HSE 430 WK 2 Responses
Task 2: After you have created your new discussion topic, you are required to read and respond to a minimum of 2 of your classmates discussion topics. Think of your responses in terms of a contribution to a dialogue, not a writing exercise or a chat room. Elaborate a single idea and keep your post short but concise as if you were holding a conversation with your classmate(s). Incorporate what you have learned from the weekly reading material and from your own real-world experiences. Dont forget to use proper APA citations and references whenever necessary.
Book: M. M. Lowenthal (2022). Intelligence: from Secrets to Policy 9th edition. CQ Press.
Luis: The five major themes that have shaped the development of the U.S. Intelligence system are as follows: According to our reading materials, the U.S. intelligence system has been shaped by the need for secrecy and espionage since the emergence of the Revolutionary War when George Washington used spies to gather information about the British forces. The establishment of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during WW II and the CIA during the cold war. In brief the following themes were a necessary instrument of intelligence system: Technological Advancements, satellites (cold war), recently cyber intelligence and AI.
Legislation and Oversight came the creation of CIA an offspring of the NSA, the National Security Council and the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 which in turn reshape the intelligence community following the 9/11 attacks. Threat Perception such as the cold war led to the creation of and establishing a strong emphasis on counterintelligence operation in order to combat the threat of communism, and as mentioned above, the 9/11 attacks shifted the focus towards counterterrorism. Last but not the least the balance of Civil Liberties and Privacy. This balance has its history since the creation of the constitution. Balancing national security with civil liberties and privacy has been a recurring theme. From the John Adams administration (1797 to 1801) to the present day with the creation of USA PATRIOT ACT (10/2001) which expanded intelligence gathering but at the same time it raised concerns about privacy and civil liberties.
As for its historical development, it included the establishment of the CIA in 1947 which was only a centralized effort, however, the Cuban missile crisis emphasizes the importance of accurate intelligence, and of course followed by the eventful day of 9/11, these historical changes in the intelligence community were a wakeup call to restructured and to better coordinate efforts against terrorism.
Threat-based foreign policy developments included the Cold War, which led to a focus on counterintelligence and espionage. The War on Terror post-9/11 has led to an emphasis on counterterrorism and intelligence sharing. The rise of cyber threats has led to a focus on cyber intelligence.
Juan: There are many major themes that have influenced and shape the development of the U.S. intelligence system. The following five Liberty and Security, Influence of the Cold War, Debate Over Covert Action, Consumer- Producer Relations, Heavy Reliance on Technology stand out the most to me for a couple of reasons. The theme of liberty and security to me is a very controversial theme and according to our reading it has been argued about for many years. In my opinion, there are times where liberty must be sacrificed to have security. There have been many instances throughout our time when Presidents and their administrations have gathered information to identify infiltrators and protestors. The Cold War supplemented the United States the need for intelligence capabilities. This weeks reading also highlights how because the U.S could not physically harm the Soviet Union and its allies it resorted back to gathering intelligence with remote technical systems.
A major historical development that had a great impact on the intelligence community and contributed to a reorganization in the same was the Iraq War. This is a perfect example how intelligence can be obscured by policy makers and government officials. George W. Bush administration was convinced that Saddam Hussein had Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) in Iraq. Therefore, intelligence gathered at the time supported this idea which drove the U.S to partake in a bloody war. Investigations of the intelligence used to support the Iraqi war pointed out that there was no evidence that WMDs existed in Iraq. Further-more there were zero WMDs found in Iraq during the duration of the conflict. This failure by the intelligence community drove to reforms intended to allow analysts to better evaluate sources and challenge a conclusion for possible bias.
Lowenthal, Mark M. Intelligence. Available from: VitalSource Bookshelf, (9th Edition). SAGE Publications, Inc. (US), 2022.
RUBRIC BELOW
1. Discussion Forum
Discussion forum participation will be graded using the following criteria:
2 points
3 points
4 points
5 points
Engagement / Interaction
N/A – no points are available for this criterion
engaged in a meaningful and relevant dialog with at least one peers
N/A – no points are available for this criterion
engaged in a meaningful and relevant dialog with
two or more peers
Participation
N/A – no points are available for this criterion
participated on one days
N/A – no points are available for this criterion
participated on
two or more days
Content / Topic Relevance
discussion forum contributions rarely addressed the main topic
discussion forum contributions sometimes addressed the main topic
discussion forum contributions very often addressed the main topic
discussion forum contributions always addressed the main topic
Timeliness
N/A – no points are available for this criterion
responded to main topic one day after the first post due date
N/A – no points are available for this criterion
responded to main topic the day of the first post due date
Content / Topic Knowledge
displays a fair understanding of the material
displays a good understanding of the material
displays a very good understanding of the material
displays an excellent understanding of the material
