Category «Defense»

Military spending continues to fall in the West but rises everywhere else, says SIPRI

“World military expenditure totalled $1.75 trillion in 2013, a fall of 1.9 per cent in real terms since 2012, according to figures released [April 14, 2014] by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). The comprehensive annual update of the SIPRI Military Expenditure Database is accessible from today at www.sipri.org. The fall in the global total …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Defense, Economy, Financial System, Government Documents

New GAO Reports – IRS 2015 Budget, Nuclear Nonproliferation

IRS 2015 BUDGET: Long-Term Strategy and Return on Investment Data Needed to Better Manage Budget Uncertainty and Set Priorities, GAO-14-605: Published: Jun 12, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 12, 2014. NUCLEAR NONPROLIFERATION: Additional Actions Needed to Increase the Security of U.S. Industrial Radiological Sources, GAO-14-293: Published: Jun 6, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 12, 2014. NUCLEAR NONPROLIFERATION: Additional Actions Needed to Increase the Security …

Subjects: Defense, Economy, Financial System, Government Documents

Global Response to Snowden Disclosures Revealed in New Report – EFF

EFF – “It has been one year since the first Snowden disclosure and in lieu of this first anniversary, world privacy expert and publisher of The Privacy Surgeon, Simon Davies, conceived and published a report titled “A Crisis of Accountability: A global analysis of the impact of the Snowden revelations.”  The report includes contributions from individual countries, summarizing the extent to …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Defense, E-Records, Government Documents, Internet, Knowledge Management, Legal Research, Legislation, Patriot Act

New GAO Reports – Airline Competition, National Defense, Surface Ships, Terrorism Insurance, U.S. Currency

AIRLINE COMPETITION: The Average Number of Competitors in Markets Serving the Majority of Passengers Has Changed Little in Recent Years, but Stakeholders Voice Concerns about Competition, GAO-14-515: Published: Jun 11, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 11, 2014. NATIONAL DEFENSE: Department of Defense’s Waiver of Competitive Prototyping Requirement for the Army’s Indirect Fire Protection Capability Increment 2, Block 1 Program, GAO-14-643R: Published: …

Subjects: Defense, Government Documents, Transportation

Autonomous Weapons and Human Responsibilities

Beard, Jack M., Autonomous Weapons and Human Responsibilities (June 9, 2014). 45 Georgetown Journal of International Law 617 (2014). Available for download at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2447968 “Although remote-controlled robots flying over the Middle East and Central Asia now dominate reports on new military technologies, robots that are capable of detecting, identifying, and killing enemies on their own …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Defense, Government Documents, Legal Research

ACLU – NSA Says It’s Too Large, Complex to Comply With Court Order

Patrick C. Toomey, Staff Attorney, ACLU National Security Project News release:” “In an era of too-big-to-fail banks, we should have known it was coming: An intelligence agency too big to rein in — and brazen enough to say so. In a remarkable legal filing on Friday afternoon, the NSA told a federal court that its spying operations are …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Defense, Government Documents, Internet, Knowledge Management, Legal Research

ISOO releases its FY 2013 Annual Report to the President

National Archive and Records Administration. The Information Security Oversight Office’s (ISOO) Report for Fiscal Year 2013, as required by Executive Order 13526, “Classified National Security Information” (the Order). “Original classification authorities, also called original classifiers, are those individuals designated in writing, either by the President, by selected agency heads, or by designated senior agency officials …

Subjects: Defense, E-Government, E-Records, Government Documents, Legal Research

New GAO Reports – Afghanistan, Biosurveillance, Health Care Access, Immigration Technology, Managing for Results, Nuclear Weapons

AFGHANISTAN: Oversight and Accountability of U.S. Assistance, GAO-14-680T: Published: Jun 10, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 10, 2014. BIOSURVEILLANCE: Observations on the Cancellation of BioWatch Gen-3 and Future Considerations for the Program, GAO-14-267T: Published: Jun 10, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 10, 2014. HEALTH CARE ACCESS: Improved Oversight, Accountability, and Prioritization Can Improve Access for Native American Veterans, GAO-14-489: Published: Jun 10, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun …

Subjects: Defense, Government Documents, Health Care, Internet, Knowledge Management

New GAO Reports – Defense HQ, DOE, STEM

DEFENSE HEADQUARTERS: Guidance Needed to Transition U.S. Central Command’s Costs to the Base Budget, GAO-14-440: Published: Jun 9, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 9, 2014. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY: Enhanced Transparency Could Clarify Costs, Market Impact, Risk, and Legal Authority to Conduct Future Uranium Transactions, GAO-14-291: Published: May 9, 2014. Publicly Released: Jun 9, 2014. MILITARY SEXUAL TRAUMA: Improvements Made, but VA Can Do …

Subjects: Defense, Education, Government Documents

Nuclear Cooperation with Other Countries: A Primer

Nuclear Cooperation with Other Countries: A Primer – Paul K. Kerr, Analyst in Nonproliferation; Mary Beth D. Nikitin, Specialist in Nonproliferation. May 14, 2014. “Under existing law (Atomic Energy Act [AEA] of 1954, as amended; P.L. 95-242; 42 U.S.C. §2153 et seq.) all significant U.S. nuclear cooperation with other countries requires a peaceful nuclear cooperation agreement. Significant nuclear cooperation includes the transfer …

Subjects: Congress, Defense, Government Documents, Legal Research

Report: Actions to Improve Chemical Facility Safety and Security – A Shared Commitment

Via EPA – On August 1, 2013, the president issued Executive Order (EO) 13650 – Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Security – to improve the safety and security of chemical facilities and reduce the risks of hazardous chemicals to facility workers and operators, communities, and responders. Chemicals and the facilities that manufacture, store, distribute and use them are essential …

Subjects: Defense, Economy, Energy, Environmental Law, Government Documents

Defense Acquisitions: How DOD Acquires Weapon Systems and Recent Efforts to Reform the Process

CRS – Defense Acquisitions: How DOD Acquires Weapon Systems and Recent Efforts to Reform the Process. Moshe Schwartz, Specialist in Defense Acquisition. January 2, 2013. “The Department of Defense (DOD) acquires goods and services from contractors, federal arsenals, and shopyards to support military operations. Acquisition is a broad term that applies to more than just the purchase of …

Subjects: Defense, Economy, Government Documents, Knowledge Management