The family jewels

The C.I.A. spilled some of the family jewels, the old, outdated, discarded, forgotten jewels. Including a lot of black holes so as to continue to cover up its crimes against humanity. Interference in other countries' affairs, manipulation, illegal wiretapping, harsh interrogation methods, coups d'etats, political assassination, torture, secret prisons, spying on anti-Vietnam War groups, black operations, experiments with mind-control drugs... Even so, nothing much is released about foreign operations. The collection is nearly all about activities involving American citizens. Still, the dreadful list is long, 693 pages long. The whole shebang is available here.

American presidents from Truman and Eisenhower to Nixon and Reagan were terrified of the spread of “communism” or what they thought it represented, of the dominoes falling. To prevent it, anything was allowed, including torture and murder. Congo's Patrice Lumumba was murdered by C.I.A. agents, but they failed several times in their attempts to assassinate Cuba's Fidel Castro. From poison to make him lose his beard to exploding cigars, nothing worked. Bush is now even invoking the help of the “good Lord” to take away Fidel the sooner the better, blissfully ignorant that if the “Lord” is up to any “good” it would be Bush who is taken first...

Has the C.I.A. learned its lesson? Has it become any more civilized since 1973? Fat chance! In the deranged minds of the “good Lords” of the White House, “islamo-fascist terrorism” has replaced “communism” as the bogey-man. The dirty tricks, the coups, the assassinations, the crimes, they continue to be committed in violation of all the glorious principles and moral values the American Empire professes to adhere to. C.I.A. director Michael Hayden acknowledged the agency “did some things it shouldn't have done”. How nice! The fact is, it continues to do those things...