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. […]
In condemning the North Korean nuclear test and repeating its call for a denuclearized Korean Peninsula, one of the Bush administration’s first acts ironically has been to reaffirm the importance of nuclear weapons in the region. “The United States will meet the full range of our deterrent and security commitments,” President Bush told Japan and […]
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,” […]
In an extraordinarily brief statement, the Director of the National Intelligence Office announced that the United States has confirmed that North Korea’s large explosion last week was nuclear. How do they know and why did it take them so long to confirm?
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 […]
Last Sunday, North Korea apparently tested a nuclear explosive. The “apparently” is needed because the explosion was so small—by nuclear standards—that some have speculated that it may have been a large conventional explosion. What is the technical significance of the test, what does it mean, and what should we do now? There is no question […]