Why Real Ethics and True Wisdom are Keys to Keeping Intelligence Agencies Guardians of the People, for IKS in Romania

This was part of a series of five years participation in an annual conference at Romania's National Intelligence Academy called "Intelligence in the Knowledge Society." These were part academic, involving intelligence studies scholars from around the world, and partly practical discussions among "intelligence professionals" a.k.a. spies of various kinds. Because I am familiar with both of those worlds, I was able to bridge many issues and was always held on for another 3 days in order to deliver some separate presentation to their cadets (students) and assist in reforms of their training materials. That is a delicate process when a country tries to move from a dreadful police state to a functional democracy.The quintessential missions of a Special Agent are to protect the people, and innocence as a concept. Protecting the state is also important, of course. If you do not, you won’t be employed as an intelligence professional. But it is vital to remember which comes first, and that governments can change from protectors of the people to persecutors of them quickly. Eastern Europe had such vivid experiences with this problem during the last century that its current guardians should be models to the world. Protecting innocents is our eternal mission, and when governments go bad they often lose sight of this distinction. To be a truly Special Agent one must always remember that the people come first and be loyal to them first, while also serving the state that employs and empowers you. States are your paycheck and pension so serve them well, but … keep priorities as indicated. That could be the end of philosophic discussion, but this issue comes up practically in careers because decay is eternal. Graft grows. Corruption appears spontaneously. There is a little dictator in every politician’s heart, and truly Special Agents never forget these problems. Thus an important question for the career professional is, “What missions would I refuse to do, and why?” Then, how does one refuse effectively? We will ask other hard questions here. Intelligence professionals serve missions assigned by states in daily work, whether collectors, analysts, operators or support staff. They are expected not to ask big questions unless they really ‘need to know.’ But today we face civilization level crises, so the world needs Special Agents with global vision. How can “global vision” coexist with the secrecy so essential to many intelligence operations? An important check on state hubris is a strong professional ethos rooted in the security services, but known more broadly. This should be supremely idealistic, deeply courageous, and grounded in WHY the people must always come first. You are their guardians – do not let any state oppress them! The rest of this paper will try to show how “real” ethics and “true” wisdom, or aspirations to such ideals, can help with cultivating an intelligence community ethos for the Third Millennium of the Common Era.National Intelligence Academy of Romania, Mihai Viteazu