Thursday, March 12, 2009

The History Of The NSA


Uncovering NSA's History -- Wall Street Journal

A top secret, 1,000-page history of the National Security Agency released Friday is the first-ever comprehensive account of its Cold War activities. Below, read more about what the history, written by agency veteran Thomas R. Johnson, hints at about NSA's battles with the Central Intelligence Agency, its reports during Vietnam and how it grappled with legal uncertainty.

The War Between NSA and CIA:

"This state of affairs produced the by-then inevitable sword play between the two admirals and contributed yet another stone to the wall being built between Turner and Inman."

The pitched battles between the NSA and the CIA predate both agencies, with roots in the wartime and post World War II organization of communications intelligence, which actively excluded the CIA's predecessor, the Office of Strategic Services. The CIA "exacted revenge over a period of many years for having been excluded from wartime cryptology," Mr. Johnson writes. (Vol. 1, p. 5) Considerable portions of the history are deleted at CIA's request.

Read more ....

My Comment: An old article from last year, but still fascinating and a joy to read today.

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