Spies in the City: The CIA’s Cold War Operations in Berlin
Image of the Berlin Wall taken in 1986 from West Berlin side by Thierry Noir at Bethaniendamm in Berlin-Kreuzberg. The Wall’s infamous “death strip”, on the east side of the…
Breaking the Code: How the VENONA Project Exposed Soviet Spies
National Security Agency headquarters at Fort Meade circa 1950s.National Security Agency photo. The VENONA Project was a top-secret counterintelligence initiative launched by the United States during World War II. Its…
Operation Mount Hope III: A Bold Military Heist
The Libyan Mi-25 taken in Chad by the US Army in 1988 during Operation Mount Hope III. On display at the Southern Museum of Flight, Birmingham Alabama. The Mi-25 is…
Operation Periwig: A Deceptive Masterstroke of WWII
Questionnaire, which was attached in capsules to pigeon legs as part of Operation Periwig. Operation Periwig was a deceptive masterstroke of WWII. The PSYOP operation was conceived in November 1944…
Rituals, Importance of Rituals for Warriors from Silencio Coffee
For I have known them all already, known them all: Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons, 50 I have measured out my life with coffee spoons; I know the voices…
The Mentality of a Warrior: Wisdom of Miyamoto Musashi
Statue of Musashi & Kojiro Battle on Island of Ganryūjima. RoninjapanWiki / CC BY-SA 4.0. The only reason a warrior is alive is to fight, and the only reason a…
Mountains of Resistance: The CIA’s Covert Support for Tibetan Independence
Memorial Plaque dedicated to Tibetan Freedom Fighters at Camp Hale. Central Intelligence Agency photo. In the late 1950s, Tibet was under increasing pressure from the Chinese government, which sought to…
Coffee: A Brew of Independence
Boston Tea Party, engraving in W. D. Cooper’s The History of North America, London: E. Newberry, 1789. Plate opposite p. 58. Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress.…
From OSS to CIA: The Remarkable Journey of Conrad LaGueux
LaGueux with famous Pittman Apartment evacuation point in background. Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon)), Vietnam. 2000. Photo from Central Intelligence Agency. Conrad “Connie” Edward LaGueux was a remarkable figure…
The OSS and Beyond: How Wild Bill Donovan Helped Shape the CIA
William J. “Wild Bill” Donovan William Joseph Donovan, often referred to as “Wild Bill,” was a pioneering figure in American intelligence and a key architect of the modern intelligence community.…