New defense strategy, U.S. Army communications security, the collision course between Iran and the U.S., new CRS reports and much more.
From the Blogs
- Army Red Teams Test Communications Security: Steven Aftergood writes about the newly revised Army regulation which prescribes the use of “red teams” that are assigned to try and penetrate the security of military communications, as if they were hackers or opposition forces.
- A New Defense Strategy: A New Nuclear Strategy?: The Obama administration presented a new defense strategy that it says is needed to realign U.S. military forces and doctrine with the reductions in combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as the new fiscal constraints created by the financial crisis. Hans Kristensen writes that it is important that the commitment in the new defense strategy to maintaining a nuclear deterrent does not overshadow the equally important commitment to reducing the size and role of nuclear forces.
- JASON on Producing Tritium for Fusion Reactors: If nuclear fusion were ever to become a practical method of generating electrical energy, there would be a continuing requirement to produce significant quantities of tritium for fusion reactor fuel. The JASON scientific advisory panel was asked by the DOE to assess the feasibility of large scale tritium production; the findings were presented in a new report obtained by Secrecy News.
- Director of National Intelligence Cuts Jobs and Secrets in 2011: Steven Aftergood writes that with the reduction in the workforce at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), there has also been a decline in the level of ODNI classification activity, which dropped by 17.3% from the year before.
- The Big Picture: Keeping Radiation Risks in Perspective: A dentist in the UK was sued for taking panoramic x-rays of some of his patients. Nobody claimed to have been injured, but some patients were concerned about being put at needless risk. Are we so focused on radiation safety and radiological risk reduction that we have lost sight of the larger picture?
- Periods of War, and More from CRS: Secrecy News has obtained new CRS reports on topics such as key issues of the Keystone XL Pipeline Project, super PACS, and growing income inequality. Note: The next issue of Secrecy News will be published the week of January 16, 2012.
Publications
- Supreme Loser: Dr. Ali Vaez, director of the Iran Project, writes in Foreign Policy about the collision course between the United States and Iran. With more sanctions hovering over its oil exports, Iran threatened to seal off the Strait of Hormuz, through which 30 percent of the world's oil supply travels.
- Dr. Charles D. Ferguson, FAS President, participated in a new documentary for Frontline regarding implications for U.S. nuclear safety after the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident in Japan. The documentary will air on PBS on Tuesday, January 17, 2012 at 10:00pm.
FAS in the News
- Jan 4: Reuters, "Nuclear Fuel Test Won't Hasten Iran Bomb"
- Dec 31: Stars and Stripes, "A Case for the Guantanamo Exemption"
- Dec 29: Wired, "2011: The Year Intellectual Property Trumped Civil Liberties"
- Dec 29: Federal Register, "NARA Rule on the Declassification of National Security Information"
- Dec 26: Associated Press, "Decades Later, A Cold War Secret Is Revealed"
- Dec 26: New York Times, "Science and Censorship: A Duel Lasting Centuries"
- Dec 26: ABC News, "The Benefits of Video Games"
- Dec 26: News Observer, "Gingrich, Author Cause a Stir With EMP Theory"
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