The government keeps a lot of secrets, and the amount of classified information grows every day. It has become a self-perpetuating and ever-more ridiculous game of government bureaucracy run amok. Why ridiculous? Because many things everybody knows about are technically secret, creating an arbitrary, ever-shifting line between the classified and the public domains. Like a game of musical chairs, you never know if you’re going to end up without a seat when the music stops.
When WikiLeaks was putting thousands of classified State Department cables online, federal employees were barred from looking at them – even as anyone anywhere could do just that. And the existence of the CIA’s drone program is also classified, yet the President himself has spoken about it publicly, and his aides have leaked copious information about it. The Obama administration has pursued leakers with a vengeance, and used “leaking” as a pretext to punish whistleblowers, while giving privileged access to movie producers.
Early on the POTUS promised transparency in government. Against his nature, Obama is very uncomfortable in a truth-telling mode. Luckily, nobody within the Beltway can shut his mouth.
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