My work is top secret I am not allowed to talk about it. We're at war.

These guys are getting soft and desperate.

Now, there's just the cleaning up and head whacking.

...I just don't know about this.

First...it would be really stoopid to do. Second...firedoglake? How did they get this paper?

This just sounds weird.

...and I guess you have to admit that the agency did this "stoopid" thing, weird as it is.

These guys aren't known for their societal awareness, so does it come as a surprise that they passed out self serving propaganda to be distributed to the families of their hirelings?

Also, even after Snowden, the spooks aren't prepared to be outed. Doesn't this say something about their competence, or maybe arrogance that they would take this tack?

NSA employees are prohibited from discussing the NSA or their work with others. Ever. They are forbidden from even discussing whether they LIKE their work, or the color of the carpets in their offices, or pretty much anything else (upon penalty of anything from immediate termination to imprisonment, depending on what is discussed...and it is STRICTLY enforced). They can't even discuss the politics surrounding their work. NSA employees have been summarily fired for talking about their jobs with their own spouses!

When an NSA employee takes a holiday off, and someone asks them about their job...even regarding public topics that are widely covered in the press...the only response they are allowed to give is "I can't discuss that".

In that context, these talking points actually represent a loosening of the rules a bit. They've gone from "You can't discuss anything" to "You can discuss a few positive aspects of your job". And, of course, if they discuss anything not on that list, they're still fired.

...what they say is approved by the NSA. That sounds about right.

They've gone from: "You're not allowed to even acknowledge that you work for us" to "We'll let you say these nice things...but no more".

Among its employees, NSA stands for "Never Say Anything". And they're quite serious about that.

...it's no wonder that the NSA is tone deaf to the concerns of the American people at large -- as exemplified in their holiday memo.

#2 and #5 have a little stretch in them

Let's hope they can do better.

"Distributed internally by the NSA the week before Thanksgiving and reported earlier today by Firedoglake..."

"Bob, unless you want Carol to find out about your online affair with Diane, you better shut the hell up about the NSA."

"Be nice, or I'll go in and destroy your credit rating."

"How would you like garbage delivered to your business instead of picked up? One change in the computer and you're through."

"I've got two hundred hours of you jacking it to midget bondage porn, and unless you want that on youtube, you're going to shut up."

"We know what is on the encrypted part of your drive, if you want to keep it private, shut up."

...imagine the leverage to be brought against any political leaders who don't dance to their tune?

I dare say that there may already be leaders who are counting on "we the people" to do what they cannot visa vi unlawful spying.

I mention this only because some people might jump on you, thinking that you meant something hostile.

I was a little bleary eyed last night.

News to me.

"Secure messaging circuits will not be used to transmit unofficial traffic such as holiday greetings."

And then half the stations in the world do it anyway.

which is not a major US holiday. I believe it said Holiday.

Muttering "I'm sorry, that's classified" over and over again is not the way to get invited back for Christmas dinner.

I'm skeptical. Prove it.

Oh, that information is classified? How convenient.

an academy graduate drone pilot. He admitted he has some qualms about it and it was discussed in an adult non rancorous way.

If he were NSA and tried to put forward a positve spin - well it would have stayed adult and not rancorous, but it also would have short work, "Stow it."

Maybe not as many as they claim, but I'd guess that they have disrupted some.

Looks like he quit FOX and landed a government memo writing gig.

I mean, we figured it out here on DU, so I'm sure their families have already figured it out and just don't even invite them anymore anyway.

"In the traditional sense of the word, you are not slaves. You are debt peons."

...all totalitarian talking points, only to obligingly spew them back out in posts.

the direct opposite of liberalism is institutionalized authority

...that some of the same people who were ready to crucify W for this crap are now apologists for the spy practices made possible by the Patriot Act?

Sometimes it feels like I woke up on the wrong side of the universe.

In a nutshell 1-4) "what we do is good" and 5) "we will have a PR campaign now."

It reminds me of the old Russian joke: In Russia there are only 2 TV channels. Channel one is KGB propaganda. Channel two is KGB officer telling you to turn back to Channel One.

Congress Has No Idea What the NSA Is Doing

Posted by Jim Harper

Didja think that the legislative branch oversees the executive branch? Think again! Congress has no idea what the National Security Agency (NSA) is doing.

Spencer Ackerman at Wired‘s Danger Room blog reports on a letter the inspector general of the intelligence community sent earlier this month to Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Mark Udall (D-CO). They had asked how many people in the United States have had their communications collected or reviewed by the NSA.

The letter repeated the NSA IG’s conclusion that estimating this number was “beyond the capacity of his office and dedicating sufficient additional resources would likely impede the NSA’s mission.” Not only that, figuring out the number of people in the United States that the NSA has snooped on “would itself violate the privacy of U.S. persons.”

-- Full Article --
- See more at: http://www.libertycoalition.net/media/blog/2012/06/22/cato-congress-has-no-idea-what-nsa-doing-jim-harper#sthash.S1ROzHCM.dpuf

You can Bet Tricky Dick Cheney/Darth Vader Knows!

Everyone here knows who Gary Hart was. At the end of his time in office he needed to take a fact-finding mission of European Command military bases so he could pass on to his successor the current state of the armed forces. Maybe he was just taking a trip to Europe on the taxpayer's money, but he seemed to be on the level.

Gary Hart didn't want a bunch of dog and pony shows, he wanted to see the real state of things, so he just showed up unannounced. He came to my unit on a Saturday and got briefings from those of us on duty. I told him about the analytical process, and he had one question: you can do that? Not mean or threatening or anything, he was just amazed you could learn all these things without actually sending spies to watch the enemy. "Oh we do that too sir, and sometimes they get caught and shot like Major Nicholson."

they sure as hell didn't get their money's worth....

The NSA is probably a little gun-shy about contracting out work these days

Sing along....

https://soundcloud.com/nearbeer/the-system