The Congressional Research Service has produced its latest annual report on U.S. arms sales abroad (pdf). The CRS report, authored by Richard F. Grimmett, has become a standard reference in the field since it is based on closely held official data. “This report is prepared annually to provide Congress with official, unclassified, quantitative data on […]
In a report to the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission last year, Department of Defense officials selectively withheld data showing that demand for certain DoD research laboratory facilities was likely to increase, not decrease, in coming years. The suppression of this information on “future excess capacity” appears to have significantly distorted the decision-making process […]
The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency has produced a revised edition of its “basic doctrine” which generally “explains what geospatial intelligence–or GEOINT–is, how it has evolved and how it contributes to our nation’s security.” See “Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) Basic Doctrine,” Publication 1-0, September 2006 (6.2 MB PDF). The U.S. Air Force watches the skies by means of […]
Some recent reports of the Congressional Research Service which have not been made readily available to the public include the following (all pdf). “The War Crimes Act: Current Issues,” updated October 2, 2006. “Honduras: Political and Economic Situation and U.S. Relations,” updated October 13, 2006. “Argentina: Political Conditions and U.S. Relations,” updated October 12, 2006. […]
A new U.S. Army Field Manual (pdf) presents a vision of excellence in military leadership and articulates principles by which such excellence may be achieved. “It is critical that Army leaders be agile, multiskilled pentathletes who have strong moral character, broad knowledge, and keen intellect.” But in America, the “warrior ethos” is not an independent […]
Several recently updated reports from the Congressional Research Service, not readily available to the public, provide an introduction to the subject of conventional arms sales and the proliferation of weapons technology (all pdf). “International Small Arms and Light Weapons Transfers: U.S. Policy,” updated October 2, 2006. “Military Technology and Conventional Weapons Export Controls: The Wassenaar […]
Some more reports from the Congressional Research Service on diverse topics include the following (all pdf). “Freedom of Information Act Amendments: 109th Congress,” updated September 22, 2006. “The Endangered Species Act and ‘Sound Science’,” updated October 5, 2006. “Federal Research and Development Funding: FY2007,” updated October 10, 2006. “Globalizing Cooperative Threat Reduction: A Survey of […]
The U.S. intelligence community can and should form a more integrated whole without its member agencies sacrificing their individual character, according to a Five Year Strategic Human Capital Plan (pdf) from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). “A truly integrated IC is the only answer to the myriad threats that we face,” […]
Under the Invention Secrecy Act of 1951, the government may impose a secrecy order on patent applications submitted to the Patent Office whenever the disclosure of the inventions described in such applications “might be detrimental to the national security.” At the end of Fiscal Year 2006, there were 4,942 secrecy orders in effect, a slight […]
Executive Branch agencies have implemented President Bush’s December 2005 executive order 13392 on improving the processing of Freedom of Information Act requests “in a vigorous manner fully commensurate with the importance of this unprecedented Presidential initiative,” according to an enthusiastic new report to the President (pdf) from the Attorney General. The President’s order “has had […]
Actual or purported national security secrets are routinely published not only by mainstream news organizations and best-selling authors but also by journals of opinion on the political left and right and the occasional blog. The ability to freely traverse the boundaries of classified government information, with only rare and isolated limitations, is practically a defining […]
The use of stealth techniques and technologies to reduce the signatures of intelligence or military satellites a subject that seems to be properly classified, for the most part. But it has also left discernable traces in the public domain. Those traces were assembled by Allen Thomson in his Stealth Satellite Sourcebook (pdf), which has been […]