The possible near-term declassification of historical intelligence satellite programs was examined by Dwayne Day in “A Paler Shade of Black,” The Space Review, September 20. The author also noted the pending Fundamental Classification Guidance Review that is supposed to purge obsolete classification requirements from the system.
An initiative led by Public Citizen to gain release of grand jury testimony presented in 1975 by former President Richard Nixon was discussed by John W. Dean in “Releasing Nixon’s Grand Jury Testimony: It Could Change History,” FindLaw, September 17.
The new Army Field Manual 3-28 addresses “Civil Support Operations” (pdf), referring to domestic military operations in support of civilian authorities within the United States.
The Department of Defense issued new guidance on “Use of Animals in DoD Programs” (pdf), DoD Instruction 3216.01, September 13.
In a September 15 report to the House on legislative actions to reduce waste, fraud and abuse, House Intelligence Committee chairman Silvestre Reyes cited House support for increasing the role of the Government Accountability Office in intelligence oversight, a measure opposed by the Obama Administration.
The Pentagon decided to purchase and destroy thousands of copies of Anthony Shaffer’s book Operation Dark Heart at a reported cost of nearly $50,000, while a censored version of the text is released in its place. But since numerous copies of the original version are already in the public domain, this move seems futile and counterproductive.
A lack of sustained federal funding, deteriorating research infrastructure and networks, restrictive immigration policies, and waning international collaboration are driving this erosion into a full-scale “American Brain Drain.”
With 2000 nuclear weapons on alert, far more powerful than the first bomb tested in the Jornada Del Muerto during the Trinity Test 80 years ago, our world has been fundamentally altered.
As the United States continues nuclear modernization on all legs of its nuclear triad through the creation of new variants of warheads, missiles, and delivery platforms, examining the effects of nuclear weapons production on the public is ever more pressing.
“The first rule of government transformation is: there are a lot of rules. And there should be-ish. But we don’t need to wait for permission to rewrite them. Let’s go fix and build some things and show how it’s done.”