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This page contains all of the posts and discussion on MemeStreams referencing the following web page: Executive Summary of 9/11 Final Report. You can find discussions on MemeStreams as you surf the web, even if you aren't a MemeStreams member, using the Threads Bookmarklet.

Executive Summary of 9/11 Final Report
by noteworthy at 1:10 am EDT, Jul 23, 2004

I find it interesting that in the section describing the Afghan war against the Soviets in the 1980s, there is no mention of the role played by the United States in that conflict. Perhaps it's because the section is entitled, "Who is the enemy?"

The commission's recommendation to establish a cabinet-level director of national intelligence appears to have been motivated by the fact that Tenet's 1998 "We are at war" memorandum did not seem to have the expected effect on the Community. Later, they also argue that the current DCI job has too many concurrent responsibilities for a single person to perform properly.

A few selected excerpts:

Many dedicated officers worked day and night for years to piece together the growing body of evidence on al Qaeda and to understand the threats.

Al Qaeda had a pre-9/11 annual budget estimated at $30 million.

What to do?

Strengthen long-term US and international commitments to the future of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Confront problems with Saudi Arabia.

Secrecy stifles oversight, accountability, and information sharing. Unfortunately, all the current organizational incentives encourage overclassification. This balance should change; and as a start, open information should be provided about the overall size of agency intelligence budgets.

The system of "need to know" should be replaced by a system of "need to share."

We look forward to a national debate on the merits of what we have recommended, and we will participate vigorously in that debate.

RE: Executive Summary of 9/11 Final Report
by janelane at 9:32 am EDT, Jul 23, 2004

noteworthy wrote:
] {snip}

I just about stopped reading when it "propose[d] a National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC)." How can they simulatenously believe in unity of operations and yet another beauracratic black hole?

Another agency is not the answer. Make the Department of Homeland Security the unifying government body, and make the 1-3 top officials in it the Big Giant Heads. Give them the power to get any info they want out of any of the big three (FBI, CIA, NORAD) and give the personnel in the DHS the capability to analyze and confront the implications of the data.

I do agree that we need an agency with the clout to be able to light a fire under the ass of the FBI, CIA, NORAD, etc. at a moment's notice, but please, for the love of reason, don't create yet another government entity. What they are talking about is exactly what the DHS should be used for; making connections across agency borders that assimulate the scads of data collected.

-janelane

RE: Executive Summary of 9/11 Final Report
by noteworthy at 9:38 am EDT, Jul 23, 2004

janelane wrote:
] noteworthy wrote:
] ] {snip}
]
] I just about stopped reading when it "propose[d] a National
] Counterterrorism Center (NCTC)." How can they simulatenously
] believe in unity of operations and yet another beauracratic
] black hole?
]
] Another agency is not the answer.

The NCTC would not be 'another agency' -- in the jargon, it's a 'center', which is considerably less than a new agency unto itself. Basically they want to bring additional organizations into what's now called TTIC, and they recommend renaming it.

This particular 'center' already exists.