Netanyahu joins Russia, China & Iran as challenges to U.S. security, while Open Source intel presents opportunities. But "mediocrity' still hobbles CIA management.
I was the first J2 at USSOCOM. My first priority was to develop a system to provide for the intelligence for special operations , SOCRATES, the Special Operations Command Research and Threat Evaluation System. When John Wyand, my senior civilian, asked me what we should call it. I sold him to come up with a name that focus on special operations and sounded smart.
SOCRATES was designed to incorporate both classified intelligence and open source information.
When we previewed the system for General Lindsey, I told him to ask a question. He thought for a minute then asked us for all the information on the Bolivian navy.
In seconds, we were able to tell him that landlocked Bolivia and provide extensive information on its strength, basing, and much more. Open Sources provided a lot of the data. We learned that, as we spoke, the navy was engaged in a major exercise. The general was impressed. He asked several additional questions; my enlisted analyst, using SOCRATES, provided extensive information for each question.
Rapid access to open source information was a critical objective. Special operations forces operate worldwide and have very unique intelligence needs. Much of that information can only be found in open sources. In one case, I was asked for structural information on oil platforms in the Persian Gulf that could be used by a SOF team to drop one. The operation did not go, but an extensive search revealed that insurance companies had much of the information we needed. SOF units need information on the area of operation to a degree of granularity not normally required by conventional forces. Timely open source information is needed to provide the needed information.
In those days, service intelligence production was focused on the Soviets and North Korea. We (the SOCOM J2) did a study of service intelligence products and found that service organizations were wasting huge amounts of time and resources to produce essentially the same material. At a DIA senior intelligence officers conference in West Berlin, I briefed our study and used actual documents to illustrate the point. Many studies simply reformatted existing studies and putting on their organizations cover sheet. My recommendation was that DIA do a comprehensive study and reallocate 10% of existing intelligence resources to support SOF intelligence needs. It took a whil, but there is now a Joint Intelligence Center at MacDill AFB to support SOCOM and CENTCOM.
About a year after I retired, Open Source Solutions, gave me an award for my leadership in expanding the use of open source information to meet intelligence requirements. Bill Colby presented the award.
Wow! This seems better in depth and breadth than weekly reports issued for the President and NSC! Keep it up!
I was the first J2 at USSOCOM. My first priority was to develop a system to provide for the intelligence for special operations , SOCRATES, the Special Operations Command Research and Threat Evaluation System. When John Wyand, my senior civilian, asked me what we should call it. I sold him to come up with a name that focus on special operations and sounded smart.
SOCRATES was designed to incorporate both classified intelligence and open source information.
When we previewed the system for General Lindsey, I told him to ask a question. He thought for a minute then asked us for all the information on the Bolivian navy.
In seconds, we were able to tell him that landlocked Bolivia and provide extensive information on its strength, basing, and much more. Open Sources provided a lot of the data. We learned that, as we spoke, the navy was engaged in a major exercise. The general was impressed. He asked several additional questions; my enlisted analyst, using SOCRATES, provided extensive information for each question.
Rapid access to open source information was a critical objective. Special operations forces operate worldwide and have very unique intelligence needs. Much of that information can only be found in open sources. In one case, I was asked for structural information on oil platforms in the Persian Gulf that could be used by a SOF team to drop one. The operation did not go, but an extensive search revealed that insurance companies had much of the information we needed. SOF units need information on the area of operation to a degree of granularity not normally required by conventional forces. Timely open source information is needed to provide the needed information.
In those days, service intelligence production was focused on the Soviets and North Korea. We (the SOCOM J2) did a study of service intelligence products and found that service organizations were wasting huge amounts of time and resources to produce essentially the same material. At a DIA senior intelligence officers conference in West Berlin, I briefed our study and used actual documents to illustrate the point. Many studies simply reformatted existing studies and putting on their organizations cover sheet. My recommendation was that DIA do a comprehensive study and reallocate 10% of existing intelligence resources to support SOF intelligence needs. It took a whil, but there is now a Joint Intelligence Center at MacDill AFB to support SOCOM and CENTCOM.
About a year after I retired, Open Source Solutions, gave me an award for my leadership in expanding the use of open source information to meet intelligence requirements. Bill Colby presented the award.