The Best Covert Ops Are Those Done in Secret

Snaquebite · 01-19-2008, 09:24

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,323010,00.html

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

By Mike Baker

Quote:

covert, adjective

1. secret or hidden; not openly practiced or engaged in or shown or avowed; "covert actions by the CIA"; "covert funding for the rebels"

And that’s our word of the day. Covert.

Apparently, as a noun, it refers to a flock of coots. I have no idea what a coot is… never seen one as far as I’m aware. I asked the research staff here at the PWB to provide a little information on the coot, perhaps even dig up a photo of a coot flock.

Needless to say, that request is languishing with the other various tasks piling up on their desks. The PWB office is clearly nothing more than a shelter for wayward slackers.

Regardless, onward and upward. I decided on the word of the day after spending some time in the car this morning listening to the news. Frankly, I’d rather spend my commute listening to my preset geezer rock stations, but my wife surreptitiously (different than covertly) reset some of my classic rock settings to NPR stations from around the country.

Quote:

This morning, there was a mention of Pakistan. Specifically, there was a discussion by a handful of individuals (a handful is smaller than a flock) debating whether the U.S. should engage in covert operations on the Pakistan side of the border with Afghanistan. I shall repeat that.

There was a discussion on the radio about the possibility of conducting covert operations against Al Qaeda and Taliban elements currently operating in Pakistan. This should not come as a surprise to anyone focused on world events and particularly the recent upheaval in Pakistan. Although I am aware that it’s tough to pay attention to world events now that American Gladiators has fired back up.

Is it just me, or are there others out there who would love to see the next presidential election decided on The Eliminator? This would save us a fortune in campaign expenses and reduce the election process down to a manageable 60 minutes including commercials.

But I digress. Here’s my point… if you’re having a dialogue in the media about whether to engage in covert operations, it could be too late to engage in covert operations. Unless I’m missing the point entirely, and that is entirely possible, the best covert ops are those done in secret.

See, in the not-so-old days, we’d identify a threat, gather what intelligence was possible, draw up scenarios for dealing with the threat and then carry out an operation. Nowhere in the checklist was there a bullet point labeled "See what the public thinks," or “Use media outlets to debate operational scenarios.”

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