Mark Stout
@markstout.bsky.social
Former intelligence officer and university educator, current intelligence historian. Also live on the borderlands of military history. Former Historian at the International Spy Museum. I wish I were in Seattle. The cat is Boadicea. Not flying with Natalie.
Reposted by Mark Stout
Tsarist Russia produced a lot of interesting characters. Sergei Zubatov (1864-1917) was one of them! The son of a police chief who became a radical as a young man, Zubatov was 'flipped' by N. S. Berdyaev, head of the Moscow Okhrana, and became an informant.
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September 17, 2026 at 4:23 PM
Tsarist Russia produced a lot of interesting characters. Sergei Zubatov (1864-1917) was one of them! The son of a police chief who became a radical as a young man, Zubatov was 'flipped' by N. S. Berdyaev, head of the Moscow Okhrana, and became an informant.
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Reposted by Mark Stout
Hey friends, I continue to forget how hard it is for more than a few people who might appreciate it to know about work I do in history, historical games, and history education (and any combination of the 3) relevant to them.
Could you maybe share one or more of these items ? I'd be SO grateful. 1/
Could you maybe share one or more of these items ? I'd be SO grateful. 1/
September 17, 2026 at 3:43 PM
Hey friends, I continue to forget how hard it is for more than a few people who might appreciate it to know about work I do in history, historical games, and history education (and any combination of the 3) relevant to them.
Could you maybe share one or more of these items ? I'd be SO grateful. 1/
Could you maybe share one or more of these items ? I'd be SO grateful. 1/
Reposted by Mark Stout
So #historians, I might ask again - what are your weird archival finds?
On the National Archives of Australia website, I found this digitised WWII-era letter to the Prime Minister complaining about enemy aliens in Australia, which then goes into rant about women smoking.
#archives #history 🗃️
On the National Archives of Australia website, I found this digitised WWII-era letter to the Prime Minister complaining about enemy aliens in Australia, which then goes into rant about women smoking.
#archives #history 🗃️
September 17, 2026 at 2:33 AM
So #historians, I might ask again - what are your weird archival finds?
On the National Archives of Australia website, I found this digitised WWII-era letter to the Prime Minister complaining about enemy aliens in Australia, which then goes into rant about women smoking.
#archives #history 🗃️
On the National Archives of Australia website, I found this digitised WWII-era letter to the Prime Minister complaining about enemy aliens in Australia, which then goes into rant about women smoking.
#archives #history 🗃️
Reposted by Mark Stout
A “trace” is a summary information on a given individual that an intelligence service keeps in its records.
I've recently started a short article series "Top Secret: Traces from #KGB Files."
Here's the link for the first 4 installments: thechekistmonitor.blogspot.com/2026/09/fili...
I've recently started a short article series "Top Secret: Traces from #KGB Files."
Here's the link for the first 4 installments: thechekistmonitor.blogspot.com/2026/09/fili...
September 16, 2026 at 3:20 PM
A “trace” is a summary information on a given individual that an intelligence service keeps in its records.
I've recently started a short article series "Top Secret: Traces from #KGB Files."
Here's the link for the first 4 installments: thechekistmonitor.blogspot.com/2026/09/fili...
I've recently started a short article series "Top Secret: Traces from #KGB Files."
Here's the link for the first 4 installments: thechekistmonitor.blogspot.com/2026/09/fili...
Reposted by Mark Stout
I want to talk a little bit about a tangent to recent discourse here. The discourse is generally of the form of "I could never vote for anyone unsupporting of [a particular issue], no matter what else they support. I'm not going to cite examples. They're _everywhere_ now in the runup to the midterms
September 15, 2026 at 11:43 PM
I want to talk a little bit about a tangent to recent discourse here. The discourse is generally of the form of "I could never vote for anyone unsupporting of [a particular issue], no matter what else they support. I'm not going to cite examples. They're _everywhere_ now in the runup to the midterms
Reposted by Mark Stout
For decades, ordinary Swedes secretly prepared for the day Soviet forces might occupy their country.
Listen here 🎧🎧
coldwarconversations.com/episode473
#sweden #coldwar #staybehinds
@johanwennstrom.bsky.social @ospreypublishing.bsky.social
Listen here 🎧🎧
coldwarconversations.com/episode473
#sweden #coldwar #staybehinds
@johanwennstrom.bsky.social @ospreypublishing.bsky.social
September 14, 2026 at 4:45 PM
For decades, ordinary Swedes secretly prepared for the day Soviet forces might occupy their country.
Listen here 🎧🎧
coldwarconversations.com/episode473
#sweden #coldwar #staybehinds
@johanwennstrom.bsky.social @ospreypublishing.bsky.social
Listen here 🎧🎧
coldwarconversations.com/episode473
#sweden #coldwar #staybehinds
@johanwennstrom.bsky.social @ospreypublishing.bsky.social
Reposted by Mark Stout
🎉 A new chapter at KCSI
@drceliap-v.bsky.social is taking over as Executive Director of the King's Centre for the Study of Intelligence, succeeding @drichterova.bsky.social and @msg77.bsky.social after 5+ years at the helm of KCSI and, before that, the King's Intelligence Study Group. (1/6)
@drceliap-v.bsky.social is taking over as Executive Director of the King's Centre for the Study of Intelligence, succeeding @drichterova.bsky.social and @msg77.bsky.social after 5+ years at the helm of KCSI and, before that, the King's Intelligence Study Group. (1/6)
September 14, 2026 at 5:59 PM
🎉 A new chapter at KCSI
@drceliap-v.bsky.social is taking over as Executive Director of the King's Centre for the Study of Intelligence, succeeding @drichterova.bsky.social and @msg77.bsky.social after 5+ years at the helm of KCSI and, before that, the King's Intelligence Study Group. (1/6)
@drceliap-v.bsky.social is taking over as Executive Director of the King's Centre for the Study of Intelligence, succeeding @drichterova.bsky.social and @msg77.bsky.social after 5+ years at the helm of KCSI and, before that, the King's Intelligence Study Group. (1/6)
This is quite something, if true.
September 15, 2026 at 1:19 AM
This is quite something, if true.
Reposted by Mark Stout
Very nice to see the cover of my forthcoming book, Grand Strategies of Middle East States, co-written with Steven Lobell, Norrin Ripsman and Lawrence Rubin, available with Columbia University Press in March 2027:
September 14, 2026 at 7:43 PM
Very nice to see the cover of my forthcoming book, Grand Strategies of Middle East States, co-written with Steven Lobell, Norrin Ripsman and Lawrence Rubin, available with Columbia University Press in March 2027:
Reposted by Mark Stout
August edition of Space Policy is out, with articles covering lunar safety zones, NATO's space policy, megaconstellations, Korean's national space policy, public preferences on NASA's budget, and more! www.sciencedirect.com/journal/spac...
https://ScienceDirect.com
ScienceDirect.com
September 14, 2026 at 11:53 PM
August edition of Space Policy is out, with articles covering lunar safety zones, NATO's space policy, megaconstellations, Korean's national space policy, public preferences on NASA's budget, and more! www.sciencedirect.com/journal/spac...
Reposted by Mark Stout
I’m going to channel Indiana Jones and say this belongs in a museum, not a millionaire’s or billionaire’s private collection. So if there’s anyone out there that can make that happen, you have 10 more days (September 24).
After 18 bids, bidding now stands at $205,700. But it will surely go higher.
After 18 bids, bidding now stands at $205,700. But it will surely go higher.
The handwritten logbook by Captain Robert A. Lewis, co-pilot on the Enola Gay’s top secret mission to destroy Hiroshima in the world’s first atomic bombing, is up for auction again (bidding is now at $125,545). It includes Lewis’s immediate reaction: “My God what have we done?” tinyurl.com/yc3efkmz
September 14, 2026 at 11:04 PM
I’m going to channel Indiana Jones and say this belongs in a museum, not a millionaire’s or billionaire’s private collection. So if there’s anyone out there that can make that happen, you have 10 more days (September 24).
After 18 bids, bidding now stands at $205,700. But it will surely go higher.
After 18 bids, bidding now stands at $205,700. But it will surely go higher.
Reposted by Mark Stout
Federal agents may have broken state laws after the Department of Homeland Security began surging personnel for what it called the Unlawful Voter Initiative, a federal whistleblower alleges. n.pr/4yE1CTT
Federal agents may have broken state laws in voter fraud hunt, whistleblower claims
Federal agents may have broken state laws after the Department of Homeland Security began surging personnel for what it called the Unlawful Voter Initiative, a federal whistleblower alleges.
n.pr
September 14, 2026 at 10:17 PM
Federal agents may have broken state laws after the Department of Homeland Security began surging personnel for what it called the Unlawful Voter Initiative, a federal whistleblower alleges. n.pr/4yE1CTT
Reposted by Mark Stout
From the New York Times: "Here’s How the Postal Service Could Refuse to Deliver Your Mail Ballot"
The Trump Administration is trying to disenfranchise Washingtonians. We blocked their illegal attack in court and will continue to defend our elections.
The Trump Administration is trying to disenfranchise Washingtonians. We blocked their illegal attack in court and will continue to defend our elections.
Here’s How the Postal Service Could Refuse to Deliver Your Mail Ballot
The plan, which two dozen states have challenged as unconstitutional, puts in place new requirements about who can receive mail ballots.
www.nytimes.com
September 14, 2026 at 10:28 PM
From the New York Times: "Here’s How the Postal Service Could Refuse to Deliver Your Mail Ballot"
The Trump Administration is trying to disenfranchise Washingtonians. We blocked their illegal attack in court and will continue to defend our elections.
The Trump Administration is trying to disenfranchise Washingtonians. We blocked their illegal attack in court and will continue to defend our elections.
Reposted by Mark Stout
The RAF Staff College (Overseas) at Haifa drrossmahoney.substack.com/p/the-raf-st... #RAF #PME #airpowerhistory #WW2
September 14, 2026 at 2:40 AM
The RAF Staff College (Overseas) at Haifa drrossmahoney.substack.com/p/the-raf-st... #RAF #PME #airpowerhistory #WW2
Reposted by Mark Stout
Since I'm sharing this, you can guess what the solution to the Case of the Shockingly Spicy Mustard is
My jar of mustard was so spicy it made my eyes water and sent me on an obsessive quest to find out why
The mustard was the same brand I buy every time, Maille Dijon Originale, but it was much, much stronger than usual.
www.thestar.com
September 14, 2026 at 2:14 AM
Since I'm sharing this, you can guess what the solution to the Case of the Shockingly Spicy Mustard is
Interesting bit from one of the just-declassified PDB articles pertaining to Osama Bin Laden, Al Qaida, 9/11, etc. It's from a September 10, 1998 piece, specifically.
![We suspect several recent walk-ins to our Embassies [2 lines redacted]--may be part of an effort by Bin Ladin to case US facilities."](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:eialivukkbpxcpdagxzy6ega/bafkreicu6a4x3nbcrjdefebkcji3uosu24p3trhssg3hm5me3coy2pgtnu)
September 13, 2026 at 9:04 PM
Interesting bit from one of the just-declassified PDB articles pertaining to Osama Bin Laden, Al Qaida, 9/11, etc. It's from a September 10, 1998 piece, specifically.
This is an outstanding idea.
If the Speaker feels they don’t have enough expertise there’s a way to bring it back - The Office of Technology Assessment!
www.liberalcurrents.com/congress-nee...
www.liberalcurrents.com/congress-nee...
September 13, 2026 at 2:20 PM
This is an outstanding idea.
Cool insignia for part of the 3rd Observation Squadron which operated under that name from 1937 to 1943. Eventually evolved into the 3rd Special Operations Squadron which operated Predators. Photo is from the Smithsonian Institution.
September 13, 2026 at 4:20 AM
Cool insignia for part of the 3rd Observation Squadron which operated under that name from 1937 to 1943. Eventually evolved into the 3rd Special Operations Squadron which operated Predators. Photo is from the Smithsonian Institution.
David’s book is well worth reading.
With today’s declassification/release of 9/11-related CIA analysis:
Check out the full history of the President’s Daily Brief — including the famous PDB article from Aug 6 2001 and post-9/11 PDB changes — in my deep dive on presidential intelligence:
www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/david...
Check out the full history of the President’s Daily Brief — including the famous PDB article from Aug 6 2001 and post-9/11 PDB changes — in my deep dive on presidential intelligence:
www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/david...
The President’s Book of Secrets
Every president has had a unique and complicated relationship with the intelligence community. While some have been coolly distant, even adversarial, others ...
www.hachettebookgroup.com
September 13, 2026 at 1:07 AM
David’s book is well worth reading.
Reposted by Mark Stout
If you work at an oil major, I urge you to think hard about what the next decade will feel like. Do you want to greenlight another decades-long extraction project without reckoning with its full climate cost? Or use this moment to demand a different path?
September 12, 2026 at 1:14 PM
If you work at an oil major, I urge you to think hard about what the next decade will feel like. Do you want to greenlight another decades-long extraction project without reckoning with its full climate cost? Or use this moment to demand a different path?
Reposted by Mark Stout
1/ Not quite as known as his predecessor Kyrylo Budanov, but that is changing:
Lieutenant General Ivashchenko took over his country’s military intelligence service, HUR, in January, after heading Ukraine’s foreign intelligence, SZRU.
Interview in the @thetimes.com
A few quotes & observations: 🧵
Lieutenant General Ivashchenko took over his country’s military intelligence service, HUR, in January, after heading Ukraine’s foreign intelligence, SZRU.
Interview in the @thetimes.com
A few quotes & observations: 🧵
September 11, 2026 at 12:35 PM
1/ Not quite as known as his predecessor Kyrylo Budanov, but that is changing:
Lieutenant General Ivashchenko took over his country’s military intelligence service, HUR, in January, after heading Ukraine’s foreign intelligence, SZRU.
Interview in the @thetimes.com
A few quotes & observations: 🧵
Lieutenant General Ivashchenko took over his country’s military intelligence service, HUR, in January, after heading Ukraine’s foreign intelligence, SZRU.
Interview in the @thetimes.com
A few quotes & observations: 🧵
So many memories of 9/11. The first one, my brain’s immediate go-to, is that the face of the analyst who worked for me at CIA and who alerted me to what was happening was absolutely white. A guy who was paid to contemplate many bad things (we weren’t doing CT, mind you) was drained of all color.
September 12, 2026 at 2:13 AM
So many memories of 9/11. The first one, my brain’s immediate go-to, is that the face of the analyst who worked for me at CIA and who alerted me to what was happening was absolutely white. A guy who was paid to contemplate many bad things (we weren’t doing CT, mind you) was drained of all color.
Reposted by Mark Stout
let's talk about music.
When I say "Eddie Rosner (1910-1976) was a musical prodigy who in the 1920s abandoned his classical music training for the jazz trumpet, eventually being called 'the White Louis Armstrong'" you probably think you have a picture of his life.
but that picture is wrong!
When I say "Eddie Rosner (1910-1976) was a musical prodigy who in the 1920s abandoned his classical music training for the jazz trumpet, eventually being called 'the White Louis Armstrong'" you probably think you have a picture of his life.
but that picture is wrong!
September 12, 2026 at 1:36 AM
let's talk about music.
When I say "Eddie Rosner (1910-1976) was a musical prodigy who in the 1920s abandoned his classical music training for the jazz trumpet, eventually being called 'the White Louis Armstrong'" you probably think you have a picture of his life.
but that picture is wrong!
When I say "Eddie Rosner (1910-1976) was a musical prodigy who in the 1920s abandoned his classical music training for the jazz trumpet, eventually being called 'the White Louis Armstrong'" you probably think you have a picture of his life.
but that picture is wrong!
Reposted by Mark Stout
250 years ago this evening, a young Continental Army officer named Ezra Lee made history--as the solo operator of the Turtle, the first submersible to be used in warfare anywhere in the world. Ezra ensconced himself in that tiny vehicle & made his way into New York Harbor to attack the HMS Eagle. +
September 7, 2026 at 4:38 PM
250 years ago this evening, a young Continental Army officer named Ezra Lee made history--as the solo operator of the Turtle, the first submersible to be used in warfare anywhere in the world. Ezra ensconced himself in that tiny vehicle & made his way into New York Harbor to attack the HMS Eagle. +
Reposted by Mark Stout
The Chicago Public Library informs patrons of how much money they’ve saved borrowing from the library instead of buying. “You just saved $58.94 by using your library. You have saved $231.79 this past year and $1,107.24 since you began using the library!” [salon.com]
My library card has saved me $1,330 — and I want more
Chicago Public Library tells patrons exactly what they’ve saved. I’ve become obsessed with running up the score.
www.salon.com
September 10, 2026 at 1:24 AM
The Chicago Public Library informs patrons of how much money they’ve saved borrowing from the library instead of buying. “You just saved $58.94 by using your library. You have saved $231.79 this past year and $1,107.24 since you began using the library!” [salon.com]