great secrets can be kept

It is sometimes argued that if there were great secrets, they would leak so fast that we would all know about them.

I know this to be untrue.

I cannot explain why or how I know, and furthermore, this much is irrelevant. Those of you with inquisitive minds, and some luck, will also learn this to be true.

What is important is this : The value of secrecy in a democratic republic increases in proportion with the extent to which information can be disseminated amongst the masses.

As intent drives action, so to must secrecy drive our republics. Only information of limitted circulation can be applied without minimization of its value through the entropy of mass consumption.

This has always been true for information of tactical and strategic value. And naturally, requires our respect for the defense of our own ideals. No one questions the game theoretic advantage of limited knowledge.

Yet increasingly, the value of secrets encompasses information of value to the basic, rational decision making of the average person participating in the democratic process. The result is that as increasing quantities of information are made available to the public, the vast holes in this information, matted over with the same few empty stories repeated ad nauseum in the media at large, leave us with warped perspective with which to apply our democratic and social responsibilities to our communities.

As we become further removed from a grounded perspective, we become less mature, less capable of participating in a rational process. This results in further emphasis upon secret keeping, which then feeds the cycle.

It has been said on occasion that those in the know take upon themselves a great burden on our behalf. Much like a mother who secretly sickens her child so as to be needed and respected, our secret agencies foist the illness of ignorance upon us, leaving us with stunted growth and no democratic future. From this they claim that we need them. And so we do....

One must wonder if Vennevar Bush, when proposing the memex, envisioned the extent to which secrecy would remove information from the heart of public discourse. Could he imagine the common person, seeking to enlighten and serve a republic, bent over a microfiche of endless 1-sided casualty reports, political "leaks", and proposed legislations, shrugging, and then turning to the latest microfiches of mythos-derived conspiracy sites?

When someone tells you that if great secrets of great value were kept from the masses, then they would quickly leak to the masses, they are incorrect.

As I have learned, there are such secrets. They are of value to you. And you have been deemed too unimportant to know why things are done in your name.

Most revolutionary weapons starting with the 20th century were developed in absolute secrecy and announced only when governments were ready to let the public know of their existence. Militaries and military industries are extremely adept at keeping secrets for very long periods of time. The basic premise of big secrets being kept is very true.

I agree with heelstone just look at the F-117 for proof they were able to keep that secret for along time. I have heard some people estimate as much as 1/3 the cost of black projects goes into keeping them secret. Background checks, security, surveillance, working at remote and secure locations etc.. all that stuff cost alot of money.

True, true. Its amazing how some people can keep secrets so well.

But I can see how someone would keep an airplane a secret. An airplane secret can very clearly be in the interest of a nation, and it can be easy for people to keep quiet.

But these days there are secrets being kept from us, without which, we cannot act as informed and responsible citizens.

I should note that there are good reasons for these things to be secrets, for the benefit of you and me, but it also hurts us in ways I don't think our secret keepers, or anyone for that matter, yet fully comprehend.

[edit on 17-3-2006 by Ectoterrestrial]