS....

MANY Spy Museum Events in September, and October with full details are listed on the AFIO Website at www.afio.com. The titles for some of these are in detail below and online.

Wednesday, 7 September 2011, 6 p.m. - Las Vegas, NV - the AFIO Las Vegas Chapter hosts Ken Walther, CIA, on "Safe Houses & Listening Posts in Hostile Areas."

Arrive early and join us at 5 p.m. in the "Robin’s Roost" bar area for liaison and beverages

The featured speaker for the evening will be: Kenneth W. Walther on "Safe Houses & Listening Posts in Hostile Areas"

Conducting covert operations and gathering intelligence is part of our job in defending our country. A combination of HUMINT and Technical Operations yields high results in identifying an adversary or high priority target. Recently in the news was a compound in Abbotabad, Pakistan, that was identified as housing Osama Bin Laden. A lot of news coverage has focused on how the compound had been under surveillance for several months, including news coverage from Al Jezeera. http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2011/05/20115664943840210.html Whether one believes the complete story, or not, the fact that remains is an observation post was used.

How does one set up a Listening Post or Safe House in areas where you would be a target as well? What are the precautions, alliances and risks your agents face by cooperating with the USG? How do you conceal your presence and establish a "cover for action"? This brief introduction to the real world of operations will shed some light into the world of intelligence gathering at the Technical Operations level.
Ken Walther worked as an undercover Technical Operations Officer for the Central Intelligence Agency for 27 years. He primarily worked in the Directorate of Science and Technology (DS&T) but also served in the Directorate of Operations (DO).

During his career with the CIA, Mr. Walther spent seventeen years serving on overseas assignments and his work led him to visit 102 countries. The total of twenty years experience overseas, between the CIA and military, allowed Mr. Walther to experience a variety of cultures, languages and operational activities. Living for extended periods in Asia, Africa, Central and South America and Europe were building blocks in a succession of intelligence operations against a variety of targets, to include: Counter-Terrorism, Counter-Espionage, Counter-Narcotics, Counter-Intelligence, & Arms Interdiction.

Prior to retirement, Mr. Walther was certified as a Senior Instructor at the CIA’s clandestine training facility, "the Farm". At retirement, the Agency allowed Mr. Walther to retire “open” and his cover was rolled back to day one. He was allowed to accept several awards that had been previously locked away because of his cover status.

Mr. Walther is a member of the Roger E. McCarthy Chapter Las Vegas, Association of Former Intelligence Officers.
If you are planning to attend the AFIO meeting please provide your name and birth date to Mary Bentley, Event Coordinator, (702) 295-1024 at BentleyM@nv.doe.gov

Friday, 9 September 2011, 6:30 p.m. - Washington, DC - Surveillance 101 with Eric O'Neill at the International Spy Museum
What if you were assigned to watch the most damaging spy in U.S. history? As a young operative in the FBI, Eric O’Neill was put into position as Robert Hanssen’s assistant with the secret task of spying on his boss, who was under suspicion of working for Russia. O’Neill’s background with the FBI was in surveillance, so he was up to the challenge. But how would you measure up? It’s your chance to find out. O’Neill is prepared to share his hard-earned expertise with you. This intense small group introduction to surveillance FBI-style will include learning the basics and conducting surveillance in the streets of DC. Will you be able to track the “Rabbit” without being “made?” You’ll learn how to snap clandestine shots and keep your target in view, so you won’t miss operational acts or clandestine meetings. O’Neill will lead the exercise and help you learn how to blend into the shadows for the best spy results!
Tickets:  $94.00 - Call Laura at the Spy Museum at 202-654-0932 to register.

12 September 2011 - Washington, DC - DACOR-DIAA Forum hosts speaker on Islamic Doctrine of Shariah.

Lieutenant General Harry Edward Soyster, USA (Ret.), and John Guandolo will speak on the Islamic Doctrine of Shariah. The speakers were on the team that wrote Shariah: The Threat to America. General Soyster was director of the Defense Intelligence Agency. He has served as Commanding General of the US Army Intelligence and Security Command, US Army Deputy Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence, and 24th Infantry Division chief of staff. He served in Korea and in combat in Vietnam. Following retirement, he became vice president for international operations for Military Professional Resources, Inc. John Guandolo advises internationally on the Global Islamic Movement. In the FBI, he served in the Counterterrorism Division, investigated narcotics trafficking, was the bureau’s liaison to the Capitol Police, and created and implemented the bureau’s Counterterrorism Training and Education Course. A Naval Academy graduate, he was commissioned into the Marine Corps and served in combat in the first Gulf War. This Forum is open to members of all Intelligence Community associations and their guests.

DACOR members reserve directly with DACOR (202-682-0500, Extension 15). All others reserve by 5 September by mailing a check for $25 per person (payable to DIAA, Inc) to DIAA (Attn: Forum), 256 Morris Creek Road, Cullen, Virginia 23934. Give your name and the names of your guests, your email address, and your telephone number. To get a refund if you are not a DACOR member, you must cancel by noon on 8 September by email to diaalumni.org or by telephone to 571-426-0098. Event location is: DACOR Bacon House, 1801 F St NW, Washington, DC.

Tuesday, 13 September 2011, 5-6 p.m. - Hampton Roads, VA - The AFIO Norman Forde Hampton Roads Chapter Membership Meeting

Location: Tabb Library in York County. Main Meeting Room. (Directions follow) We will discuss a slate of new chapter officers, chapter plans for the Fall and other business matters. Please consider nominating yourself or someone else for the offices of chapter President, Treasurer and Secretary. Please rsvp: Melissa Saunders mwsaunders@cox.net

Tuesday, 13 September 2011, 5:30 - 7:30 pm - McLean, VA - "Going Beyond Google: Gathering Internet Intelligence" by SCIP DC Chapter
Knowing a competitor’s strategies, in advance, can be the difference between success and failure, and yet members of business leadership teams, marketers, and sales teams are stretched too thin just “doing their job” to spend much time really analyzing the competition. During this session we’ll show you how can make the most of open source intelligence (OSINT) assets. This program was presented and Sold Out at the SCIP11 Annual Conference in May.
Presenters - Sean Campbell and Scott Swigart, Principals, Cascade Insights
Location Northrop Grumman Information Systems, 7575 Colshire Drive, Room: 2100W, McLean, VA 22101, (703) 713-4000
Agenda: 5:30 PM - 6:00 PM Registration and Networking (with refreshments); 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM eLearning Webinar; 7:00 PM – 7:30 PM Q&A and Networking.
For more information or registration visit www.scip.org

Wednesday, 14 September 2011, 11:30AM - Scottsdale, AZ - "Brainologist" to discuss "Infinite Possibilities of a Balanced Brain" at AFIO Arizona Chapter

Self-described 'Brainologist,' Lee Gerdes speaks on “Limitless: The Infinite Possibilities of a Balanced Brain”. Gerdes is the founder and CEO of Brain State Technologies�, and invented something he calls Brainwave Optimization™ to supposedly "heal from the life-limiting trauma he experienced as a result of a violent assault."
Using his knowledge as a mathematician, physicist, computer scientist, theologian and psychologist, Gerdes claims that he has arrived at a new understanding of how humans can better understand and access their inherent brain power.
He developed Brainwave Optimization, an advanced neuro-technology that, says Gerdes, has now been used to help nearly 34,000 people worldwide: soldiers, children with learning difficulties, addicts, insomniacs, prisoners and high-performance athletes and executives. Brainwave Optimization is purportedly a tool for achieving higher levels of cognition, clarity, balance and harmony. – and to overcome stress, anxieties, sleeplessness and addictions.
Gerdes will explain how his technology can help you “see” what’s happening inside your own brain and how the brain can change itself to help you move beyond current limitations.

RSVP no later than 72 hours ahead of time; in the past, not reserving or cancelling without prior notice (72 hours prior to the meeting) created much grief for those of us organizing the meeting and dealing with the personnel!
Event location: McCORMICK RANCH GOLF COURSE, 7505 McCormick Parkway, Scottsdale AZ 85258 ~ Phone 480.948.0260

WE ARE charged for the no-shows and please remember, we are a small organization with a humble coffer! We would therefore APPRECIATE that you all respond to this email to confirm your presence (or not).
Our meeting fees will be as follows: $20.00 for AFIO members; $22.00 for guests; $25.00 for AFIO Members with NO RSVPs as per the requested date; All NO SHOWS or last minute cancellations will need to pay for the lunch.
For reservations or questions, please email ON OR BEFORE September 12, 2011 Simone simone@4smartphone.net or simone@afioaz.org or call and leave a message on 602.570.6016

Wednesday, 14 September 2011, 7:00 p.m. - Washington, DC - Dinner with a Spy: An Evening with Jonna and Tony Mendez at the International Spy Museum.

Dine with Tony and Jonna Mendez, both former CIA chiefs of disguise, who will share their stories of how they used their artistry to enable intelligence officers and agents to slip away from surveillance, clandestinely infiltrate and exfiltrate denied areas, hide top secret information, and pass stolen secrets. Both officers spent their careers in the CIA’s Office of Technical Service, often compared to Q’s laboratory in the James Bond stories. The Mendezes will recount their extraordinary disguise exploits evading the KGB, Stasi, and DGI, and you’ll learn how George Clooney and Ben Affleck are immortalizing Mr. Mendez’s most famous exploit “The Canadian Caper” in a movie set to release in 2012. You will be one of only 20 guests at Zola for a three-course dinner and wine-pairing where you’ll talk with the Mendezes about their remarkable careers and their thoughts on today’s intelligence issues. Tickets:  $200 - Please call Laura at 202-654-0932 to register.

Thursday,15 September 2011, 11:30 am - Englewood, CO - AFIO Rocky Mountain Chapter hosts, from the FBI SAC James Yacone, Denver Division. SAC Yacone is a West Point graduate and has earned the Silver Star as a helicopter pilot during "Black Hawk Down". This is a joint meeting of the AFIO and Denver INFRAGARD. This is a one time event at Centennial Airport. There are seating limitations of 45 seats so we will accept reservations on a first come first basis. Event location: Centennial Airport in Englewood,CO. You will receive directions when you RSVP to Tom VanWormer at robsmom@pcisys.net or telephone him at 719-481-8273. The lunch will cost $12.00 pay at the door.

Saturday, 17 September 2011, 2 pm - Kennebunk, ME - BEATING TERRORISM AT HOME is theme of AFIO Maine Chapter meeting

Capt. Raymond Brown will be the guest speaker at this Maine Chapter meeting. He is an expert on intelligence analysis, transportation security and anti-terrorism management, Capt. Brown has trained numerous groups and organizations including the International Association of Chiefs of Police, Logan Airport, City of Boston, and the American Trucking Association.  His graduation from the U. S. Coast Guard Academy has been followed by a distinguished career in the areas of intelligence and national security. During his career he has served at the White House as Aide on Matters of Protocol and Security, was a member of the CIA Working Group on Counter-Terrorism for three years, and has been an advisor to Seal Team Six on sensitive intelligence matters. The Coast Guard Cutter ESCANABA, which he commanded, was rated the best ship in the Atlantic, and participated in numerous rescues at sea. The meeting is open to the public and is being held at the Brick Store Museum Program Center, 2 Dane Street, Kennebunk. For directions and information call 207-967-4298.

Wednesday, 21 September 2011, 6:30 pm - Washington, DC - "L'AFFAIRE FAREWELL" at the International Spy Museum

"One of the most important spy cases of the 20th century." –former French foreign minister, Hubert V�drine
This riveting film is loosely based on the real life story of Vladimir Vetrov, a high ranking KGB intelligence officer who revealed the USSR's efforts to steal technical, industrial, and scientific secrets from the West. From 1980 to 1982, Vetrov, using the codename "Farewell," secretly passed over 4,000 classified documents to the French. The materials exposed Soviet penetrations and the official list of Line X officers operating secretly in embassies around the world plumbing Western science and technology to keep the Soviets competitive. The 2009 French film L'affaire Farewell portrays the results of Vetrov's espionage—how it enabled Western intelligence to root out nearly 200 spies destroying Soviet ability to steal technology. The roll-up crippled Soviet technology efforts which had run on stolen Western research and forced the USSR into a weakened position at an extremely critical time during the Cold War. A post-screening discussion of this engaging thriller will be lead by International Spy Museum executive director Peter Earnest who served as a CIA case officer in Europe during the Cold War.
In French and Russian with English subtitles. Co-sponsored by Road Scholar organization.
Tickets: $9 – Cash bar. To purchase tickets visit www.spymuseum.org

Monday, 26 September 2011 - Boston, MA - CIA's Historical Collections Division Conference "Piercing the Iron Curtain: The Use of Technology to Resolve the Missile Gap" at JFK Presidential Library

Penetrating the Iron Curtain: Resolving the Missile Gap with Technology
26 September 2011 at the JFK Presidential Library and Museum, Boston, MA

BACKGROUND. In the mid-1950s the United States faced the first real challenge since World War II to its strategic superiority. First, it seemed that the Soviet Union was challenging us by producing and deploying a large strategic bomber force. Then, even as that perception was disproved, it became evident that the Soviets were placing their major effort toward developing strategic missiles against which there was no defense. While the Eisenhower and Kennedy Administrations strove to formulate policy to address the new circumstances, the Intelligence Community provided no clear picture of the scale, rate of production, or breadth of deployment of Soviet missiles.
The administrations increasingly turned to the CIA with assignments to collect, produce, and disseminate missile intelligence to policymakers. It was a challenging mission that put CIA up against the Soviet Union, a country from which little information, clues, secrets, or whispers emanated, and any that did might only be intended to deceive. The goal was not only to guess what was behind the curtain, but also to find all ways possible to approximate with ever greater certainty.
The release event will feature former CIA analysts, the national-security columnist for Slate magazine, noted academics, the former head of CIA’s Guided Missile Task Force, and the former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and Threat Reduction.

View agenda here: AGENDA

REGISTRATION: Please note - this event appears in TWO parts that day and each part requires separate registration. If you wish to attend the full program, register for both parts ASAP. Event seating is on a space available basis. Registration forms are identical but contain hidden identifier for each part you are selecting so, to attend both, you need to feel out both forms.
NB: The information you supply on JFK registration pages is not under control of AFIO or CIA but is property of JFK Library. Enter only public contact data.

Part I - 1 - 4:45 p.m. - CIA Overview of the Missile Gap. Preceding the Kennedy Library Missile Gap forum, the CIA is sponsoring two panels on the challenges of intelligence analysis and the implications for US policy with John Bird, Edward Proctor, Robert Jervis, Ted Warner and others. Reception follows close of this session.
To Register for this portion click here: CIA at JFK Library PART I

Part II - 5:30 - 7 p.m. - Forum on 50th Anniversary of the Missile Gap Controversy. Special panel of historians Timothy Naftali, Fred Kaplan and John Prados discuss this pivotal moment in world history. Mary Elise Sarotte, Professor of International Relations at USC, will moderate.
To Register for Part II click here: CIA at JFK Library Part II

Registration for this worthwhile free event is being handled at the JFK Library and Museum website at: http://www.jfklibrary.org/Events-and-Awards/Forums.aspx

27 September 2011, 5:30 - 8 pm - New York, NY - AFIO New York Metro features Dr. Draitser on "Stalin's Romeo Spy."

SPEAKER: Emil Draitser, Ph.D., Professor Russian Studies, Hunter College of the City of New York.
TOPIC: "STALIN'S ROMEO SPY" - His book about the remarkable rise and fall of the KGB's most daring operative Dmitri Bystrolyotov. Details at www.stalinsromeospy.com

Event location: "3 West Club" 3 West 51st St, New York City. Buffet dinner. Cash bar. $40/person. 5:30 PM Registration 6:00 PM Meeting Start

Reservations: Strongly Suggested, Not Required: Seating is limited. Replies/RSVP to afiometro@yahoo.com

29 September 2011 - San Francisco, CA - The AFIO Jim Quesada Chapter hosts Supervisory Special Agent Max Noel, Ret., Federal Bureau of Investigation. He will be speaking about how he cracked the Unabom case and tracked Theodore J. Kaczynski. The meeting location will be confirmed upon receipt of registration. 11:30AM no host cocktails; noon - luncheon. $25 member rate with advance reservation and payment; $35 non-members accompanied by a member. No walk-ins allowed. Seating is limited. E-mail RSVP to Mariko Kawaguchi (please indicate meat or fish) at afiosf@aol.com and mail a check made out to "AFIO" to: Mariko Kawaguchi, P.O. Box 117578, Burlingame, CA 94011

Saturday, 1 October 2011, 1000 - 1430 - Salem, MA - AFIO New England to hear former Associate DNI/Collection, and CIA COA NYC on 9/11.

Our speaker will be Mary Margaret Graham, former Associate DNI for Collection, and CIA COS in NYC on 9/11. She was in the WTC when the planes hit. Ms. Graham is a veteran of the Clandestine Service and has had a variety of assignments overseas.
Our schedule is as follows: Registration & gathering, 1000 - 1130, membership meeting
1130 – 1200. Luncheon at 1200 followed by our speaker, with adjournment at 2:30PM.
Note, as this meeting is a one day event we have not made any hotel arrangements.
Our October 2011 chapter meeting will be held on Saturday 1 October at the Salem Waterfront Hotel located in Salem MA. The hotel web site is here: http://www.salemwaterfronthotel.com/. For directions to the hotel look here: http://www.salemwaterfronthotel.com/location.html
Information about Salem MA and local hotels can be found here: http://salem.org/

For additional information contact us at afionechapter@gmail.com

Advance reservations are $25.00, $30.00 at the door - per person.

Luncheon reservations must be made by 16 September 2011.

Mail your check and the reservation form to:

Mr. Arthur Hulnick, 216 Summit Avenue # E102, Brookline, MA 02446, 617-739-7074 or hlnk@aol.com

Wednesday, 05 October 2011, 8:15am - 3:10pm - Laurel, MD - General Membership Meeting of the National Cryptologic Museum Foundation.

Program: 0815-0900: registration & breakfast; 0900-0915: Welcome by NCMF President, Eugene Becker; 0915-0945: opening address by NSA Director or Deputy Director; 0945-1000: NCM update by Museum Curator Patrick Weadon; 1000-1115: panel discussion on "International Relations with Iran" by Amb Bruce Laingen and Kenneth Timmerman, author and investigative reporter; 1115-1200: Cyber Security Legal issues by Stewart Baker, former general counsel, NSA, author of Skating on Stilts; 1200-1300: lunch and auditorium video presentation of the 1997 Dedication of National Vigilance Park to commemorate the sacrifices of aerial reconnaissance crews;
1300-1400: keynote address by James R. Clapper, Director of National Intelligence; 1400-1410: break; 1410-1440: new museum project and capital campaign update by Lt. Gen. Ken Minihan, MG Rod Isler and Brig Gen Neal Robinson; 1440-1500 the role of the NSA Center for Cryptologic History by Col William Williams; and 1500-1510: closing remarks by Brig Gen Billy Bingham.
LOCATION: JHU/APL Kossiakoff Center - 11100 Johns Hopkins Rd, Laurel, MD 20723-6099 tel: 240-228-7574.
FEE: $15 to NCMF members, $40 per guest. NCMF fee includes breakfast & lunch, and a.m. Refreshments. Shuttle service is available from 0800-0900 and from 1500-1545. Handicap parking is limited.
A silent auction, vintage book sale, and the CWF [NSA's Civilian Welfare Fund] gift shop sale will be held in the lobby area through 1300. Cryptologic artifacts will be on display.
REGISTRATION: Mail registration form with your check or credit card information by 07 September 2011 to NCMF, PO Box 1682 Ft Meade Md 20755. Checks payable to NCMF are preferred method of payment.
Symposium assistance: please call (301) 688-2336 or 301-688-5436 or email: cryptmf@aol.com

Thursday, 6 October 2011, 6:30 p.m. - Washington, DC - American Traitors, Fathers and Sons: The John Walker and Jim Nicholson Family Spy Stories at the International Spy Museum.

How could you do this to your son?" –Mike Wallace to John Walker on 60 Minutes
When the family business is espionage, dynamics and dysfunction take on a whole new meaning. From inside a federal prison, former CIA operative Jim Nicholson directed his son Nathan on a global trek to collect the pension promised to him by his handlers for spying on behalf of Russia. From 2006 to 2008, Nathan smuggled his father’s messages to Russian intelligence officers on three continents in exchange for cold cash. The father-son exploits echoed those of notorious spy John Walker, the retired Navy communications specialist who in 1983 lured his pliable son Michael into his spy ring. The Walkers orchestrated one of the most devastating security breaches in U.S. history. Brian Kelley, a retired CIA counterintelligence operative, along with Bryan Denson, an investigative reporter for The Oregonian, will present the eerie parallels between Walker and Nicholson. Using video interviews with the spies and their sons, they will explain how Walker, who once declared, “Kmart has better security than the Navy,” and Nicholson, the highest-ranking CIA officer ever convicted of espionage, lured their sons into the “family business” of spying. Kelley and Denson will examine the human cost of treachery as inflicted by two traitorous dads on the sons who loved them.
Tickets:  $15.00. To register visit www.spymuseum.org

Thursday-Friday, 6 - 7 October 2011 - Laurel, MD - The NSA's Center for Cryptologic History hosts their Biennial Cryptologic History Symposium with theme: Cryptology in War and Peace: Crisis Points in History.

The National Security Agency’s Center for Cryptologic History sponsors the Cryptologic History Symposium every two years. The next one will be held 6-7 October 2011. Historians from the Center, the Intelligence Community, the defense establishment, and the military services, as well as distinguished scholars from American and foreign academic institutions, veterans of the profession, and the interested public all will gather for two days of reflection and debate on topics from the cryptologic past. The theme for the upcoming conference will be: “Cryptology in War and Peace: Crisis Points in History.” This topical approach is especially relevant as the year 2011 is an important anniversary marking the start of many seminal events in our nation’s military history. The events that can be commemorated are many. Participants will delve into the roles of signals intelligence and information assurance, and not just as these capabilities supported military operations. More cogently, observers will examine how these factors affected and shaped military tactics, operations, strategy, planning, and command and control throughout history. The role of cryptology in preventing conflict and supporting peaceful pursuits will also be examined. The panels will include presentations in a range of technological, operational, organizational, counterintelligence, policy, and international themes. Past symposia have featured scholarship that set out new ways to consider out cryptologic heritage, and this one will be no exception. The mix of practitioners, scholars, and the public precipitates a lively debate that promotes an enhanced appreciation for the context of past events. The Symposium will be held at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory’s Kossiakoff Center, in Laurel, Maryland, a location central to the Baltimore and Washington, D.C., areas. As has been the case with previous symposia, the conference will provide unparalleled opportunities for interaction with leading historians and distinguished experts. So please make plans to join us for either one or both days of this intellectually stimulating conference. Dr. Kent Sieg, the Center’s Symposium Executive Director, 301-688-2336 or via email at kgsieg@nsa.gov. Registration form is here.

7 - 9 October 2011 - Glens Falls, NY - NE Chapter of Naval Cryptologic Veterans Association (NCVA-NE) Fall Mini-Reunion.

Location: Queensbury Hotel, Glens Falls, NY. The registration cut-off date for any local members of the NCVA-NE is September 7, 2011. For additional information call (518) 664-8032 or visit website. Questions? Ask Victor Knorowski, 8 Eagle Lane, Mechanicville, NY 12118 e-mail: knork620@verizon.net or call him at (518) 664-8032

Wednesday, 12 October 2011, 6:30 p.m. - Washington, DC - Dana Priest on "Top Secret America" at the International Spy Museum

An expos� of what this Washington Post reporter claims is a new, secret “Fourth Branch” of American government.
When Dana Priest began researching a Washington Post series on national security following 9/11, she found a top-secret world that, to her, seems to have become so enormous, so unwieldy, and so secretive that no one knows how much money it costs, how many people it employs, or exactly how many agencies duplicate work being done elsewhere. Reporter Priest, author of Top Secret America, will reveal how she investigated this shadow world and the enormous consequences of this invisible universe of over 1,300 government facilities, nearly 2,000 outside contractors, and more than 850,000 people granted “Top Secret” security clearance. The result may be that the system put in place to keep the United States safe is, according to this journalist, putting the U.S. in greater danger. Priest will also screen some segments from the recent FRONTLINE documentary developed in conjunction with her book.
Tickets:  $9.00. To register visit www.spymuseum.org

Saturday, 15 October 2011, 1 - 3 pm - Washington DC - "Riot Act" by Ed Mickolus, at the International Spy Museum

This former CIA officer and self-described humorist has written "The Secret Book of CIA Humor" and will be giving an author presentation with an entertaining collection of rookie hazing practices, performance appraisal outtakes, and on-the-job anecdotes from his thirty year career with the Agency. Includes “Useful Phrases to Know When Traveling in Terrorist Areas,” “The Problem with Security Covers,” and “You Might be a Taliban If. . ..”
In his real life Ed Mickolus worked as an analyst, covert action officer, manager, and public affairs officer. He now teaches intelligence issues for federal agencies. He considers himself a recovering standup comic, and he lives in northern VA. To register visit www.spymuseum.org

Saturday, 15 October 2011 - Washington, DC - The OSS Society hosts the 2011 William J. Donovan Award Dinner honoring Adm Eric T. Olson, USN.

Admiral Eric T. Olson, Commander, U.S. Special Operations Command, has been selected to receive the 2011 William J. Donovan Award Dinner. By invitation only. Further information at www.osssociety.org

Thursday, 20 October 2011, noon - Washington, DC - A Vast and Fiendish Plot: The Confederate Attack on New York City - at the International Spy Museum

Ballroom to Battlefield Civil War Program
In 1864, Manhattan had a population of 880,000…a population that came perilously close to death on the evening of 25 November. Six Confederate saboteurs planned to destroy the North’s largest city with a string of 21 separate fires set simultaneously with the goal of engulfing the city in flames. This terrorist plot was the brainchild of the Confederate Secret Service. They had hoped to target a number of northern cities including Boston, Chicago, and Cincinnati to show how easily the Confederacy could strike at Federal cities. Clint Johnson, author of A Vast and Fiendish Plot, will explore this little-known plan for sabotage, explain its links to Canada, and reveal why the saboteurs ultimately failed. Johnson will also speculate on how the saboteurs could have accomplished what would have been the worst terrorist attack in American history.
Tickets:  Free.  No registration required. More information at www.spymuseum.org

Wednesday, 26 October 2011, noon - Washington, DC - MH/CHAOS: The CIA's Campaign Against the Radical Left and the Black Panthers

Operation MHCHAOS was the code name for a secret domestic spying program conducted by the Central Intelligence Agency in the late 1960s and early 1970s charged with unmasking any foreign influences on the student antiwar movement. CIA counterintelligence officer Frank Rafalko was a part of the operation. The New York Times revealed MHCHAOS in 1974, then Congress investigated, and MHCHAOS took its place in the pantheon of intelligence abuses. Rafalko, however, says in MH/CHAOS that the operation was justified and that the CIA was the logical agency to conduct it. He’ll defend his perspective with dramatic intelligence collected on the New Left and black radicals.
Tickets:  Free.  No registration required. More information at www.spymuseum.org

Thursday, 27 October 2011 - Washington, DC - CIA Historical Collections Division Conference: "A City Torn Apart; Building the Berlin Wall - 1961"

Scope: For nearly 50 years the German City of Berlin was the living symbol of the Cold War. The Soviets closed the Sector Border dividing East Berlin from West Berlin on August 13th, 1961, effectively establishing what become known as the Berlin Wall. This symposium focused on the events leading up to the establishment of the Berlin Wall. The period covered included the Vienna Conference on 3 June to the confrontation at Checkpoint Charlie on 27 October 1961. EVENT LOCATION: National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, DC. Contributors will include NATO, ARMY, JFK & LBJ Presidential Libraries, SHAEF, and State Department. Details about event to follow from AFIO as we get closer to event.

27 October 2011, 0930- 1715 - Newport News - AFIO Norman Forde Hampton Roads Chapter Third Annual Workshop on National Security and Intelligence: Energy Security

Location: Christopher Newport University, David Student Union, Newport News, Tabb Library, York County. Directions: From Norfolk take I-64 West. Merge onto US-17 North via Exit 258B toward Yorktown. Follow US-17 North approximately 2.2 miles to Victory Blvd/VA-171 East. Turn right onto Victory Blvd/VA-171 East. Turn right at the next traffic light onto Hampton Hwy/VA-134 South. Turn right at the next traffic light onto Long Green Blvd. Tabb Library is on the immediate right. It is across the street from the Victory YMCA. From Williamsburg take I-64 East. Merge onto Victory Blvd/VA-171 East via Exit 256B. Follow Victory Blvd/VA-171 East approximately 2 miles. Turn right onto Hampton Hwy/VA-134 South. Turn right at the next traffic light onto Long Green Blvd. Tabb Library is on the immediate right. It is across the street from the Victory YMCA. Registrations and questions to Melissa Saunders mwsaunders@cox.net or call 757-897-6268.

For Additional Events two+ months or greater....view our online Calendar of Events

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