Posted on 08/06/2007 6:15:49 AM PDT by SueRae
August 6, 2007 6:30 AM
Harry Potter and the Deathly Intelligence Leakers can only Scholastic keep a secret?
By Peter Hoekstra
The fate of Harry Potter in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows was a closely guarded secret that was not supposed to be revealed before the book’s official release on July 21. The U.S. Postal Service tried to protect the secret when a mailman asked a Chicago-area woman to give back two copies of the book he had accidentally delivered before the release date. The mailman feared that he would lose his job for delivering the novel early. That is, he feared he would be fired for “leaking” the new Harry Potter book.
If only our intelligence agencies were as concerned about leaks as the U.S. Postal Service. There has been a torrent of leaks of national-security information since 2001. Many have been politically motivated, unauthorized disclosures to the news media aimed at hurting the Bush administration. The small number of intelligence officers who leak are a cancer inside the U.S. intelligence community. They jeopardize the lives and credibility of the thousands of hard-working intelligence professionals who have dedicated themselves to protecting America and its citizens.
Crucial antiterrorist programs implemented after 9/11 targeting al Qaeda and other radical jihadist groups have been seriously weakened by unauthorized disclosures by intelligence officials to the news media. Last week, unnamed intelligence officers told a blogger that a recent National Intelligence Estimate on terrorist threats to the United States lacked sourcing and was politicized. I have read this carefully crafted assessment and find these claims to be groundless. If anyone in the intelligence community believed this, they should have brought their concerns to the intelligence oversight committees and/or their agency inspectors general. They did not; instead they chose to go to the press.
Rowan Scarborough discussed many examples of illegal leaks of classified information to the news media by intelligence officers in his new book Sabotage: America’s Enemies within the CIA. The CIA, rather than explaining how it is working to stop leaks, instead attacked the author.
This was exactly the wrong response and further demonstrates the CIA’s unwillingness to respond to the leaks that are undermining the agency. Late last year, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence conducted a review documenting multiple cases since 2001 of intelligence officers making unauthorized disclosures to the press. Repeated demands by Congress that the Intelligence Community investigate and prosecute these leaks have been met with silence. Moreover, in my six years on HPSCI, there has never been a successful prosecution of an intelligence official for leaking classified information to the press.
Now there is news of an even more disturbing leak by high-level intelligence officials. Last week, a Swiss investigator told the European parliament that senior CIA officials leaked information to him on the alleged classified activities of the U.S. government. The CIA officers reportedly made these illegal disclosures to the Swiss investigator because of their dislike of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and disagreements with certain CIA programs.
Leaking information to an agent of a foreign power conducting an investigation of U.S. intelligence activities takes illegal disclosures to a new and very disturbing level. This is why I wrote director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell to demand that he investigate the report and prosecute any CIA officers who may have illegally disclosed information to this foreign investigator to the maximum extent of the law.
It is urgent that President Bush and the heads of all intelligence agencies begin to take this problem seriously. Leaks of national-security information — especially America’s counterterrorism programs — have seriously damaged the security of the United States. Immediate action must be taken stop leaks of classified information and to prosecute those who have been engaged in this illegal activity.
The Chicago mailman who thought his career was in danger for prematurely delivering the then-secret Harry Potter book should not have worried. His job is to see to the efficient delivery of mail, and he should not have been faulted for doing his job perhaps too well. Intelligence officers, however, take an oath to safeguard America's secrets. When intelligence officers leak sensitive national-security information to the press or give it to agents of foreign powers without authorization, they are not just violating this oath, they are violating the public’s trust. There is no room for political activity in intelligence because protecting our nation from al Qaeda and others who would do us harm is a deadly, serious business.
— Peter Hoekstra (R., Mich.) is the Ranking Republican Member on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
© National Review Online 2006-2007. All Rights Reserved.
Mary McCarthy - no penalty whatsoever.
It’s all about the ME, ME, ME! These people are so full of themselves and wanting face time that they can’t be bothered with the little people or that they’re causing the downfall of the greatest nation on earth.
During the transition from Clinton to Bush one of Clinton’s buds gleefully commented that there were a few land mines and other booby traps set for the Bush administration. They also transferred their political appointees to regular jobs protected by the Civil Service rules, meaning they can’t be fired. It was right out there in the open but the media keeps quiet about it.
Yep. The only prosecution of a "leak" was the Plame game, a farce from the very start.
This whole op-ed is SO right on the money there isn't one single sentence to single out that really sums it up. It's just that good all over.
*pingus maxima*
The U.S. Postal Service tried to protect the secret when a mailman asked a Chicago-area woman to give back two copies of the book he had accidentally delivered before the release date. The mailman feared that he would lose his job for delivering the novel early.
This is a distortion of of the facts. Some booksellers did not package their books in a way that they were easily identified as HP7. Then also dropped their copies into the system early. The result? The books were delivered early. Carriers were not at risk of losing their jobs over this.
It appears to be a deliberate exageration by this author for the purpose of the article. So the question is - if this author is provably willing to distort facts how can the rest of what is written be trusted?
Many do not realize how readily journalists will warp facts to provide punch to a story, or worse, to push a particular viewpoint.
“Many do not realize how readily journalists will warp facts to provide punch to a story, or worse, to push a particular viewpoint.”
Agreed. Attributed quotes from nobody-pesons are among the worst, as usually they never said anything like what they are claimed to have; in other cases, as in the postal delivery case above, events are dramatized and distorted to such a degree that they could be considered fictional.
Many people assume that the high-profile cases are a few bad writers in a profession where most would not do this, but I think it is more a case of the guys being caught being the most incompetent.
“...there were a few land mines and other booby traps set...”
What did the Administration do about it? Exactly nothing. They left in place every Clinton operative, in every sector of the government. I do not view that as being a good thing for the nation.
In addition, yes, postal employees get seriously worried about losing their jobs when they make a mistake, especially where a guarantee by the Postal Service is concerned. They will lose their job if the infraction is deemed severe enough. It's common enough for postal employees to worry about their jobs: their employer, the federal government, has many strict regulations of their conduct. Also, the employee in question may not have been as well informed on the history of the book's release as you.
I don't think the author is saying that the Post Office was firing people over this, but that the mailman thought he might be fired.
In Sabotage, you'll learn:
* How CIA analysts repeatedly leak details about classified intelligence programs with the dual intent of ending them and damaging the president
* How, on at least eight occasions, intelligence officials have made serious allegations of wrongdoing against the president's men--which turned out to be false
* Why, contrary to popular belief, the CIA has become predominantly liberal
* How a CIA turf battle prevented special operators from pursuing and capturing a notorious Taliban leader
* How current and former CIA officers fueled conspiracy theories that President Bush orchestrated the 9/11 attacks on America
* How a CIA leak to the New York Times deprived the U.S. of critical information in the War on Terror
* How press leaks by the CIA have damaged relations with our foreign allies in the War on Terror
* How a CIA analyst worked with Democrats to sabotage the nomination of John Bolton to the UN
* How Clinton's downsizing of the CIA led to the closing of stations in scores of jihadist breeding grounds--including Hamburg, Germany, where the 9/11 plot was hatched
------------------
If any Freepers have read the book, could you please summarize how CIA officers fueled 9-11 conspiracy theories that Bush was behind 9-11.
One retailer disclosed the personal information of a customer to one of the news agencies who posed as the publisher when copies were shipped early (the man listed his on ebay).
The Enemedia has their priorities focused on their media empires.
Bush's refusal to pursue the Clintons' traitorous actions is a mystery to me. Some say it was part of his "new tone" in Washington. Yet, he had been around Washington enough to know that what worked with old Democrats in Texas would not work in D.C.
There was a seller on ebay who was contacted by a journalist (who said that he declined to be interviewed) who posed as the publisher. The information was provided to the publisher by the retailer.
It would not suprise me in the least that the vendor or publisher strong armed the USPS to track down the early distributed copies.
RIAA performs FBI style raids on flea markets without a court order.
The entertainment industry acts as their own police force.
No sooner had I clocked a couple of hours of vacation time to make up for my Potter errand-running than my desk phone rang. A pleasant-sounding woman introduced herself as being with Scholastic Books, and my jaw hit the desk at something approaching supersonic speed. She said, “We understand you have received a copy of the new Harry Potter book from DeepDiscount.com, are you a Harry Potter fan?”To say that I freaked would be a bit of an understatement. My desk phone number isn’t published anywhere — how the hell did they find me? I hung up without responding, and now I regret it. I should have at least chatted with her.
After I’ve had a chance to think about it, I assume now that DeepDiscount was pressured into turning over contact information on the people who received early copies of Hallows. At least that’s my best guess — I’m not discounting the possibility that Ms. Rowling did a little conjuring when she heard about the eBay ad.
The newspaper pictures were what really set off the firestorm this afternoon. After I’d provided proof that I actually had the book, today, the e-mails started flying: questions about shipping and questions about whether I were actually a minion of the Dark Lord ran about 50-50 each. By about 2 P.M., the ad got its first bid, for $123. A few minutes later, my e-mail buzzed again with the notice that the “Buy It Now” had been accepted for $250 plus shipping.
I’m not ashamed to say that I blurted out, “CHING!” To my great amusement, I soon found out that the buyer was Robin Lenz, the managing editor of Publisher’s Weekly. According to an e-mail from Lenz, “I'm the person who shelled out the big bucks for you early copy of Harry Potter. I'm an editor at Publishers Weekly and we're writing an article on early shipping, the embargo, spoilers, etc. —this is huge news in the publishing industry. (and if there's is any way you could ship it today, I'd pay extra).”
Well, this was great stuff. Not only did I make a very nice profit, I got the best of all possible outcomes: Instead of taking a desperate Harry Potter fan to the cleaners, I got to fleece a media organization. I will sleep with a profoundly clean conscience.
The story wasn’t quite over after I dropped the book off at FedEx, of course. The Associated Press ran a story about the book’s release, noted my ad, and falsely claimed that I’d declined to respond to a query. That’s a lie: Even as I write this an hour or so after the AP’s story, I have not been contacted by them in any way—and if they actually try they’re going to get hung up on; lie about me and you lose interview rights.
The publisher can request or even pressure the USPS to attempt to get the book back, but the USPS is not going to threaten a carrier's job for a publisher's mistake. If a supervisor was foolish enough to do so the carriers union would become involved - to that supervisor's detriment, and rightfully so.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.