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CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

simonwillison.net

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Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#181

Post by iAMkenough »

dizlexic wrote: post #111
iAMkenough wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Real reason to remove the facts and archive of the records is so that they're not cited in deportation litigation and government lawyers don't have to argue against the facts the government holds true

source or evidence of this?

It's broadly reported that lawyers often depend on it in asylum cases as "a trusted, objective source for country conditions."

If you want an official government source to outright say "it was inconveniencing our mass deportation efforts," I don't know what to tell you.

Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#182

Post by scarecrowbob »

direwolf20 wrote: post #172
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> What makes you think h is smart instead of a blubbering idiot that Mr Magoo his way through life? The fact that he's President. Twice. He maneouvred himself into the most powerful seat in the world. Twice. I'm tremendously sceptical that someone stupid can wind up there like that. (Again, not necessarily intelligent. You don't need to be intelligent to clear the Republican field in 2016. You do need to be crafty.)

Did he manoeuvre himself, or did some other guy manoeuvre him so that guy could stay relatively hidden?

My assumption was that he didn't even intend to win the 2016 election but the ability to launder dark money is so appealing that his avarice combined with the sheer unlikability of HRC to create a perfect storm to blow him out of Florida.

Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#183

Post by joriJordan »

GS523523 wrote: post #180
joriJordan wrote: post #165

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Do what we say or lose your income" does require blind faith in the correctness of the hierarchy. The business model and whether or not useful work is being done or if the biological is just shuffling capital around as political rules allow. It requires ignoring management is just another random person, wielding fiat authority. Physics has not imbued them with special properties. It's allegiance to made up semantics…

> "Do what we say or lose your income" does require blind faith in the correctness of the hierarchy. That just describes anyone who worked under management. Recognizing that you may be fired for disobeying orders != believing that your manager is physically special. How do you define blind faith and informed faith? Can't you conceive of someone who follows orders without blindly believing in them? You seem to have th…

What obligation do I have to satisfy your sensibilities?

I have no obligation to contribute to your food or healthcare. Why care how you feel about my rhetoric?

You! Of all people! ...can "call me out" all you want.

Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#184

Post by esseph »

CaptWillard wrote: post #174
esseph wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Donald Trump is wickedly smart This is the exact opposite of what has been said about Trump by his "friends" in the Epstein files.

His "friends" like Reid Hoffman and Epstein himself? They do talk about Trump a lot in those files.

There's about half a dozen or more comments about Trump's lack of intelligence or inability to focus from Epstein, Bannon, etc.

Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#185

Post by anigbrowl »

foobarchu wrote: post #140
anigbrowl wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It gets cited a lot in immigration litigation as well (eg in asylum arguments) because it's an unimpeachable factual source that the government's lawyers can't reasonably dispute.

In what ways would you use it like that? Honest question, I'm not at all familiar with what was in it.

(eg in asylum arguments)

If you were applying for asylum because the conditions in your country were so oppressive to you as a political actor or member of a disfavored ethnic group, you could support your application with relevant data from the CIA world factbook describing general conditions in that country. As a publication of the US government, those factual claims would not be lightly dismissable or disputable the way third party opinions might.

Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#186

Post by socalgal2 »

gunapologist99 wrote: post #80

I know this isn’t a popular opinion, and yeah, I will also miss it, but I’ve always thought the World Factbook was a strange thing for the CIA to be publishing in the first place. Not because the information is false, but because the act of choosing which facts to publish is itself an opinion. Once you accept that, you’re no longer talking about neutral data; you’re talking about the official position of the United S…

two examples

1. It listed Taiwan under countries

2. It listed Burma even though it's called Myannma (as all my friends from Myannma introduce themselves)

Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#187

Post by tremon »

idle_zealot wrote: post #87
red-iron-pine wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

this isn't 1820 -- most people's perception is via social media, and failing that, legacy media. which is why the big tech bros and the openAI execs donated money to Trump; "kiss the ring". it's why Larry Ellison desperately wants to buy CBS. recent posts show that 1/3 of the US electorate will still, in all likelihood, vote Republican, again, even after everything that has happened.

You're talking about that effective soft power, yes. There are some smarter authoritarians still maintaining it, but when things get overt it loses a lot of efficacy. We've swung from 1/2 to 1/3 support for Republicans, despite most people going about their lives more-or-less normally outside of one small city. So that swing is attributed to a failure of soft power. Check out opinions in Minneapolis to see what appli…

> outside of one small city

We're conveniently forgetting Chicago, Portland, Houston, Charlotte now?

Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#188

Post by kashunstva »

JumpCrisscross wrote: post #65
supjeff wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How much do we believe the current administration values "intelligence"? For the most part, the truth is trump's enemy. as far as he can control it, it's better for his to be the only authoritative voice. If he says Australia is full of muslims and bad hombres, he doesn't need the CIA contradicting him.

> How much do we believe the current administration values "intelligence"? Broadly? A lot. Donald Trump is wickedly smart. So is Stephen Miller. Susie Wiles. Hegseth is an idiot, but he's Chip 'n' Dale to Marco Rubio. (Our planes aren't falling off our carriers any more. And the raid on Caracas was executed flawlessly. That isn't something numpties can pull off.)

> Donald Trump is wickedly smart.

I highly doubt that. Certainly not in any conventional sense of the word. A former professor of his at the Wharton School characterized him as the “dumbest student he ever taught.”

More objectively, linguistic studies have demonstrated a considerable decline in the complexity and scope of his language. And recently while trying to defend himself against claims of cognitive decline, he could not recall the term “Alzheimer’s”, instead tapping himself on the head until an aide filled in the word for him.

Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#189

Post by reverius42 »

adventured wrote: post #85
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> wut. this is a joke, right? No, it's not. He's smart. His political instincts are well honed. And he's good at surrounding himself with strategists. I'm not sure he's wickedly intelligent . And he's getting old, which cuts into his cleverness and memory. But his wit is quick (recall the Republican debates), retention used to be spectacular and has achieved things which you simply cannot do by being the bumbling dop…

The bumbling dope is the default go-to characterization by the left, they always target intelligence first no matter what. Bush 1 was a dope. Dan Quayle was a dope. Bush 2 was a dope (until they decided they liked him). Sarah Palin was a dope. Trump is a dope. Vance is a dope. The left views intelligence as a top tier prize, so they start by first trying to dismantle someone's standing on that. How likely is it that…

> They're more likely to be considerably smarter than the typical voter

I sure hope all US Presidents are smarter than the typical voter. I think we're comparing presidents to other presidents, not to the typical voter.

Re: CIA suddenly stops publishing, removes archives of The World Factbook

#190

Post by exe34 »

direwolf20 wrote: post #171
georgemcbay wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It gives me hope that Trump will replace the top generals and a few layers down with yes-men who will spend the military budget on coke and then the US will be less of a threat to the rest of the world. I realize this is kind of a joke, but... The US will continue to be the most powerful military in history for a very long time even with a highly incompetent top-layer. It will just have less people with the wisdom…

What happens if the US economy collapses and it can't muster the equivalent of 1.5 trillion of today's dollars at any price?

I'll get to experience my 4th once-in-a-lifetime wealth transfer from my generation to the ultra-wealthy as a millennial.
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