[Intelforum] French Successes

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Date: Tue, 20 Dec 2005 14:10:01 -0500
From: Mike Anders <mikeanders at verizon.net>
Subject: Re: French Successes
To: intelforum at lists101.his.com

It would be interesting to know what French intelligence thinks of 
the call by some U.S. lawmakers for joint Judicial and Intelligence 
Committee hearings on what has been described in the press as 
"domestic spying" by the Bush Administration. It is interesting to 
note that the calls are coming from the same quarter where criticism 
of the current Administrations effectiveness in carrying out its 
counterterrorism campaign, decrying the continued lack of 
"information sharing." What is also of concern to me, professionally 
speaking, is what impact these hearings might have on foreign 
co-operation when it comes to intelligence sharing and joint 
counterterror operations.

It also seems no one has really considered the fact that, just 
because NSA was doing intercepts, it does not mean no one else could 
have, or was doing the same. I suspect the communications, at the 
time, were not likely to be encrypted and were readable in plain 
text. The fact raises the prospect that, considering the criticism, 
any one, technically, would have been able to "read" the emails and 
listen to the international conversations in question. Imagine then a 
situation where any one is able to listen to communications between 
Al-Queda and it's loose confederation of operatives, every one but 
the U.S. Government,  which is responsible for protecting the lives 
and property of Americans here and abroad. Camus was right. Life is 
absurd!

After the current media flap, I am sure any further communications of 
the type between transnational terror operators is like to be 
encrypted and private if it is not already the case. Unfortunately, 
it may take another 9/11 event to make some Americans come to their 
senses. Of course, if it does happen on Bush's Watch, I am sure the 
same people decrying their "loss" of civil liberties with respect to 
Patriot Act (if it ever gets renewed) will be the first to point the 
finger of blame. Furthermore, I worry the damage has been done, and 
all the effort that went into tearing down "the Wall" between and 
among intelligence agencies, departments and organizations is likely 
to be undermined by the current so-called "domestic spying" 
controversy, and will further have a "chilling" effect on the kind of 
information sharing between agencies that every one use to think was 
so important.

Mike Anders
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