From: http://www.jdhauser.com/Enigma%20and%20Geology.htm

Enigma and Geology
During World War II the Germans devised a method for sending and receiving ciphered messages that became known as Enigma. It was based on a mechanical system of wheels interconnected with electrical wires, contacts, a keyboard and an electric teletype. The wheels could be interchanged and rotated to different positions in order to create a multitude of combinations. A message created on one machine could only be de-ciphered by another machine using the same wheel combination.

The result was a code system that could change on a daily or hourly basis and was virtually impossible to crack using conventional methods.

British and American intelligence agencies worked feverishly to break the code and gain the strategic upper hand in the war. As time went by, Allied intelligence learned more about the device and dozens of civilian workers were hired to make mechanical and electrical components in an effort to reproduce the machine. The workers were told that if the were caught divulging any information about their work, they would be shot.

Many months of tedious work along with the acquisition of an Enigma machine from aboard a captured German submarine finally gave the Allies most of what they needed. Soon a mechanical/electrical computer was designed that could de-cipher German messages at will.

It wasn't long before Allied intelligence agencies were fully aware of German troop strengths, troop movements, supply routes and other strategic information. This was information that was vital to the success of the war effort.

But the Allies got more than they bargained for. Along with long-term strategic information they also received dispatches that revealed the exact times and targets for German bombing raids on England. This created quite a dilemma.

Knowing the exact nature of every bombing raid would have allowed the British to evacuate their citizens to underground bomb shelters well in advance of the onslaught, possibly saving many lives. The problem was that German agents in England would quickly figure out that their secret dispatches were not so secret.

If that were to happen the Germans would quickly abandon the Enigma ciphering system and possibly develop other ways to send secure messages. Such a development would have set Allied intelligence back many months or years.

British leaders decided to bite the bullet. They gave no advance warning of impending air raids. This undoubtedly caused many deaths in England but at the same time it gave the Allies the strategic edge needed to defeat Nazi Germany.

In recent weeks we have witnessed events that should remind us of what happened, or didn't happen, during World War II.

By virtue of enemy videos we were able to determine with pretty fair accuracy, the location of Taliban leader Osama bin Laden. The Taliban was not aware that they were giving us this intelligence until the media told them.

In the first week of the war against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden taped a video message for the entire world to see. He unwittingly divulged his general location by showing geological rock formations that exist only in a very small area of Afghanistan. 

An investigative news report told America and the world of "one of the ways we are tracking Osama bin Laden." Our enemies learned something as well.

A more recent video of bin Laden had him standing in front of a burlap backdrop. This, according to a news voice-over was done to "hide the geological formations and frustrate efforts to locate him." As a result, a fairly reliable intelligence tool has been neutralized for the duration of this war and all future wars. This was done in the name of free speech and the media's "right" to know.

Benedict Arnold was no doubt exercising his right to free speech when he sold out West Point.

Had the same type of investigative reporting been used in World War II concerning the Enigma cipher, the offending reporters would have faced the same fate of intelligence workers with big mouths.

Let's take it another step. Had an investigative report been done today on the Enigma machine the media would be crowing about how many lives would be saved during bombing raids. They can not see beyond their own noses let alone months into the future.

Today's media is quick to report on American strategies, weapons and tactics yet most of the time we hear very little about what the enemy is doing. Kind of makes you wonder whose side they are on. 

When a large chunk of our news comes from anonymous sources you have to wonder exactly who these anonymous sources are if they indeed exist and if so why they wish to remain anonymous.

It's about time we start calling these so-called objective media people by their true names.

Any information coming from or relating to a war should be considered classified regardless of the source. Such information should only be released publicly when cleared by the administration and it's respective agencies. 

In a war where a slip of the tongue or an inadvertent picture could cost the lives of American military personnel or compromise the entire war effort, objectivity and the right to know need to take a back seat.

In a war that needs to be won at any cost, deception might be our best weapon. The truth, when openly divulged, could be our worst enemy.

JDH