Chalmers points out that when our intelligence agencies loose their institutional memory and do no longer know how to operate, due to giving their jobs to mercenaries, the danger of national strategic and tactical blunders is much increased. Dangers can be missed or overinflated. He address major issues of government function in a thoughtful way. (The Salon version is more readable, but the Tom Dispatch version http://tomdispatch.com/post/174959/chalmers_johnson_warning_mercenaries_at_work has more links and a lead-in commentary.)

This story has to be read several times, but is well worth the effort. While I do not agree with the author that the CIA should be abolished, I share his concern (and Robert Gates') that the foreign policy of this country is getting militarized in a dangerous fashion. The staggering sums spent on intelligence are almost beyond comprehension. The vast expenditures on mercenaries is putting the security of the US in danger.