Author Archives: L

Two Years Ago — Gordon Brown : “UK Misled Over Iraqi WMDs”

Posted on November 6, 2019 by L

“Given that Iraq had no usable chemical, biological or nuclear weapons that it could deploy and was not about to attack the coalition, then two tests of a just war were not met: war could not be justified.” Gordon Brown … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq War, On This Day, UK, WMDs | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Three Years Ago — Why the CIA & MI6 Love to Hate Putin

Posted on November 6, 2019 by L

“With the majority vote for Brexit against the strong preference of Scotland and Northern Ireland for remain, we have shown ourselves quite capable of inflicting potentially fatal harm to our national stability all by ourselves. Why would we need Russia … Continue reading →

Posted in CIA, MI5, MI6, Putin | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

On This Day — Robert Gates Becomes 15th CIA Director (November 6 1991) [Test your “Spy Knowledge” with our 2019 CIA Directors Quiz!]

Posted on November 6, 2019 by L

“If Iraq and Afghanistan have taught us anything in recent history, it is the unpredictability of war and that these things are easier to get into than to get out of.” Former CIA Director Robert Gates November 6 2019 — … Continue reading →

Posted in CIA, CIA Director, QUIZ | Tagged , | Leave a comment

KRYPTOS Week 2019 — The Solution of Section II

Posted on November 5, 2019 by L

“And having thus chosen our course, without guile, and with pure purpose, let us renew our trust in God, and go forward without fear, and with manly hearts.” Abraham Lincoln — Address to congress (July 4th, 1861) The ciphertext on … Continue reading →

Posted in KRYPTOS | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

40 Years Ago — Ayatollah Khomeini declares US “The Great Satan” (November 5 1979)

Posted on November 5, 2019 by L

“In this revolution, the Great Satan is America that gathers around other devils blatantly… If we see the US, this great Satan, raising chain and bringing the devils together around him, it is because the US grip over our country … Continue reading →

Posted in Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Iran | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

KRYPTOS Week 2019 — How to Break a Vigenère Code

Posted on November 4, 2019 by L

“I genuinely enjoyed working on the Kryptos ciphers. Professional cryptographers almost certainly could have broken these codes much faster, and would have used superior methods. But I doubt that they would have derived as much satisfaction as I have. I … Continue reading →

Posted in KRYPTOS | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

40 Years Ago — Iranian students storm the U.S. Embassy in Tehran (November 4 1979)

Posted on November 4, 2019 by L

“It is now very clear that there were two separate agreements, one the official agreement with Carter in Algeria, the other, a secret agreement with another party, which, it is now apparent, was Reagan. They made a deal with Reagan … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran | Tagged , | Leave a comment

KRYPTOS Week 2019 — Introduction : Sculpture Dedication Ceremony at the CIA (November 3 1990)

Posted on November 3, 2019 by L

“Maybe you’re mistaken–maybe this first part of the Kryptos code is really not a polyalphabetic Vigenere Tableau after all–maybe it’s a different type of code entirely. Or maybe it is a Vigenere code, but it’s been double or triple encoded–or … Continue reading →

Posted in CIA, Cryptography, KRYPTOS | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

On This Day — The Iran – Contra Scandal (November 3, 1986) [2019]

Posted on November 3, 2019 by L

“My purpose was… to send a signal that the United States was prepared to replace the animosity between [the U.S. and Iran] with a new relationship… At the same time we undertook this initiative, we made clear that Iran must … Continue reading →

Posted in IranContra | Tagged | Leave a comment

On This Day — “Dewey Defeats Truman” (November 2 1948) [2019]

Posted on November 2, 2019 by L

“Truman and his running mate, Senator Alben Barkley of Kentucky, pulled off their shocking victory. Truman’s underdog ticket racked up 303 electoral votes and 49.6 percent of the popular vote to Dewey’s 189 electoral votes and 45.1 percent of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Disinformation | Tagged , | Leave a comment