Untitled Flashcards Set

Got you, Maia. Let’s break this all down into digestible chunks. I’ll organize it by topic area and condense the info into quiz-ready notes and definitions. You can scroll or Ctrl+F if you wanna jump to a section.

🇨🇳 China + CIA

  1. Xi Jinping – Current leader of China; central figure in China's global posture and increasing authoritarianism.

  2. China + Russia = threats to the West – Viewed by U.S. and allies as strategic threats due to military, cyber, and political influence.

  3. “Rogue” states – Typically refers to North Korea and Iran.

  4. CIA & China (Counterterrorism angle) – CIA shifts focus from counterterrorism to countering China’s global influence.

  5. US accusations toward China:

    • Foreign election interference

    • Cyber & corporate espionage

    • Uyghur detainment (Xinjiang camps)

    • Possible plans to seize Taiwan by force

  6. “Mission Centers” – CIA created dedicated centers focused on China and emerging technologies.

🕵‍♂️ CIA & Terrorism

  1. Black site jails – Secret CIA-run prisons for interrogation outside US jurisdiction.

  2. Downey & Fecteau – Two CIA operatives captured in China in the 1950s; part of Cold War operations.

  3. Third Force – CIA-backed anti-communist elements in Asia, alternative to Chiang Kai-shek.

  4. Allen Dulles & John Foster Dulles – Brothers; CIA director (Allen) and Sec. of State (John); central to Cold War covert ops.

  5. Chiang Kai-shek – Nationalist Chinese leader supported by the CIA against communists.

  6. Saipan – CIA used island bases like Saipan in the Pacific for operations, including flights.

  7. Air America / Civil Air Transport – CIA’s fake airline for covert ops in Asia, e.g. Laos, Vietnam.

  8. 9/11 hijackers – CIA missed early signs; tension w/ FBI over sharing intel pre-9/11.

  9. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence – Released 2014 report exposing CIA torture program post-9/11.

  10. Torture program – Waterboarding, sleep deprivation, rectal feeding, etc., used on detainees.

  11. Cover-up tactics – Withheld info from Congress, destroyed tapes, manipulated documentation.

  12. “Zero Dark Thirty” – Film criticized for falsely portraying torture as effective/intel source for bin Laden raid.

  13. EU Parliament report – Investigated secret US flights & CIA prisons in Europe (2007).

  14. Rendition – Extrajudicial transfer of suspects to countries with “enhanced interrogation.”

  15. Secret detention centers – Hidden prisons used by CIA; hosted in Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Thailand, Afghanistan.

  16. Amnesty International vs. EU – Accused EU countries of complicity in CIA human rights violations.

  17. CIA program violations – Illegal detainment, torture, denial of due process, psychological damage.

🎬 How the CIA Hoodwinked Hollywood (Schou)

  1. Allen Dulles – Early master of media manipulation; inspired public CIA myths.

  2. Chase Brandon – CIA liaison to Hollywood; helped shape film narratives.

  3. Tom Clancy – Author of spy thrillers; collaborated closely w/ CIA.

  4. Office of Public Affairs – CIA’s PR arm; manages Hollywood collaborations.

  5. Ben Affleck & Jennifer Garner – Affleck directed Argo (CIA story), Garner worked w/ CIA for Alias prep.

  6. “Argo” – Hollywood film about 1980 Iran hostage rescue; glamorized CIA op.

  7. Zero Dark Thirty – Controversial for showing torture as effective.

    • Dianne Feinstein & John McCain criticized the film’s portrayal of torture.

🇷🇺 Rescuing Boris (Kramer)

  1. Boris Yeltsin – Russian Pres. (1990s); reelected in 1996 with U.S. help.

  2. Gennadi Zyuganov – Communist opponent of Yeltsin in ‘96.

  3. Felix Braynin – Russian-American intermediary who facilitated U.S. involvement.

  4. Richard Dresner’s team – U.S. political consultants who secretly advised Yeltsin.

    • Strategy: focus on fear of communism, TV propaganda, staged rallies.

✍ Rewriting History (Shuster)

  1. President Medvedev – Later admitted Yeltsin’s win in 1996 was unfair/manipulated.

🧠 VIPS (Lawrence)

  1. US intel on 2016 election – Mixed assessments about Russian hacking.

  2. VIPS (Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity) – Group of ex-intel officers challenging official narratives (skeptical of Russia’s role).

  3. Russiagate – Alleged collusion between Trump campaign & Russia; VIPS say evidence was flimsy.

🧱 Wikileaks – Vault 7

  1. Wikileaks – Platform that leaked CIA’s cyber tools in “Vault 7” (2017).

  2. Weeping Angel – Tool used to turn Samsung TVs into covert listening devices.

  3. Umbrage – CIA program to mimic other nations’ cyberattacks to mask U.S. origin.