Are you aware of the suffering and death that polio used to cause and still causes, and how hard many have worked for years to come very close to eradicating it, and what a dramatic setback these efforts were handed when the CIA pretended to be vaccinating people in Pakistan while actually trying to find Bin Laden?
Did you know that it isn't legal in Pakistan or anywhere else to kidnap or to murder?
Have you ever paused and listened to whistleblowers about their regrets? People like Jeffrey Sterling have some eye-opening stories to tell. So does Cian Westmoreland. So does Lisa Ling. So do many others. Ask me, if you'd like to get in touch with any of them.
Were you aware that much of what we think about drones is fictional?
Are you familiar with the dominant role the U.S. plays in weapons dealing and war, that it's responsible for some 80% of international arms dealing, 90% of foreign military bases, 50% of military spending, or that the U.S. military arms, trains, and funds the militaries of 96% of the most oppressive governments on earth?
Did you know that 3% of U.S. military spending could end starvation on earth? Do you really believe, when you stop to consider it, that the current priorities of the U.S. government serve to counter terrorism, rather than to fuel it?
We have real crises facing us that are far more severe than terrorism, Mr. Katstra, no matter where you think terrorism comes from. The threat of nuclear apocalypse is higher than ever. The threat of irreversible climate collapse is higher than ever and massively contributed to by militarism. The trillions of dollars being dumped into militarism are desperately needed for actual defense against these dangers including spin-off catastrophes like coronavirus.
I think a remark this week by the Prime Minister of Norway encapsulated what's wrong with current thinking. She said that since coronavirus had arrived by surprise, more money must be dumped into war preparations. This misses both the fact that governments knew about coronavirus back in November and the fact that we could be far better prepared for health crises if our resources weren't so heavily spent on militarism already.
Trump openly says he wants troops in Syria for oil, Bolton openly says he wants a coup in Venezuela for oil, Pompeo openly says he wants to conquer the arctic for oil (with which to melt more of the arctic into a conquerable state). What does this madness have to do with countering terrorism? Noam Chomsky, whom Pat Tillman was listening to before he was killed, has always pointed out the shortest path to reducing terrorism: "Stop engaging in it."
We're in a moment right now, Mr. Katstra, of realization and shifting priorities. Oil is now worthless but wars for oil are supposedly "essential." This is a time to recognize what's needed and what services are actually a service. UVa has put up banners thanking health workers for their heroic service. There are hundreds of types of heroic service going on right now. None of them have to do with making government secret from people. None of them have to do with spying on people. None of them have to do with lying, cheating, and stealing. None of them have to do with blowing up people with missiles from robot airplanes.
The "intelligence community" is neither. Community, like intelligence, is to be found completely elsewhere. I hope you find it. I hope you find a way to help not just a country but a world that will survive or not as a whole. Let me know if I can help.
Best of luck,
David Swanson
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