Cover of Lords of secrecy

Lords of secrecy

"State secrecy is increasingly used as the explanation for the shrinking of public discussion surrounding national security issues. The phrase "that's classified" is increasingly used not to protect national secrets from legitimate enemies, but rather to stifle public discourse regarding national security. Washington today is inclined to see secrecy as a convenient cure to many of its problems. But too often these problems are not challenges to national security, they involve the embarrassment of political figures, disclosure of mismanagement, incompetence and corruption and even outright criminality. For national security issues to figure in democratic deliberation, the public must have access to basic facts that underlie the issues. The more those facts disappear under a cloak of state secrecy, the less space remains for democratic process and the more deliberation falls into the hands of largely unelected national security elites. The way out requires us to think much more critically and systematically about secrecy and its role in a democratic state"—

Audience
adult
Length
medium · 271 pages

Click a tag to see books like this one that share it. Point at it (on a phone, tap it) for less of it instead.

Read it? Sign in to help tag it.

Liked Lords of secrecy? Here’s where I’d start.

These suit anyone who liked Lords of secrecy. Sign in and mark a few books for picks shaped around your own taste.

  1. Trump and His Generals Shares military policy, national security, diplomatic relations
  2. American force Shares military policy, national security, diplomatic relations
  3. The Oxford Handbook of U.S. National Security Shares military policy, national security, diplomatic relations
  4. An inoffensive rearmament Shares military policy, national security, armed forces

“If you want more of the same (politics), start with these.”

  1. The Return of Marco Polo's World
  2. Winning modern wars
  3. Path to prosperity
  4. Blueprint for Action

“If it was the military policy that hooked you, try one of these.”

  1. Insanity Defense
  2. White House Warriors
  3. Power and principle
  4. The Case for U.S. Nuclear Weapons in the 21st Century

“These start from a similar idea, even if they go somewhere else with it.”

  1. Classified
  2. How propaganda works
  3. Necessary Secrets: National Security, the Media, and the Rule of Law
  4. Security in a Small Nation