The state of US intelligence

[Folic_Acid Profile ICQYIM]

I'm in the midst of writing an op/ed for a local paper, and I wonder if anyone would care to share their thoughts on the state of the US intelligence community, and what might be done to make our country safer. The questions that I'm responding to are:

[list=1][*]What do you think the U.S. needs to do to revamp its intelligence system? (if it's fine the way it is, why? How would you answer the Sept. 11 Commission findings that intelligence gathering failed?)

[*]Should the FBI and CIA merge?

[*]Should the U.S. create a separate domestic intelligence agency similar to the UK's MI-5, as some lawmakers have proposed? If it's a bad idea, why?

[*]What kinds of changes to intelligence gathering are likely to pass through Congress?[/list=1]

I'd be interested to hear what answers folks have for any or all of these.

[Murgatroyd]

1.) I think that the US needs to consolidate it's intelligence agenies, and simply draw lines of jurisdiction within that single agency.

2.) Yes, see answer to #1.

3.) No, see answer to #1. It is a bad idea because in the age of international crime, an agency needs to operate both domestically and overseas, unfettered by lack of cooperation between agencies.

4.) Don't know - I'm not too familiar with the intelligence agency lobbyist structure.

[Colonel Ingus Profile]

1. A centralized clearing house that information is run thru and then routed appropriately. Cross service intel is in a poor state and getting the right intelligence routed to the correct people is rarely (if ever) done in a timely and efficient manner. Too many agencies with two many intra service rivalries is a poor poor state.

A very important and extremely special emphasis here: HUMINT! Human Intelligence is by far the most vital branch of intel gathering and it has been a mess in this country since the days of Jimmy Carter. It has gotten worse since then. One of the reasons the Brits and the Russians were/are so good at intelligance is because they utilize HUMINT as well as things like ELINT and SIGINT. We actually have a law passed here that we won't deal in intelligence with people of "questionable character" WTF!? those are the exact people you NEED to exploit in the intelligence world. Spy sattelites and monitoring cell phones won't get you what Abdul is talking about in a mud wattle hut somewhere in the Mid-East

2. No but they should co-operate much better and they don't. FBI is chartered for domestic operations and CIA is chartered for foreign operations. 9/11 is the perfect example of how the two connect. A centralized routing, or clearing house, could help greatly here. If you combine both who decides whats a priority? which gets better funding? I think keeping them seperate will keep the proper emphasis for both tasks.

3. No. Adding more intelligences agencies just stirs the pot even more. Fewer agencies that co-operate better is the way to go. Just spouting of the top of my head. CIA, FBI, DIA, NSA, CID, NIS, DEA, ATF and there are several services I don't know the name for like the State Department's service among others. Too many= bad, fewer = better, as long as the co-operation improves. The FBI's COINTELPRO's were very effective. Although some were used inappropriately

4. unfortunately probably nothing good. They need to focus on improving cross service intelligence.

[hightimber Profile ICQ]

Folic, if you use the above reply in your report, please make sure you include the author's name of Colonel Ingus. That will lend credibility to his opinion.

[Ralph Wiggum]

Speaking of the Colonel's name, I hate to say it but it took me a longer time to get it than it should have.

[Murgatroyd]

Originally posted by hightimber
Folic, if you use the above reply in your report, please make sure you include the author's name of Colonel Ingus. That will lend credibility to his opinion.

"Quoting a source from the Pentagon known only as Colnel Ingus..."

[Colonel Ingus Profile]

Although I am ex-service and was involved in electronics intelligence when I was in.

Ralph! I are shocked! Shocked I say!

[Ralph Wiggum]

I get it right away when it is any variation of "linguist," but this one didn't occur to me. I am talking months. Now Col. Bukkake and Harry Ballsagna's names I got right away.

[Chacal Profile Website]

Originally posted by Folic_Acid

[*]Should the FBI and CIA merge?

No. Intelligence-gathering, dirty ops, arrest powers - too much power in the hands of a secret agency accountable to no one. Remember the excesses of FBI during the Hoover days. Even creating the Homeland Security dept. was going too far.

[Murgatroyd]

Originally posted by Chacal
No. Intelligence-gathering, dirty ops, arrest powers - too much power in the hands of a secret agency accountable to no one. Remember the excesses of FBI during the Hoover days. Even creating the Homeland Security dept. was going too far.

Heh, you know, I didn't even think of that when formulating my reply. I guess I trust my government too much sometimes..