Human Intelligence, Counterterrorism, & National Leadership by Gary Berntsen
This is very short book. I read about chapter at a time while on the subway. If I had a longer attention span, I could probably read it cover to cover in an hour or less. It is written as a series of recommendations to the current administration (written before the election) and each chapter ends with a bullet-format summary of those recommendations.
Thus far, I particularly like his idea of getting rid of the polygraph for everyone except those in the counterintelligence center. He points out the unreliability of it (lots of false positives) and the deterrent effect it has upon individuals whom we need to recruit.
I have taken a polygraph as part of an investigation into the conduct of my Soldiers. I took it voluntarily, but midway through I was starting to regret it. It turned out well - as a result of the test the investigation rightfully ended. But as the interview progressed and the interviewer kept adjusting the questions to box me into a yes or no response, I really didn't like it. "Have you ever stolen someone's trust?" WTF does that mean? I answered every question truthfully. When it was over, the interviewer said, "you're good, everything's fine - there was one question that was kind of iffy, but everything pertinent to the case checks out." What question was that? Like I said, I answered them all truthfully. I was already a bit unsure of whether it was going to misread me. Now I am even less inclined to take one in the future. I know a few guys who are unwilling to take full-scope polygraphs, not because they've done anything wrong but because, as they put it, the answer to most questions is, "none of your business." The author also points out that people who have conducted espionage in the past have taken the polygraph and "passed."
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