Decius wrote:
So he doesn't allude to what this program might be. The reader is left to wonder whether this is a paranoid assumption or if the author has some more information that he won't publish.

By saying "paranoid" you imply that whatever is Useful must obviously be Bad. I disagree with that mentality, but I suspect Powers's situation is more like informed speculation than "paranoid assumption." In his article, he is forthcoming about the limits of his knowledge, and he chooses not to reach beyond his ability to substantiate a claim. That seems reasonable to me.

Why bother to mention it, then, if the whole truth cannot yet be told? Well, he may be trying to convince someone in the know that he already has most of the pieces and just needs a helping hand to put them all together.

RE: 'State of War' Roundup