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alp227

(32,027 posts) Sat Jul 21, 2012, 09:18 PM Jul 2012

Ex-federal official calls U.S. classification system ‘dysfunctional’

Source: Washington Post

When the government’s espionage case against former National Security Agency official Thomas A. Drake collapsed last year, it meant that a key defense witness didn’t get to take the stand.

The witness, J. William Leonard, the government’s former classification czar, planned to testify about the harm to democracy represented by the case — not from Drake leaking information about a troubled counterterrorism technology program at the NSA, but from what Leonard viewed as the government’s needless classification of information.

Leonard’s views, outlined in an affidavit, got some support with the release of a memo that formed part of the evidence against Drake. The Washington Post received the memo in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.

The now-declassified two-page memo is titled “What a Wonderful Success,” and it contains praise from Gen. Keith B. Alexander, director of the NSA, for agency employees involved in the program. Two paragraphs were marked “secret.” One of them praised the merits of the program and spoke of getting members of Congress to see how it worked. In the other, a team member was lauded for “an excellent job” of briefing Alexander on the program.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/ex-federal-official-calls-us-classification-system-dysfunctional/2012/07/21/gJQAfJ1o0W_story.html

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Ex-federal official calls U.S. classification system ‘dysfunctional’ (Original Post) alp227 Jul 2012 OP

Dysfunctional = working against itself, counter to its own purpose, defeating usefulness patrice Jul 2012 #1

A Close Friend of Mine, who worked for a No Longer Existing State says Wolf Frankula Jul 2012 #2

I'm thinking #3 takes priority at times. randome Jul 2012 #3

They missed the most common one jmowreader Jul 2012 #5

May not have applied in NLES, but, 6) it also creates profitable contracts for private companies. leveymg Jul 2012 #6

having a clearance is an economic barrier to entry DBoon Jul 2012 #7

That's (7). And, (8) public scrutiny is foreclosed, so less risk of fraud conviction leveymg Jul 2012 #8

So it work as well as the rest of the government. :( n/t pam4water Jul 2012 #4

Much better. Just ask the (ex)-KGB. leveymg Jul 2012 #9

patrice

(47,992 posts)

1. Dysfunctional = working against itself, counter to its own purpose, defeating usefulness

Reply to alp227 (Original post)

Sat Jul 21, 2012, 10:16 PM

Jul 2012

In an e-mail Friday, Leonard, speaking generally, said the system for classifying information is “becoming dysfunctional” and “clearly lacks the ability to differentiate between trivial information and that which can truly damage our nation’s well-being.”

Wolf Frankula

(3,601 posts)

2. A Close Friend of Mine, who worked for a No Longer Existing State says

Reply to alp227 (Original post)

Sat Jul 21, 2012, 10:44 PM

Jul 2012

Documents and programmes are classified for the following reasons:

1: Primarily and most importantly to cover the arses of the heads of the departments, so their failures and incompetencies will not become public.

2: Secondarily to keep the public from knowing what that department, and/or the government in general is doing.

3: Tertiarily to make the persons who read the documents, and the persons who are named in them, and the persons in the programmes feel important.

4: Fourthly to protect the persons named in the documents and involved in the programs.

5: Fifthly, lastly, and least importantly, to keep the information from an enemy.

Wolf

randome

(34,845 posts)

3. I'm thinking #3 takes priority at times.

Reply to Wolf Frankula (Reply #2)

Sat Jul 21, 2012, 10:54 PM

Jul 2012

jmowreader

(50,559 posts)

5. They missed the most common one

Reply to Wolf Frankula (Reply #2)

Sun Jul 22, 2012, 03:49 AM

Jul 2012

In a very large number of cases, documents are classified out of routine: because the agency that produced the document produces classified material, the people who work there assume it ONLY produces classified material.