-Caveat Lector-
>From http://www.antiwar.com/orig/cummings1.html
}}}>Begin
Puttin' On the Ritz
by Richard Cummings
April 18, 2002
Some years ago, Maria Mattheissen, wife of the novelist and nature writer, Peter
Matthiessen, said to me, "Everything is a hoax." At the time, I didn't understand what
she was referring to. Then I began to find out. Shortly before his death, the
novelist,
John Sherry told me how Peter Mattheisssen was "haunted by the CIA." Matthiessen
told Sherry that he had not "founded" The Paris Review from scratch, as legend has
it, but that he had established it at the behest of the CIA it while working for the
Agency, so it could serve as his cover in Paris.
In the official history of The Paris Review, it states: "Matthieseen invited George
Plimpton, then a student at Cambridge, to take on a position as editor. Plimpton has
headed the magazine ever since. Plimpton's unusual instinct for The Paris Review
was evident as early as 1954, when, in the midst of the annual running of the bulls at
Pamplona, he asked Prince Sadruddin Aga Kahn to serve as first publisher of The
Paris Review. Prince Aga Kahn little choice but to accept. He remained as publisher
until 1975."
Had little choice? According to Sherry, Matthiessen assured him that the Prince
never put up a penny. His foundation was the conduit of CIA funds at all times.
Maybe they made him an offer he could not refuse. But, of course, this was the Cold
War, and we were fighting what President Reagan would call "the evil empire."
Nevertheless, a lot of people got on the CIA gravy train, enjoying themselves in Paris
while fighting the cultural Cold War. Imagine debonair Americans in Paris, having
drinks at the bar of The Ritz, at our expense, while pretending to be literary lions,
and
you've got the picture. Writers got gigs, editors got girlfriends, and everyone got a
piece of the action. What did they accomplish? They found out that all the leading
French writers and intellectuals at that time were Communists, something everyone
knew in the first place. But as word of American intelligence operations in France
spread, these operations engendered a deep suspicion of America that led to major
disruptions of American foreign policy objectives in Europe. We treated a great
country as a colony and the consequences are still being felt. Then, with the fiasco of
the Vietnam War that our vast government complex supported, American intelligence
fell linto disrepute.
But memory is short. Now, the venue has shifted and we are engaged in a life and
death struggle against terrorism. And, as can be expected, there is a new gravy train.
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld tells us that the war must be waged on all
fronts, including law enforcement. Vast sums are now pouring into operations that
have a familiar look to them reminiscent of the scams of the Cold War. At the top of
the list is something called the International Law Enforcement Academy in Bangkok.
A vast. Pentagon-like complex hidden from view by landscaping that includes giant
trees, and with a web site that makes it sound innocuous, the ILEA lists a handful of
courses that it offers, including "Cyber Crime." The prerequisite for this course is a
knowledge of English. A guy teaches this particular course from the Customs
Academy in Brunswick, Georgia with the unlikely title of Director of Trade Operations.
Which trade operations does he direct? He is also the Acting Director of Mission
Support. What? In actuality, his career in Florida involved opening people's baggage
and rummaging through their belongings in search of contraband until he moved up
the bureaucratic ladder, with a somewhat less that lateral move to the Customs
Academy. Trained to give the Cyber Crime course in a one-week crash course in
Washington, this GS-14 was put up at the Ritz, the most expensive hotel in
Washington! This, at a time, when various federal agencies are crying that the
budget situation is strangling their effectiveness. Then, he will be flown to Bangkok
to give the course. At our expense.
The question is why is he needed there when hundreds of so-called law enforcement
people work there already? The answer is pretty obvious. These courses listed on
the ILEA web site are a camouflage. ILEA, which purports to be affiliated with "US
State Department, the U.S. Customs Services, Bureau of Diplomatic Security of
ILEA," smells very much like something else. To anyone with a background and
knowledge of intelligence, it appears to be nothing less than a School of the
Americas East and a CIA front. The School of the Americas supported state-
ponsored terrorism and death squads to perpetuate oppressive regimes in Latin
America and had the direct effect of generating much of the ill-will towards the United
States that we are now grappling with, with the restoration of the Chavez presidency
in Venezuela after a failed bloody coop in which the United States was undoubtedly
involved, and a civil war in Colombia that threatens the stability of all of Latin
America. Not to mention the millions who died in Guatemala following the CIA's
covert intervention there.
What is actually being taught at the ILEA? Take a look at the governments of the
Central Asian republics we are supporting and you will find the worst human rights
records in the world. It is known that they use the most brutal techniques, including
torture, to perpetuate themselves. If the United States doesn't want to practice these
techniques itself, it can send people to these countries to get information from them.
The "jihad" against all of them is a major focal point of American foreign policy, much
as our support of the oppressive regimes in Latin America has been. We are
prepared to keep control of the oil and natural gas reserves in those countries at any
price, as well as the ability to build the pipeline that will eventually produce huge
profits for American investors.
The brutal techniques that used to be taught by the Technical Assistance division of
US AID have now, it would appear, found a new sponsor. Are these the real courses
being offered by the ILEA behind the façade of the anodyne courses that serve as a
front for the ILEA? This is the inoculation principal at its most obvious. Tell a
little bit
of the truth to conceal a bigger lie. You can actually e mail questions to the ILEA, so
seemingly benign. But if you think ILEA is not a CIA front, you believe in the tooth
fairy.
Since when, you might ask, is the State Department a law enforcement agency?
And as for a useless course like "Cyber Crime," who could possibly take it? If
English is required, most of the police from the countries we support to control their
resources don't speak English. The Indians and Pakistanis do, but they know much
more than the guy teaching it. And typical CIA. What a farce and waste of our
money. If the CIA devoted its energies and resources to gathering intelligence, its
main function, instead of this sort of boondoggle, it might have known something
about what was going on in Hamburg prior to 911.
We need to take a hard look at this operation now before it gets totally out of hand
and earns us more ill will in a part of the world where we need to build up support for
American, not hatred against us. We should also take a hard look at the Customs
Academy in Brunswick, Georgia, a little known operation that is part of the larger
FLETC or Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, where clowns with their per
diems from the FBI and other federal agencies go to lounge and rent condos on the
beach on St. Simons Island with our money and spend our taxes. The Director of the
Academy is a top-level federal administrator, putting him the very top range of salary,
well in the six-figure bracket. What does he do? He supervises the guys who train
the Customs officials who are part of one of the most incompetent federal agencies.
You have to wonder if this is not only incompetence but also something else. When
these guys retire, they get incredibly lucrative "consultantships" around the world
from Bulgaria to Costa Rica, dong things like "airport security." about which they
know nothing. No wonder terrorists fly around undetected.
Is it all a "hoax?" Not to all those who lost their lives on 911 or to the wonderful
men
and women in our armed forces in Afghanistan. But as the war on terrorism expands
to include every facet of human life, we must ask ourselves if we are making the best
use of our resources. "Puttin' on the Ritz" is not exactly the right way to go in a
time
of crisis. The New York Times recently ran an article called "Is This Any Way to Run
a Nation?" listing the incredibly abuses of various federal agencies. "Every week
brings new examples of federal agencies not just performing poorly, but performing
stupidly," The Times quotes Paul C. Light, director of the Brookings Institution's
governmental studies program. The Times asks" That's just a short list of the woes
plaguing federal agencies these days. But it's enough to make any civic minded
American ask: does anything work well in Washington these days?" Good question.
What grade would anyone give the CIA and the Customs Services these days? F
would be appropriate. When the INS mailed out visas extensions last month for two
of the September 11 hijackers and with the Federal Aviation Administration still
sending newsletters to at least one of the other dead terrorists, we must ask, "Is this
any way to win the war against terrorism?" Or do we say, once again, with the
immortal Pogo, "We have met the enemy and it is us?"
Richard Cummings [send him mail] served with the office of General Counsel of
USAID Near East South Asia region, as the lawyer for the AID program in Israel,
Jordan, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, and is a member of the Association of Former
Intelligence Officers, having served on the Board of the AFIO-New England chapter.
He is the author of The Pied Piper-Allard K. Lowenstein and the Liberal Dream
(second ed., InPrint. Com 2000) and Proposition 14-A Secessionist Remedy.
Back to Antiwar.com Home Page | Contact Us
End<{{{
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Forwarded as information only; no automatic endorsement
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material
is distributed without charge or profit to those who have
expressed a prior interest in receiving this type of information
for non-profit research and educational purposes only.
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
"Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe
simply because it has been handed down for many generations. Do not
believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do
not believe in anything simply because it is written in Holy Scriptures. Do not
believe in anything merely on the authority of Teachers, elders or wise men.
Believe only after careful observation and analysis, when you find that it
agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all.
Then accept it and live up to it."
The Buddha on Belief, from the Kalama Sutta
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
"Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will
teach you to keep your mouth shut."
--- Ernest Hemingway
<A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A>
DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
========================================================================
Archives Available at:
http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html
<A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of
[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A>
http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
<A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A>
========================================================================
To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Om
