First, while we're on the subject of "the TRUTH," I have some good news for the edheads out there.
Reports of edscan's demise have been greatly exaggerated. The man has NOT been banned.
Those who enjoy nutty conspiracies in the most exquisite verse will likely be able to continue to enjoy them in the future.
In fact, thanks to the implementation of this memorandum in a future executive order, conspiracy theorists will be able to gorge themselves on newly declassified information.
The memorandum modifies Executive Order 12958, which was issued by then-president Clinton in 1995.
From Wikipedia:
In 1995, United States President William J. Clinton signed Executive Order 12958 which created new standards for the process of classifying documents and led to an unprecedented effort to declassify millions of pages from the U.S. diplomatic and national security history. As of 2002[update], this policy has resulted in the declassification of what were 800 million pages of historically valuable records, with the potential of hundreds of millions more being declassified in the near future. [1] Clinton's White House Chief of Staff, John Podesta, was an important influence in this process.
Of course, this new future Obama order will go even further.
As you may recall, one of the President's first actions after being inaugurated (other than repeating the oath) was issuing a memorandum about the Freedom of Information Act.
A democracy requires accountability, and accountability requires transparency. As Justice Louis Brandeis wrote, "sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants." In our democracy, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which encourages accountability through transparency, is the most prominent expression of a profound national commitment to ensuring an open Government. At the heart of that commitment is the idea that accountability is in the interest of the Government and the citizenry alike.
The Freedom of Information Act should be administered with a clear presumption: In the face of doubt, openness prevails. The Government should not keep information confidential merely because public officials might be embarrassed by disclosure, because errors and failures might be revealed, or because of speculative or abstract fears.
...
All agencies should adopt a presumption in favor of disclosure, in order to renew their commitment to the principles embodied in FOIA, and to usher in a new era of open Government. The presumption of disclosure should be applied to all decisions involving FOIA.
The presumption of disclosure also means that agencies should take affirmative steps to make information public. They should not wait for specific requests from the public. All agencies should use modern technology to inform citizens about what is known and done by their Government. Disclosure should be timely.
I direct the Attorney General to issue new guidelines governing the FOIA to the heads of executive departments and agencies, reaffirming the commitment to accountability and transparency, and to publish such guidelines in the Federal Register.
Today's new memorandum addresses the confidential side.
Section 1. Review of Executive Order 12958. (a) Within 90 days of the date of this memorandum, and after consulting with the relevant executive departments and agencies (agencies), the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs shall review Executive Order 12958, as amended (Classified National Security Information), and submit to me recommendations and proposed revisions to the order.
(b) The recommendations and proposed revisions shall address:
(i) Establishment of a National Declassification Center to bring appropriate agency officials together to perform collaborative declassification review under the administration of the Archivist of the United States;
(ii) Effective measures to address the problem of over classification, including the possible restoration of the presumption against classification, which would preclude classification of information where there is significant doubt about the need for such classification, and the implementation of increased accountability for classification decisions;
(iii) Changes needed to facilitate greater sharing of classified information among appropriate parties;
(iv) Appropriate prohibition of reclassification of material that has been declassified and released to the public under proper authority;
(v) Appropriate classification, safeguarding, accessibility, and declassification of information in the electronic environment, as recommended by the Commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction and others; and
(vi) Any other measures appropriate to provide for greater openness and transparency in the Government's security classification and declassification program while also affording necessary protection to the Government's legitimate interests.
In other words, the goal is to declassify early, declassify often, and declassify in an efficient, orderly, manner, while still keeping classified those things which are truly necessary to be classified for national security purposes.
And the American people are chomping at the bit for declassification. I checked the CIA's Freedom of Information Act page earlier today, and they have a nice little page that shows the top 25 FOIA searches each month
For 5 out of 6 of those months, the top search query was "UFO." That's right, UFO. Everyone wants to know what those Lizard People are up to!