Any fan of the Netflix hit series Longmire should see the Sheriff’s cabin located inside the Valles Caldera National Preserve in the Jemez Mountains about 90 minutes from Santa Fe, New Mexico. The area has elk, coyotes, mountain lions, black bears, eagles and prairie dogs. The cabin is about two miles inside the park along a rough gravel road (backcountry permit needed) and the U.S. Park Service Rangers were awesome. They showed me game camera footage of a huge mountain lion. Interior scenes from the first two to three years of the series were filmed inside the cabin and the view from Walt’s porch is simply stunning.
Fred Burton on iHeart Radio Discussing The Deaths of the American Family in Mexico
Fred Burton at the Clinton School of Public Service in Little Rock
Honored to have spoken at the Clinton School of Public Service, in Little Rock, Arkansas about the life and public service of Bill Buckley. The former CIA station chief was kidnapped and murdered by Hezbollah terrorists in Beirut, Lebanon.
Very nice private library with books donated by President Clinton.
Set-up before the event. Wonderful old building that houses the school.
Details of my talk can be found here -
https://www.nwaonline.com/news/2019/oct/27/clinton-school-to-host-author-s-talk-on/
Joshua Lane Cook deserves a very special thanks for making the arrangements!
https://www.joshualanecook.com/
Fred Burton at Texas Tribune Festival, The Driskill Hotel
Bryan Burrough’s book “Days of Rage” may be the best book I’ve read on the violence in the 1970’s from radical domestic terror groups like the Black Liberation Army, the Black Panthers, and The Weather Underground. https://www.amazon.com/Days-Rage-Underground-Forgotten-Revolutionary/dp/0143107976
Bryan Burrough and Fred Burton
Why Are State Department Trained Bomb Dogs Dying Overseas?
I applaud The Hill and ASPCA for directing tough questions to SECSTATE about the deaths of the bomb-sniffing dogs overseas. Let’s be blunt, these dedicated dogs deserve better treatment. In the United States, animal control authorities would investigate the abuse. Oversight of the K9 program is sorely needed in Amman, Jordan and other countries supported by the State Department to ensure that no other K9’s suffer. Long term, process and procedures need to be put in place to ensure this doesn’t happen again and the media (along with the public outrage) surrounding the issue should help accomplish that goal. There are lots of people I know following this issue closely and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a few whistleblowers come forward.
There are No Friendly Intelligence Services
The discovery of the alleged phone surveillance equipment near The White House allegedly placed by the Israelis is not surprising. You learn quickly in the intelligence world there are no friendly intelligence services.
The placement of the spying devices reminds me of the story of Jonathan Pollard, an American intelligence analyst who was recruited by Mossad to spy on the American intelligence community despite our close cooperation on numerous investigations and intelligence concerns. A few years ago, I wrote about Pollard on Stratfor.com, discussing the case and the betrayal we felt after learning about the operation against us. You can read the full piece at the link at the end of this post, but here are a few excerpts.
In short, we in the national security business believed our friendship with Israel was far deeper than the veneer of diplomatic niceties.
We were wrong.
A piece of The Berlin Wall (author’s collection).
While spying for the Israelis in 1984 and 1985, Pollard delivered Mossad, Israel's spy agency, more than 800 classified documents — suitcases full at a time — and 1,500 daily intelligence summary wrap-up messages. After he was discovered, a deep fog of anger settled over the U.S. intelligence community. We felt betrayed, not only (or even primarily) by Pollard but by Israel — and specifically, by the Israeli intelligence service.
The Pollard affair is a grim reminder that spying is a tough and dirty business, even among countries that consider themselves friends and allies. The handshakes and smiles that take place in diplomatic circles are a facade, beneath which every government and its intelligence agencies operate in an intensely suspicious and dangerous atmosphere.
Read the full article at Stratfor.com:
https://worldview.stratfor.com/article/broken-trust-pollard-affair
Who Murdered Joe Alon? The Hebrew Edition of Chasing Shadows
To honor the memory of Colonel Joe Alon, I’m very grateful a Hebrew edition of Chasing Shadows was published. Joe was a decorated warrior and one of the original founders of the IAF. Colonel Alon was gunned down in Chevy Chase, Maryland, by the Black September Organization (BSO) in 1973. You can buy the Hebrew edition e-book of Chasing Shadows at the link below and printed copies are also available from the publisher.
You can find the e-book at this link: https://www.e-vrit.co.il/%D7%9E%D7%99_%D7%A8%D7%A6%D7%97_%D7%90%D7%AA_%D7%92_%D7%95_%D7%90%D7%9C%D7%95%D7%9F-details.aspx
"מי רצח את ג'ו אלון?" הוא סיפור מתח עוצר נשימה על עוצמה צבאית ופוליטית, סוכנים וסוכנים כפולים, טרור וחיסולים, ומעל הכול - גיבור אחד, שניצב במרכזה של טרגדיה אישית ולאומית.
ב-1 ביולי 1973 נורה למוות בפתח ביתו ליד וושינגטון אלוף משנה ג'ו אלון, הנספח האווירי של ישראל בארצות הברית. המתנקשים מעולם לא נתפסו, תיק החקירה נסגר ונסיבות הרצח נותרו תעלומה כמעט ארבעה עשורים. מעל הפרשה ריחפו במשך השנים חשדות וסימני שאלה רבים: האם ג'ו אלון, הטייס המהולל, גיבור מבצע קדש ומלחמת ששת הימים וממעצבי דמותו של חיל האוויר הישראלי, נרצח בידי ארגון הטרור הפלסטיני "ספטמבר השחור"? האם היה זה חיסול חשבונות על רקע פלילי-אישי? ואולי אלון בכלל נלכד ברשת סבוכה של אינטרסים וריגול בינלאומי שהמוסד, הסי-איי-אי והקג"ב היו רק חלק משחקניה, ושילם על כך בחייו? פרד ברטון, סוכן מיוחד ללוחמה בטרור במשרד החוץ האמריקני שהתגורר בזמן הרצח בסמוך לג'ו, לרעייתו ולשלוש בנותיהם, נשבע לרדת לשורש האמת. בשנת 2007 הוא פתח מחדש את תיק החקירה, חיטט בערמות של מסמכים מסווגים, הפעיל את קשריו המודיעיניים ברחבי העולם והפך כל אבן במאמץ לפצח את חידת מותו של ג'ו אלון. המצוד אחר הרוצחים, שהניב גילויים חדשים, הוליך את ברטון מארצות הברית, דרך שמי צפון וייטנאם, עד לרחובות האפלים של מרכז ביירות והסמטאות האחוריות של פריז, לא פעם תוך סיכון וכנגד כוחות חזקים שהיו מעוניינים להשאיר את התיק קבור.
Fred Burton Interviewed by The Houston Chronicle on Mass Shootings
Still, identifying people who may commit mass murders is a challenge, said Fred Burton, a former counter-terrorism agent with the U.S. State Department. Police are good at reacting as first responders, but identifying and investigating people who are planning mass shootings is a different kind of science and requires more resources, he said.
“You are in many ways looking for needles in haystacks and at times you can’t find that needle until after the incident, it’s sad to say,” said Burton, vice president of intelligence at Stratfor, a security and intelligence firm based in Austin.
It often takes a citizen or family member to report suspicious activity for law enforcement to intervene before an attack takes place, and authorities need a process to triage that information, he said.