An undated regulation uncovered in the Central Intelligence Agency archives, formerly classified SECRET, appears to outline the “Dos and Don’ts” for Agency historians. While most of the consideration goes into avoiding exposing the identities of undercover agents (and acknowledging the inherent difficulties therein), one surprising paragraph instructs historical officers to avoid “embarrassing incidents” or “unflattering statements” unless absolutely necessary.

In July of 1955, Lewis Strauss, chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, wrote to CIA director Allen Dulles over matters of mutual interest. In one of those letters, uncovered in the Agency’s archives, Strauss thanked Dulles for a package he had sent him, using deliberately vague terms to describe its contents as to “avoid classifying this letter.” Strauss’ efforts were in vain however. Not only was the letter classified for just shy of 50 years, but the vague descriptor itself remains classified to this day.

In a Federal Bureau of Intelligence bulletin dated May 30th, 2019, the FBI’s Phoenix Field Office warned that it was “Very Likely” that “Fringe Political Conspiracy Theories” such as Pizzagate and QAnon would eventually motivate its adherents to violence. Somewhat surprisingly, the bulletin later goes on to concede that the conspiratorial mindset underpinning such theories may be influenced by “the illegal, antidemocratic, or harmful activities by high level government officials and political elites” - also known as actual conspiracies.

In 2016, the Internal Revenue Service reported that unpaid taxes cost the federal government over $400 billion a year. According to documents recently released through FOIA, that same year, the IRS Whistleblower’s Office, which offers compensation to individuals who report on tax evasion, had a budget just over $6 million.

Back in June, the Huntington Park Police Department in California announced the newest addition to the force: A 400-pound security robot dubbed “HP RoboCop.” According to recently released materials, the agency is paying $8,000 a month for the robot, which has several previously unreported features, such as facial and license plate recognition.