Russian spies

[oddlycalm]

This was one of the more bizarre stories to come along in some time. Right out of a 60's spy novel. Interesting that the Fibbies watch them do essentially nothing for years. Ya gotta wonder how excited they are going back to Russia having failed in a very public way.

oc

http://www.americansuperstarmag.com/sites/default/files/images/june-2010/anna-chapman.jpg

[SteveH]

They should welcome her back with open arms, if you know what I mean. ;)

Cue the Beatles:
Back in the USSR

[chop456]

They should welcome her back with open arms, if you know what I mean. ;)

Reminds me of that line from The Who's "You Better You Bet". :thumbup:

[emjaya]

Ya gotta wonder how excited they are going back to Russia having failed in a very public way.

oc



I wonder how their kids are coping.

[Napoleon]

http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~horton/cs453/slides/Spy_vs_Spy.jpg


By the way, when looking for that image I ran across this story on the guy who came up with Spy vs. Spy and he had an interesting background:

http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2001/aug/spyvsspy/010830.spyvsspy.html

[SteveH]

^ :thumbup: :)

[NismoZ]

Pretty sure I'd tell her anything she wanted to know...'course I don't know ANYthing.

[Insomniac]

I wonder if this would've been as big a story as it is if she wasn't part of the group? My feeling is no.

Any thoughts on the spy swap? I can't decide where I stand. The people the Russian's gave back served a great deal of prison time, including hard labor and these people get a trip back home. On the other hand, at least the other people are finally free.

[Napoleon]

Any thoughts on the spy swap? I can't decide where I stand.

It was a great deal. We get people who really know something we wanted to know, prove to any other spies we have that we will do what it takes to take care of you and in exchange the Russians get a bunch of f-ups.

[Gnam]

IMO, the deal was a last minute solution to a problem no one wanted. The Russians were picked up because the FBI was afraid of losing them after such a long investigation. Without real charges, however, the arrests were a waste of time and only further complicated international relations with the Russians.

The FBI didn't want to look foolish by losing the "spies", but arresting them provided no real benefit to the US government and embarrassed the Russians in the middle of the State Dept's reset campaign. To fix it they arrange this swap for four guys of no real value. So in the papers it looks like serious business, but the real result is both sides don't have to talk about it anymore.

As for Nismo's point about the government caring what happens to its spies and doing what it takes to free them, I seriously doubt that was their intent.
"Leave no man behind" is not the CIA's motto. Just ask Jason Bourne. ;)

[Napoleon]

As for Nismo's point about the government caring what happens to its spies and doing what it takes to free them, I seriously doubt that was their intent.


That was my point, but in any event the CIA would not do it because they “care” about their spies but they would like to get more spies in the future and if someone who is thinking about turning sees that the US just doesn’t let those caught working for them rot in prison I would think that would be a selling point, so I think it is more enlightened self interest.


To fix it they arrange this swap for four guys of no real value.

I guess that all depends on how you define value, but my impression was that in the past some or all of these people either did provide information of value or, because it may not be public what they may have given us, were in positions where they almost certainly could have. Wasn’t one of them instrumental in bringing to light Robert Hanssen and /or Aldrich Ames. If your point is they cannot give us anything of use going forward, well maybe that is so.

Other then those two quibbles I agree with you.

[oddlycalm]

Reminds me of something out of movie script. This bunch were the slackers of the spy world. :laugh: Not only did they manage to get detected early on but the partying and the topless facebook pictures don't seem the stuff of the tightly disciplined Russian spies of the cold war era. :D Dude, where's my secret encoder ring...? :gomer:

oc

[Michaelhatesfans]

Does it make me a traitor if I say that I would show her where the missile is hidden?




http://www.americansuperstarmag.com/sites/default/files/images/june-2010/anna-chapman.jpg

[Methanolandbrats]

Does it make me a traitor if I say that I would show her where the missile is hidden? No, but you might say other things once the missle is hidden in the silo.

[eiregosod]

the new face of Xe or Slackwater or whatever they call themselves, they now know what buttons to press :tony:

[Michaelhatesfans]

No, but you might say other things once the missle is hidden in the silo.

Yep. Rocky and Bullwinkle would have been packed up into an Antonov and on their way to Siberia by then.

[nrc]

On a vaguely related note, I'd have say that it's evident that this Iranian guy is a Nuclear Scientist and not a "Rocket Scientist".

So you've been talking to the CIA and they're letting you walk away, but you think that the fine folks in the Iranian secret police are going to buy that you escaped the clutches of the "Great Satan?"

Good luck with that. I hope that you're not too attached to your fingernails.

[Napoleon]

So you've been talking to the CIA and they're letting you walk away, but you think that the fine folks in the Iranian secret police are going to buy that you escaped the clutches of the "Great Satan?"

I vaguely recall a similar story with Saddam Hussein where his son in law fled to the west with info on his weapons program and he somehow convinced the guy he would be welcomed back with open arms, so he returned. You can pretty much guess what happened next.

I say that Iranian guy has a Fredo in the boat moment in his future.

[Napoleon]

Stories like this will not help that Iranian scientist. (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/16/world/middleeast/16iran.html?hpw)

[SteveH]

His fingernails may be the least of his worries.

[oddlycalm]

His fingernails may be the least of his worries.

True. Looks like his choices boiled down to going back and taking the heat himself or letting his wife and daughter take it while he lives over here in comfort. What will probably happen is they will make him watch what they torment the wife and daughter before they start in on him.

oc