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Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

secretmissiondc.com

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Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#31

Post by possiblelion »

lawrenceyan wrote: post #21

This is a genuine question: I don't really see how it's possible for spies to exist in the modern day. Our world is far too technologically advanced for espionage to work anymore right? Can someone correct me if I'm wrong.

I understand how that might seem the case, however the reality is quite the opposite. Intelligence work in general is mostly not about finding out some coke-recipe tier secrets, but rather verifying and giving confidence levels to things we already know.

n world of technology, where the problem is no longer the lack of information, but rather the abundance of it, such work is more important than ever.

Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#32

Post by saalweachter »

possiblelion wrote: post #31
lawrenceyan wrote: post #21

This is a genuine question: I don't really see how it's possible for spies to exist in the modern day. Our world is far too technologically advanced for espionage to work anymore right? Can someone correct me if I'm wrong.

I understand how that might seem the case, however the reality is quite the opposite. Intelligence work in general is mostly not about finding out some coke-recipe tier secrets, but rather verifying and giving confidence levels to things we already know. n world of technology, where the problem is no longer the lack of information, but rather the abundance of it, such work is more important than ever.

Curation is valuable in all option-rich environments, be it libraries, hardware stores or intelligence gathering.

Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#33

Post by Uhhrrr »

boomboomsubban wrote: post #20
ghotli wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've been to that museum and was most struck by the small section about Einstein informing the president at the time that the math meant nukes were possible and likely would exist in the short term. There's a lot of cool stuff in that museum, but that's the one that stuck with me. It's written with a typewriter and signed by Einstein, iirc.

It's rather famous. Written by Leo Szilard but signed by Einstein who later seemed to regret it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einstein%E2%80%93Szilard_lette... I don't understand why it would be in the Spy Museum.

Cold War relevance, maybe?

Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#34

Post by rossta »

This reminds me of the Accomplice brand of immersive theater that’s been active in New York and other cities for years now. It’s part walking tour, part play, part mystery, part scavenger hunt. The best part is trying to figure out whether the people you come across are actually part of the play/tour or not—getting it wrong has led to some funny reactions.

https://www.accomplicetheshow.com/

Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#35

Post by marymkearney »

ohashi wrote: post #30
midoridensha wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's nothing interesting in Rosslyn itself, however it's probably the closest subway stop to Georgetown. You can easily walk across the Key Bridge, which is a really nice walk when the weather is good. There's lots to see in Georgetown, especially restaurants, and also a nice waterfront area. You can also walk from Rosslyn to the Mt. Vernon trail, and to the nearby Roosevelt Island where there's some nice hiking t…

One of my favorite memories in DC is on Roosevelt island. My friend bought like 20 laser tag sets and had a computer, antenna and whatever other gear needed to setup your own laser tag. We played right there on the island next to the statue. There was a circular area, lots of bushes, what I imagine was a little water feature/moat without any water circling it. Don't think we saw anyone there outside our group.

Hey there

Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#36

Post by tantaman »

showerst wrote: post #4

“See the best of Washington DC” -> sends you to Rosslyn. Those poor tourists… Joking aside I love fun new excuses to explore the city, that’s a great theme for DC.

It’s where the Iwo Jima memorial is so pretty common to send a tourist there.

You can also pick up the mount vernon trail in Roslyn along with the Custis trail if you bike.

They’re trying to make it more of a spot and do weekly free concerts in the park there these days.

Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#37

Post by ourmandave »

SeanLuke wrote: post #12

In the late 1990s a friend of mine gave me a birthday gift: two tickets to Spy Drive. Now THAT was something that could only happen in DC. Oleg Kalugin ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oleg_Kalugin ) was a former head of the KGB at the Russian Embassy in DC in the 1980s. When Oleg returned to Russia, his criticism of the KGB led him to be stripped of his rank and eventually exiled to the USA to avoid serious recrimina…

Is this what happens to 007s if they actually live to retire age?

Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#38

Post by bitlax »

showerst wrote: post #4

“See the best of Washington DC” -> sends you to Rosslyn. Those poor tourists… Joking aside I love fun new excuses to explore the city, that’s a great theme for DC.

I feel like if I sign up for a spy tour I'd rather see the Deep Throat garage than Ben's Chili Bowl.

Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#39

Post by phrotoma »

Animats wrote: post #17

Electronic Arts tried something like this once. It was called "Majestic". [1] It was sort of a mass-market conspiracy LARP. Unfortunately, it was launched just before 9/11/2001. [1] https://obscuritory.com/other/majestic/

Maybe the first ARG? Absolutely blew my mind as a kid. No install disk in the box. Just a sheet of instructions, a URL, and a form to fill in your email address, pager number, and ICQ number, and then you wait for the game to find you. Way ahead of its time.

Re: Explore Washington DC through the eyes of a spy

#40

Post by 6stringmerc »

ourmandave wrote: post #37
SeanLuke wrote: post #12

In the late 1990s a friend of mine gave me a birthday gift: two tickets to Spy Drive. Now THAT was something that could only happen in DC. Oleg Kalugin ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oleg_Kalugin ) was a former head of the KGB at the Russian Embassy in DC in the 1980s. When Oleg returned to Russia, his criticism of the KGB led him to be stripped of his rank and eventually exiled to the USA to avoid serious recrimina…

Is this what happens to 007s if they actually live to retire age?

Pretty much - look at Frank Abignale the "Catch Me If You Can" con master. Even Mitnick fits the role. Once you've mastered a craft and somehow get out from under "the system" which punishes or has caused stress, well, education is fun. Story telling is how we grow. Oral histories and all that.

Normally these type of folks are not allowed to write about their experiences much due to there being potential collateral damage in print, but talking? Much smaller radius. Plus you get to size up your audience!

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