Intergalactic Summit

If I have to explain the concept to you it would most likely be a waste of time.

Probably because it's impossible to explain something that contradicts itself. What you're saying is similar to the non-existent logic behind burning your money to make sure that nobody can steal it. You're making the loss of that money a certainty to avoid the possibility it would be lost. It's just completely self defeating. Same goes for the Black Eagles. Destroying freedom to protect freedom just doesn't fit in any realm of reason.

All laws are created with Gallentean values. Break those laws, you break those values. It's really that simple.

I was falling asleep in my chair while I composed that, so I admit it didn't quite get across the point I intended it to.

What I meant to say is that they're running operations counter to both the Republic's and Empire's interests. Naturally that's not surprising on the Amarr side. But when it comes to the Republic, you'd expect a least a little restraint, considering the two factions are supposed to be in bed together.

Back in the Navy, during my final year serving before my Capsuleer training, we caught a badly damaged FIO Thorax one day while patrolling the boarder between Caldari and Minmatar space. The emergency signal they were broadcasting was using a relatively new encryption method which the Gallente evidently thought we hadn't cracked yet. Looked like it fell victim to a pirate attack. After dealing with what remained of the security forces on board and taking what was left of the crew into custody, we began salvaging what we could from the wreck. From what we pieced together, the first two casualties were the ship AI and the Engineering sector. After that, it was pretty much a massacre. Few guns shown signs of recent firing, and all the drones were still in their bays.

As we were making sweeps of the ship, we caught one of the officers rigging the main computer banks to explode. We neutralized him before he could blow it, and began downloading the data. To make a long story short, we came across some interesting reports. Much of what we found was scrambled beyond recovery and heavily encrypted, hidden deep within the computer's data banks. But it looks like the security measures meant to destroy it were disrupted before they could complete their job.

From what we could piece together back in the Rokh's labs, it was a data package meant for some office of the Black Eagles back at wherever the ship was heading. Like I said, it was heavily damaged, but we were able to pull and piece together documents, reports and videos from it. The things inside spoke of interrogation, abductions, sabotage, and industrial and economic espionage.

Not only was it directed at Caldari and Amarr corporations operating within the Republic, but also against Federation citizens and "disruptive elements" of the Republic. People that had seemingly no solid evidence behind their supposed transgressions were being targeted for a variety of operations against them. Naturally that's part and parcel for our kind of work, but I saw reports of actions taken against diplomats and companies that, from our own investigations, were deep within the pockets of the Federation's different agencies. At times, it didn't make a whole lot of sense what the FIO and Black Eagles were doing. Sometimes they seemed to operate counter to eachother's interests.

Naturally it could have been fake. It's not unknown to plant false leads like that in ships computers as a contingency that, if they do somehow fall into enemy hands, then the supposed "information leak" could work to a benefit. But as an author to a few of those types of tactics, this didn't seem like one.

You have to wonder Ms. Maxwell, what would the Black Eagles have to gain from vilifying themselves? Such information could only work against them. Even if they say "Oh! That was just a false lead obviously!" nobody with a mind would believe it. Especially if this leak came from a credible source.

Same goes for these alleged defectors telling their grim stories. They are trying to keep their identities very secret. Wouldn't someone trying to fabricate a story for fame and fortune make themselves very well known? People need to ask why someone would do something when trying to determine if someone would do something.

That said, it worries me that people in the State are more likely to share my concerns about the Black Eagles than my own fellow Gallente. It sort of shows how far we have fallen from what the Federation stands for.

Next week: Muck Raker disappears. Black Eagles deny any involvement.

He merely realized the pointlessness of continuing the conversation earlier than I did. Also, I hardly think I am being melodramatic. You were the one beginning to wax philosophical about the foundations of the Federation being thwarted.

He said it wasn't worth explaining to me, as if I was unworthy of having something answered. You used that to jab at my political views. Again, stop pretending. All I did was call you a sheep, something Anslo did earlier and you didnt bat an eye at, so why now?

So being concerned about our values is melodramatic now? Worrying if the values that make the Federation different and special are being protected is unwarranted? Being upset when the very foundations that caused trillions of people to flock to us are broken is now silly?

It's a satire/parody of real news.

I believe my point may have been lost or misunderstood, so in that case allow me to ask a different way.

Where is the real news?

Answer: There is none, this is a fake controversy.

I have yet to make many qualitative or explicitly political statements in this discussion because I didn't think it was relevant. I was merely stating the obvious about intelligence agencies, then became surprised when others apparently did not know how their very concept functioned. I did not defend rumored SDII actions, nor did I at any point argue they were beyond reproach. I have argued for nothing but their activity and orchestration to remain out of the public eye.

I do not see the point in throwing about platitudes about freedom and security. There is, and always has been, a continuum between freedom and security that can't be aptly discussed or described by merely decrying others as taking away the former.