The Pentagon’s War on the Internet

Mike Whitney | February 14 2006

The Pentagon has developed a comprehensive strategy for taking over
the internet and controlling the free flow of information. The plan
appears in a recently declassified document, “The Information
Operations Roadmap”, which was provided under the FOIA (Freedom of
Information Act) and revealed in an article by the BBC.

The Pentagon sees the internet in terms of a military adversary that
poses a vital threat to its stated mission of global domination. This
explains the confrontational language in the document which speaks of
“fighting the net”; implying that the internet is the equivalent of
“an enemy weapons system."

The Defense Dept. places a high-value on controlling information. The
new program illustrates their determination to establish the
parameters of free speech.

The Pentagon sees information as essential in manipulating public
perceptions and, thus, a crucial tool in eliciting support for
unpopular policies. The recent revelations of the military placing
propaganda in the foreign press demonstrate the importance that is
given to co-opting public opinion.

Information-warfare is used to create an impenetrable cloud around the
activities of government so that decisions can be made without
dissent. The smokescreen of deception that encompasses the Bush
administration has less to do with prevaricating politicians than it
does with a clearly articulated policy of obfuscation. “The
Information Operations Roadmap” is solely intended to undermine the
principle of an informed citizenry.

The Pentagon’s focus on the internet tells us a great deal about the
mainstream media and its connection to the political establishment.

Why, for example, would the Pentagon see the internet as a greater
threat than the mainstream media, where an estimated 75% of Americans
get their news?

The reason is clear; because the MSM is already a fully-integrated
part of the corporate-system providing a 24 hour per day streaming of
business-friendly news. Today’s MSM operates as a de-facto franchise
of the Pentagon, a reliable and sophisticated propagandist for
Washington’s wars of aggression and political subterfuge.

The internet, on the other hand, is the last bastion of American
democracy; a virtual world where reliable information moves instantly
from person to person without passing through the corporate filter.
Online visitors can get a clear picture of their governments’
depredations with a click of the mouse. This is the liberalization of
the news, an open source of mind-expanding information that elevates
citizen awareness of complex issues and threatens the status quo.

The Pentagon program is just one facet of a broader culture of
deception; a pervasive ethos of dishonesty that envelopes all aspects
of the Bush White House. The “Strategic Intelligence” Dept is a
division of the Defense establishment that is entirely devoted to
concealing, distorting, omitting and manipulating the truth.

In what way is “strategic intelligence” different from plain
intelligence?

It is information that is shaped in a way that meets the needs of a
particular group. In other words, it is not the truth at all, but a
fabrication, a fiction, a lie.

Strategic intelligence is an oxymoron; a tidy bit of Orwellian
doublespeak that reflects the deeply rooted cynicism of its authors.

The internet is a logical target for the Pentagon’s electronic
warfare. Already the Downing Street memos, Bush’s bombing-threats
against Al Jazeera, the fraudulent 2004 elections, and the leveling of
Falluja, have disrupted the smooth execution of Bush’s wars. It is
understandable that Rumsfeld and Co. would seek to transform this
potential enemy into an ally, much as it has done with the MSM.

The Pentagon’s plans for engaging in “virtual warfare” are impressive.
As BBC notes: “The operations described in the document include a
surprising range of military activities: public affairs officers who
brief journalists, psychological operations troops who try to
manipulate the thoughts and beliefs of an enemy, computer network
attack specialists who seek to destroy enemy networks.” (BBC)

The enemy, of course, is you, dear reader, or anyone who refuses to
accept their role as a witless-cog in new world order. Seizing the
internet is a prudent way of controlling every piece of information
that one experiences from cradle to grave; all necessary for an
orderly police-state.

The Information Operations Roadmap (IOR) recommends that psychological
operations (Psyops) “should consider a range of technologies to
disseminate propaganda in enemy territory: unmanned aerial vehicles,
"miniaturized, scatterable public address systems", wireless devices,
cellular phones and the internet.” No idea is too costly or too
far-fetched that it escapes the serious consideration of the Pentagon
chieftains.

The War Dept. is planning to insert itself into every area of the
internet from blogs to chat rooms, from leftist web sites to editorial
commentary. The objective is to challenge any tidbit of information
that appears on the web that may counter the official narrative; the
fairytale of benign American intervention to promote democracy and
human rights across the planet.

The IOR aspires to "provide maximum control of the entire
electromagnetic spectrum" and develop the capability to "disrupt or
destroy the full spectrum of globally emerging communications systems,
sensors, and weapons systems dependent on the electromagnetic
spectrum". (BBC)

Full spectrum dominance.

The ultimate goal of the Pentagon is to create an internet-paradigm
that corresponds to the corporate mainstream model, devoid of
imagination or divergent points of view. They envision an internet
that is increasingly restricted by the gluttonous influence of
industry and its vast “tapestry of lies”.

The internet is the modern-day marketplace of ideas, an invaluable
resource for human curiosity and organized resistance. It provides a
direct link between the explosive power of ideas and engaged citizen
involvement. (aka; participatory democracy)

The Pentagon is laying the groundwork for privatizing the internet so
the information-revolution can be transformed into an
information-tyranny, extending to all areas of communications and
serving the exclusive interests of a few well-heeled American
plutocrats.