Presented at
BSidesLV 2014,
Aug. 6, 2014, 5 p.m.
(60 minutes)
Over a decade ago, a friend at the National Security Agency told Richard
Thieme that he could address the core issues they discussed in a context
of "ethical considerations for intelligence and security professionals"
only if he wrote fiction. "It's the only way you can tell the truth," he
said.
Three dozen published short stories and one novel-in-progress (FOAM)
later, one result is "Mind Games," published in 2010 by Duncan Long
Publishing, a collection of stories that illuminates "non-consensual
realities:" the world of hackers; the worlds of intelligence
professionals; encounters with other intelligent life forms; and deeper
states of consciousness.
A recent scholarly study of "The Covert Sphere" by Timothy Melley
documents the way the growth and influence of the intelligence community
since World War 2 has created precisely the reality to which that NSA
veteran pointed. The source of much of what "outsiders" believe is
communicated through novels, movies, and television programs. But even IC
"insiders" rely on those sources, as compartmentalization prevents the
big picture from coming together because few inside have a "need to
know."
Thieme asked a historian at the NSA what historical events they could
discuss with a reasonable expectation that their words denoted the same
details. "Anything up to 1945," the historian said with a laugh -
but he wasn't kidding.
Point taken.
This fascinating presentation illuminates the mobius strip on which all
of us walk as we make our way through the labyrinth of security and
intelligence worlds we inhabit of necessity, all of us some of the time
and some of us all of the time. It discloses why "post-modernism" is
not an affectation but a necessary condition of modern life. It addresses
the response of an intelligence analyst at NSA who responded to one of
Thieme's stories by saying, "most of this isn't fiction, but you
have to know which part to have the key to the code." This talk does not
provide that key, but it does provide the key to the key and throws into
relief everything else you hear - whether from the platform or in the
hallways - inside this conference. And out there in the "real
world."
"Nothing is what it seems
Presenters:
-
Richard Thieme / neuralcowboy
as Richard Thieme
Richard Thieme is an author and professional speaker focused on the challenges posed by new technologies and the future, how to redesign ourselves to meet these challenges, and creativity in response to radical change and identify shift. His column, "Islands in the Clickstream," was distributed to subscribers in sixty countries before collection as a book in 2004. When a friend at the NSA said as they worked together on ethics and intelligence issues, "The only way you can tell the truth is through fiction," he returned to writing short stories, 19 of which are collected in "Mind Games." He is co-author of the critically extolled "UFOs and Government: A Historical Inquiry," a 5-year research project using material exclusively from government documents and other primary sources, now in 50 university libraries. Speeches based on the book have been given for HITB Kuala Lumpur, an FBI/Infragard "superconference," the Ryerson Astronomical Society at the University of Chicago, the Chicago Astronomical Society at Adler Planetarium, and dozens of libraries.
A novel, FOAM, is in progress as is "A Richard Thieme Reader." His work has been taught at universities in Europe, Australia, Canada, and the United States, and he has guest lectured at numerous universities, including Purdue University (CERIAS), the Technology, Literacy and Culture Distinguished Speakers Series of the University of Texas, the "Design Matters" lecture series at the University of Calgary, and as a Distinguished Lecturer in Telecommunications Systems Management at Murray State University. He addressed the reinvention of "Europe" as a "cognitive artifact" for curators and artists at Museum Sztuki in Lodz, Poland and keynoted "The Real Truth: A World's Fair" at Raven Row Gallery, London, He will speak for FACT - "uniting people, art and
technology" - in Liverpool England and for the Cybersecurity Foundation in Warsaw Poland in the fall.
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