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Michael Hayden

Relax: “Zero Dark Thirty” is only a movie

Here’s what I know about the film’s controversial aspects: The scenes of CIA interrogation are overwrought and inaccurate; more than detainee-derived data was key in getting to Abbottabad; and the film’s star, “Maya”, was not alone in urging the agency to move.

But as often happens in art, each of these story lines has a thread of truth. CIA interrogations of more than 30 detainees were tough; the agency did derive significant intelligence from them; and “Maya” was a real heroine.

At the end of the day, though, “Zero Dark Thirty” is a movie. Made by Hollywood. To be dramatic. That this is being debated and that intelligence leaders are being drawn into that debate is as revealing as it should be troubling.

When I was at CIA I asked my civilian advisory board to tackle some tough questions. Among the toughest: In a political culture that every day demands more transparency and more public accountability from every aspect of national life, could American intelligence continue to survive and succeed?

That jury is still out.

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I’ll see it when it comes to FTA.

OldEnglish on December 29, 2012 at 6:34 PM

Only a movie – exactly – I will go see – because I love Kathryn Bigalow’s work (sp?)

Fiction mixed with real life – love it !!

jake-the-goose on December 29, 2012 at 6:37 PM

In a political culture that every day demands more transparency and more public accountability from every aspect of national life,

LOL. We still don’t know jack about Fast + Furious, Benghazi, if bin laden was really buried at sea … or any of 1000 other things that have happened and no one cared about “transparency” with this criminal white house and their stooges. Anyone who even dares to speak of transparency with this group of stonewalling criminals at Pennsylvania Ave and in the MSM that defends them is making a joke of himself. Barky can draw up a list of assassination targets in crayon, pop them off, and no one asks a question. But pour a little water over the faces a FEW SELF-CONFESSED TERRORISTS and, if there’s no affirmative action traitorous imbecile in the White House, we seem to hear calls for releasing every secret that the federal government might hold.

Does Hayden thinks anyone buys this sh!t?

ThePrimordialOrderedPair on December 29, 2012 at 6:43 PM

Low Information Intelligence CNN User checks in at the comments:

Yes it is only a movie and movies are not always accurate.

But here is some truth.

Bin Laden is DEAD and GM is ALIVE!

President Obama WON and Mitt Romney LOST!

I love America!!!!!!!!!

More?

More Americans will see this movie than read this or any other column. This shapes history for the time being like Birth of a Nation did for the KKK. Ultimately, history will rectify the wrongs and we’ll see how repugnant we were at this point of our civilization. We fought the Nazis and didn’t torture, and information gathered from torture is extremely unreliable. Go back to your 24 shows.

This idiot ignores all of the tons of bombs we dropped on German cities…

And one more.

In general, although I’m not sure when and where coercive techniques might be morally justified or not, I think that starting the War in Iraq that killed tens of thousands of Iraqis who had nothing to do with 9/11, along with 4000 Americans, while Bin Laden got away in another country WAS immoral. By showing the War in Iraq and now American torture in a possible positive light, I think the director Bigelow has treaded on very questionable moral ground.

Del Dolemonte on December 29, 2012 at 6:46 PM

Surely what happened before and after those fateful hours in Benghazi is of national importance and our political processes need to adjudicate these questions. But at their heart these are now more political and policy debates than intelligence issues.

Bullsh!t!

What was Ambassador Stevens doing in Benghazi (at a CIA safe house and NOT a “consulate”) at the time of the attack?

/On behalf of Seven Percent Solution …

ShainS on December 29, 2012 at 6:48 PM

At the end of the day, though, “Zero Dark Thirty” is a movie. Made by Hollywood. To be dramatic. That this is being debated and that intelligence leaders are being drawn into that debate is as revealing as it should be troubling.

The real issue here is that the movie shows us being not a bunch of nice and happy people with terrorists, and that we have the nerve to splash some water on their faces. According to at least 3 U.S. Senators, that’s grounds for war crime tribunals.

Stoic Patriot on December 29, 2012 at 6:51 PM

If he thinks we didn’t use coercive techniques on prisoners in WW2 then his brain has been infected by his own shiite.

Bishop on December 29, 2012 at 6:54 PM

So was Birth of a Nation.

vityas on December 29, 2012 at 6:58 PM

This idiot ignores all of the tons of bombs we dropped on German cities…

Del Dolemonte on December 29, 2012 at 6:46 PM

Lefties like to just make up their own private histories since their world views are always shattered whenever they scrape with reality even a little. They know even less about war than they do about economics.

I also love how they claim that information gathered by “torture” is unreliable. This is a real screamer, especially coming from a leftie who lies out of his mouth as a matter of course. The only way to get any sort of truth out a leftie is by threat of force. They are the lowest of the low. No wonder they have such self-hate. It’s the only reasonable position they hold.

ThePrimordialOrderedPair on December 29, 2012 at 7:01 PM

That claims to be a true story and that has White House approval and top secret security clearance.

Kaptain Amerika on December 29, 2012 at 7:38 PM

Hobbits, on the other hand, are real.

Kenosha Kid on December 29, 2012 at 7:55 PM

Egomaniacal tell-all SEALs, tell-all political hacks, and Hollyweird prima donnas conspire to produce an artistic masterpiece.

Nah, can’t see anything wrong with this picture.

Don’t worry, if you miss this one “Lone Survivor” starring Mark Wahlberg(!), Eric Bana(!!), and directed by the man who brought you the clusterfark called “Battleship”(!*99) is coming next.

CorporatePiggy on December 29, 2012 at 8:42 PM