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Classified US Intelligence Chat Rooms a 'Dumpster Fire' of Hate Speech, Says Ex-NSA Contractor
I had the idea, reading this, that hosting an internal version of Twitter might not be the best use of the employees’ time... [Military] An internal U.S. intelligence messaging system became a "dumpster fire" of hate speech during the Trump administration, a veteran National Security Agency contractor says. And it's "ongoing," another Defense Department contractor tells SpyTalk.Dan Gilmore, who was in charge of overseeing internal chat rooms for the Intelink system for over a decade starting in 2011, says that by late 2020 the system was afire with incendiary hate-filled commentary, especially on "eChirp," the intelligence community's clone of Twitter. "I was the admin of this application and after a couple years, it became a dumpster fire," Gilmore, a 30-year veteran of Navy and NSA cryptologic systems, wrote Thursday in an extraordinary public post on his own website. "Professionalism was thrown out the window, and flame wars became routine." Flame wars are highly unprofessional, not to mention a time suck and general morale destroyer. That was the point when Mr. Gilmore should have recommended shutting the thing down as hopeless, even if it meant he would have to find other employment. NSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment."Hate speech was running rampant on our applications," wrote Gilmore, whose identity and credentials have been vouched for by another Pentagon contractor. "I'm not being hyperbolic. Racist, homophobic, transphobic, Islamaphobic [sic], and misogynistic speech was being posted in many of our applications." Even more startling, Gilmore alleges, "there were many employees at CIA, DIA, NSA, and other IC agencies that openly stated that the January 6th terrorist attack on our Capitol was justified." Noted for future reference. Gilmore says that "more than a few "I wanted to tell everyone that there is a cancer within the government and when I tried to weed it out, I got fired," Gilmore wrote. "It was just easier for government management to get rid of me rather than to deal with the underlying issue." Another NSA contractor told SpyTalk that the hate speech started in 2016 after Trump's election and is "ongoing." Trump's followers in the agency get away with professional indiscretions, some of them serious, while others get dismissed for minor infractions, this person said on condition of anonymity. "We literally had folks get their clearances burned for time card discrepancies while pro-MAGA types might have multiple DUIs, foreign contacts, and (in one case) vehicular homicide," the source said. "They were kept working while others were let go." Extremist groups have made inroads in U.S. military and police units, experts say. Intelligence sources have told SpyTalk over the past several months that pro-Trump fervor is centered in special operations and hostage rescue units. ...where the pointy end of the spear is lived, and airy theory and political games must give way to hard facts. Related: National Security Agency contractor: 2021-12-07 NSA leaker Reality Winner, 30, denies being a 'traitor' and says she passed classified report on Russian election interference to the media 'to serve the American people', in first interview since release from five-year sentence National Security Agency contractor: 2018-11-09 Israeli spyware may have helped Saudi Arabia track, kill Khashoggi: Snowden National Security Agency contractor: 2018-08-24 Reality Winner sentenced to more than 5 years over classified report leak Posted by: trailing wife 2022-03-15 |
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