No Logo, No Interest: The FBI Does Not Share CSIS's Interest in No Logo

In Fences and Windows: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Globalization Debate, Naomi Klein recounts her less than thrilled" reaction to the revelation that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service was reading her book, No Logo, for information on the Alter-globalization movement. Curious, I had a FOIA request submitted for information regarding No Logo to the FBI.

As seen below, while Mrs. Klein may have an FBI file, No Logo itself appears to have been of no interest to the FBI. Lest you think this was a fool's errand and a waste of FOIA resource, one need only remember that the “Anarchist Cookbook” has a substantial FBI file. 

FBI's Final Response Letter to No Logo FOIA

The Pakistan Media's Take On the Stanley McChrystal Firing

While Matthew Hastings' article on the shenanigans and poor attitude of General Stanley McCrystal and his staff provoked a great deal of heated debate. Leading scions of media criticized Hasting for how he obtained his information, for the fact that he reported on the matter at all. Even Hastings' patriotism was questioned. Obama's decision to remove McCrystal provided controversy as well.

In contrast, mainstream Pakistani media enthusiastically approved of Obama's dismissal of McChrystal. A June 25, 2010 cable from the American Embassy in Islamabad to the Secretary of State on the big stories in the Pakistani media documented the reaction of mainstream Pakistani media. Below are the choice selections of the reactions captured by the US Embassy in Islamabad:

Editorial: Institutions Above Individuals, an editorial in the populist, often sensational national English daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (06 /25)

The dismissal of a top-ranking general by the U.S. President may be an unusual event, but, as President Obama has said, the tough decision, taken at a vital point in the nine-year war in Afghanistan, drives home the importance of institutions and the fact that they are more important than individuals.... The U.S. military, despite its strength and size, has through time developed sufficient maturity to keep itself aloof from affairs of government and to accept decisions made by Presidents. This has a long background of institution-building, with the dismissal of General Douglas McArthur in the 1950s too resulting in no disruption in U.S. affairs; there was no coup d'etat, no warning statements from the men in uniform.

The tradition of civilian authority held firm.... The wider impact of the change in command in Afghanistan is yet not known. Pakistan will be watching events to its west attentively, given that developments in Afghanistan have a direct impact on the war against militancy at home. Only time will tell if there is to be any change and the nature of this if one does indeed occur.

Editorial: The FaIl Of A General, an editorial. in the center-right national English daily "The Nation" (cir. 20,000) (06 / 25)

"If the top commander in a theatre of war entertains disparaging views of the civilian bosses, there would be a disconnect between the two in this vital matter. McChrystal's exit, no doubt establishes civilian control over the military - a fundamental principle of democratic set-ups - but, as the General has supporters both in the armed forces and civilian institutions, like for instance, Congress, it is not going to be smooth sailing for the President. However, with President Obama asserting, "it is a change in personnel-, but it is not a change in policy", one should not expect a much more different outcome of the war when General David Petraeus takes over.... Did the realization that the war efforts have come up against a dead-end cause McChrystal frustration and also lead him to adopt this questionable attitude?"

Opinion: McChrystal's Sacking And Afghan Endgame, an op-ed by Shafqat Mahmood in the populist, often sensational national English daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (06/25)

"More than the notion of establishing civilian supremacy, it was important for the first black president in U.S. history to assert his authority over the military.... People like McChrystal argued that to make the Taliban amenable to negotiations, they have to be put under pressure. This view prevailed despite opposition. Hence, the troop surge and the operation in Helmand and another in the works for Kandahar. The first operation has been unsuccessful and the second will fare no better. The Taliban will perhaps negotiate but on their own terms. The demand on Pakistan is strange. On the one hand, we are being asked to launch a military operation against the Taliban in North Waziristan and apprehend them in other places if they are here. And, on the other, there is a desire for us to facilitate dialogue with them. Thus, they are asking us to attack those who they want us to help become friends with. These and other contradictions will play themselves out in the next two years. Since

it is in the vital interest of Pakistan to have a friendly Afghanistan, we will have to broaden our links to all the Afghan people. The Americans will leave but we have to live here. It is best to start building bridges with everyone. "

Further commentary is document in pages 4-7 of the PDF. The rest is a potpourri of commentary of other American issues such as Gary Faulkner's journey, Holbrooke's meetings, and American policies. 

Pakistani Media Reaction Cable

Document of the Week #7 CIA Study of Widespread Arab Protests from 1980

With popular protests having defeated the authoritarian regimes that once held power in Egypt and Tunisia and (hopefully) bringing the reign of Qaddafi to a terminal conclusion, speculate on which regime will fall next. Much of the speculation focuses on the remaining tyrants in the Maghreb and those on the Arabian Peninsula.

In light of this discussion, I present to you Dissidents in the Arabian Peninsula by the [redacted] analyst(s) with the Office of Political Analysis. In this 24-page study, the CIA documented the activities of anti-regime dissidents, the response of regimes to these activities, and the influence of outside factors such as exile and foreign government support. Based on this study, the following reaction to popular protest and rebellion can be expected from Arabian Peninsula regimes:

1. Arabian Peninsula regimes like the UAE, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia will employ their wealth to temper down opposition. This has already been seen in Bahrain where the King has given out cash payments to his subjects.
2. Renewed and increased security cooperation between Arabian Peninsula governments particularly those in the Gulf Community Council. Dissidents will no longer find the same level of tolerance in exile as they have previously.
3. Iran will be of a great concern due to their size and shared religion with the large number of Shia Muslims in Bahrain, Eastern Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait.

However, in reading this document, remember the following differences:

1. Neighboring nations, most notably Egypt, have successfully booted out their entrench dictators.
2. The countries and entities that fueled the revolts and protests in the document are under pressure themselves. Libya is in the midst a full-scale revolt teetering on civil war, while Iran and the PLO (Palestinian Authority) are facing their own popular revolts. 
   
   
   DISSIDENTS IN THE ARABIAN PENINSULA

Corporate Autobiography and the Wooing of Government

Interested in how corporations see themselves and write their histories? Curious as to how the military annexes of Corporate America seduce and win the love, the approval, and the contracts of the establishment? Wonder no more as I have acquired and posted the National Security Agency's ARC registrations of three of the most notorious private military contractors on the planet: Blackwater USA, Triple Canopy, and Dyncorp International. As these document show, these companies seek the blessing of the National Security Agency through tales do-erring, elite skills, and SCIFs and cleared staffs. 

Blackwater Arc Registration

DynCorp ARC Registration

Triplecanopy ARC Registration

Document of the Week #5 Qaddafi's Borderless Wrath

Facing what may be the most serious challenge to his reign since seizing power in 1969, Libyan dictator Muammar Qaddafi is, not surprisingly, lashing out at his opposition with a great deal of force, with reports of snipers, mercenaries, and the military all being deployed to smash those aligned against him. This is keeping with Kaddafi's style which at one time included dispatching his security and intelligence apparatus abroad to hunt down and eliminate exile opposition and to monitor the Libyan diaspora in order to thwart and deter the formation of threats to his regime.

This Document of the Week is a 12/15/1993 Counterterrorist Center Commentary from the Director of Central Intelligence’s Counterterrorist Center regarding the disappearance of Mansur Kikhia who was mostly likely abducted by Libyan security services while in Cairo for a meeting of a Arab human rights group and with members of his family. Mansur Kikhia's disappearance has never been resolved, nor have many of the assassinations and vanishings of other exiled Libyan leaders, activists, and opponents of Qaddafi's regime.  

If Qaddafi survive, inevitably those opposing him will be driven into exile and likely hunted in a renewed effort to stamp out diasporic opposition to the Libyan dictator. 

12/15/1993 CIA Report Regarding Mansur Kikhia

NSA Releases Special Research History and Related Indexes

In response to a FOIA request that I had submitted, the National Security Agency recently declassified and released two indexes listing over four hundred different NSA or related agencies histories on a variety of historical topics ranging from Japanese-Burma to instructions how to handle Ultra intelligence. Among the more interesting titles are:

SRH-019 Blockade-Running Between Europe and the Far East by Submarines, 1942-1944
SRH-026 Marshall Letter to Eisenhower on the Use of  "Ultra" intelligence, March 15, 1944
SRH-087 Mongolian Independence. 3 August 1945
SRH-162 History of Security Monitoring. WWI to 1955

The first aid contains not only a more complete list of Special Research histories ( 415 listed in total) but ; however these lists are not complete. The index also has a page count for each document thus allowing an astute requester to avoid fees and acquire dozens of NSA histories. There are a number of other report collections available to the curious. SRMA which are labeled as being "Discrete Records of Historical Cryptologic Import: U.S. Army." SRMD- "Discrete Records of Historical Cryptologic Import: Joint Server and/or U.S. Government Cryptologic Agencies." Other available include series which is for SRMN "Discrete Records of Historical Cryptologic Import: U.S. Navy," and SRNS which stands for "Summaries: Japanese Naval Radio Intelligence." This lists are not complete either but for the records that are listed, they do include a title for and page count of the relevant record.

New NSA SRH index

The second, older index only contains a partial list of Special Research Histories. However, it has annotated notes from what I suspect is someone who has processed a prior FOIA request for information contained within the histories. The notes reveal that certain SRHs are related to other SRHs. Fuller titles of some of the SRHs are also presented here.

OLD NSA SRH Idex

Hunter S. Thompson Did Not Work for the NSA

The National Security Agency has confirmed that Hunter S. Thompson, founding practitioner of Gonzo journalism and the author of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 as well as working as a reporter for Rolling Stone magazine, ESPN as a sports columnist, among other journalistic pursuits did not work for the National Security Agency. However, it invoked Glomar with regard to any further information pertaining to Hunter S. Thompson.

Given the NSA's prior disclosure of information pertaining to Jack Anderson in response to the FOIA request that I had submitted to the NSA in that regard, I honestly believe that this decision is the product of a misunderstand on the part of the National Security Agency who probably did not recognize Hunter Stockton Thompson as being Hunter S. Thompson. As such, I have had a FOIA appeal submitted to the NSA and expect a prompt correction to this unfortunate decision to neither confirm nor deny possessing records or information on Hunter S. Thompson.

Final Response Letter from NSA RE: Hunter S. Thompson