[anythingrandom]

To anyone that has read the Rober Baer books on the CIA....

I recently finished "The CIA at War" by Ronald Kessler, which has a short segment about RB's behavior. I have read all of RB's works, enjoyed them all, but forgot my grain of salt and took them all as fact.

Kessler really puts emphasis on exactly how difficult of a job the CIA has, and how their successes are measured against their shortcomings. I found it an excellent rebuttal to much of Baer's work.

I'm reading currently "The Craft of Intelligence" by Dulles, and have found it very interesting. As it is published in 1963, a lot of the information is now outdated, but it is very neat to see how many things he correctly predicted about the future of intel.

At one point in the book, he talks about a "machine" that can sort through applicants looking for someone who is fluent in Swahili and French, over 35yo, not married, and under 5' 8''. It only took 40 seconds for his machine to complete the search! Blazing speed!

Also, intelligence operations from the Bible, middle ages, and early American history are discussed, providing excellent lines between how much and how little intelligence has changed. Although much of the book is spent talking about how to counter the Soviet threat, the lessons are easily applied to today's conflicts.