Steven Aftergood
Steven Aftergood
Steven Aftergoodis a specialist in physics and a political activist. He is a critic of U.S. government secrecy, generally favoring more openness. He directs the Federation of American Scientists Project on Government Secrecy and is the author of the Federation blog/newsletter Secrecy News...
embraced secrecy
This administration has embraced secrecy as a right.
answers asking checks circuit executive government immune needless needs officials power presenting preserved press questions reporting short system
If you don't have the possibility of asking questions and presenting answers that officials may find unwelcome, then you short circuit the deliberative process, end up magnifying the power of the executive and undermining the system of checks and balances. Needless to say the press is not immune from criticism. But the possibility of independent reporting on government needs to be preserved or all of us are potentially in jeopardy.
arguably attempt context information mitigate presume provide public widely wrong
I presume it's an attempt to provide some context for the information that was disclosed. If such information was already in public circulation or widely disseminated, that could arguably mitigate anything the defendants did wrong by communicating it.
intelligence needed number start support system vast
If you think about all of the infrastructure needed to support that number of people, you start to get a sense of just how vast our intelligence system has become. Think about all the things going on that we don't know about.
anybody benefit interests serve status welcomed
I don't think anybody welcomed that proposal. It wouldn't serve the interests of those who benefit from the status quo.
ask exercise frustrated office perfectly press report
It's perfectly understandable the press office would be frustrated by leaks. But they are the ones with the documents, they are the ones who need to exercise discipline. You can't ask the press not to report what they learn.
citizens leaves results secrecy
It results in unnecessary secrecy that leaves citizens in the dark.
government information perhaps using
It prompts speculation that perhaps the government was using information that was illegally obtained.
balance check confidence external good needs restore
It's a 'trust me' response. That's not good enough anymore. There needs to be an external check and balance to restore confidence in the system.
gives job overcome responsibility work
It makes reporter's job more difficult, but also gives them the responsibility to work to overcome the impediments put in their way.
future personal serious technology type
The development of this type of data-mining technology has serious implications for the future of personal privacy.
attacks exposing help incidents learn learned lessons purpose served system willing
These incidents will have served a constructive purpose if the Pentagon is willing and able to learn from them. By exposing and highlighting vulnerabilities, the attacks can actually help to inoculate the system during times of crisis. But only if the appropriate lessons are learned now.
dinosaur law
The idea that this law is some kind of dinosaur is a misunderstanding.
clearly driven embrace encouraged individual overall
I think it's driven by the individual agencies, which have bureaucratic sensitivities to protect. But it was clearly encouraged by the administration's overall embrace of secrecy.