Ever since Edward Snowden "revealed" what everyone already knew, namely, that America's Reichsicherheithauptamt... er... National Security Agency, was spying on everyone, and with the more recent realization that this was as much about the "ultimate insider trading mechanism" and monitoring international finances as it was about "terrorism," there has been a growing economic, and now as we shall see, security backlash.

For example, a few weeks ago I blogged at different times about the growing economic backlash against the USA as a result of these "revelations." Brazil, for example, which had contracts with the US firm of Boeing for fighter jets, cancelled these contracts, and placed an order with Sweden's Saab company for similar fighters with similar capabilities. Their reason was obvious: national security. Brazil simply no longer trusted the USA to provide them "backdoor free" fighters. Given that arms are about the only major American export any more (besides poisonous GMO seeds), this is not welcome news, and if the trend continues, other countries will seek their armaments from other countries. Brazil's President Rouseff additionally joined France's Hollande and Germany's Merkel in the call for the development of their own "US-free internet".

But there's more blowback on the way:

How Much Is NSA Spying Costing In Lost Productivity?

The article already hints at yet another looming economic problem:

"Remember, American and British spy agencies have intentionally weakened security for many decades. And it’s getting worse and worse. For example, they plan to use automated programs to infect millions of computers. "How much time and productivity have we lost in battling viruses let in because of the spies tinkering? How much have we lost because “their” computer programs conflict with “our” programs? "Indeed, Microsoft’s general counsel labels government snooping an “advanced persistent threat,” a term generally used to describe teams of hackers that coordinate cyberattacks for foreign governments. It is well-known among IT and security professionals that hacking decreases employee productivity. While they’re usually referring to hacking by private parties, the same is likely true for hacking by government agencies, as well.":

In other words, it may not be long before US manufacturers and software corporations are faced with foreign competition both in hardware and software, given growing fears of US snooping. While it is unthinkable to imagine such competition for Apple or Microsoft now, it will inevitably occur if the US and American suppliers are unable to restore trust and confidence in their products.

But there's another looming problem, and one far more serious. For all their efforts, it appears that Russia has not been merely sitting on its gas pipelines twiddling its fingers and doing nothing. Indeed, I also blogged on this site about Russian purchases of typewriters, to avoid the possibility of domestic interception of classified documents and communications, and many individuals are now once again resorting to snail mail for personal communications. Remember that typewriter thing, and check this out:

Military & Defense More: NSA The White House Is 'Very Nervous' About Russia's New Ability To Evade NSA Spying

I rather suspect that more than just the White House is nervous about Russia's apparent ability to avoid the NSA's ever-sniffing nose, for such a capability is bound to have the financial oligarchs worried as well, for the lack of ability to monitor Russian military communications implies a similar lack of ability concerning its domestic electronic clearing. Of course, the Russian military is anything but incompetent, and while it could have accomplished its recent maneuvers "the old fashioned way" with radio silence, typewritten messages, and motorcycle couriers, it is doubtful that it did so. The crux of the difficulty is aptly summarized here:

"Russian leaders either 'deliberately avoided communicating about the invasion or simply found a way to do so without detection by the U.S.,' the Journal writes.

One does not coordinate the vast special forces and military resources of Russia without communications of some sort, and given the speed and precision with which Russia responded to the situation in the Crimean peninsula and the threat against its Black Sea Fleet bases posed by the USA-sponsored coup d'etat in the Ukraine, this author has difficulty believing that Moscow pulled off this feat "the old fashioned way," and whether they did or not does not, as far as US policy-makers are concerned, really matter, for the worst case scenario implied by the NSA's apparent inability to penetrate Russian communications is that Russia has developed a fairly sophisticated means to avoid such electronic snooping, a kind of cyber-updated counter-intelligence version of SMERSH if you will. (And given the current US track record in the region, they might be considering a revival of the old fashioned SMERSH in Moscow as well. As I've said many times, two can play the covert warfare, psyops, and drones game).

It's not just that possibility that may have them burning the midnight oil in the Washington and London snake pits either, for imagine if Russia decides, as a component of its international geopolitics, to sell or share that capability with, say, India, China, or (in a real counter-coup of its own), Germany, or France, or Brazil. Such agreements would not, of course, ever be announced, or if they were, would only be in the form of a generalized statement: ... oh, by the way, we sold license agreements on System X technology to..." Or, nothing might be said at all, and it would only become apparent when there was sudden silence where before there was regular noise.

Though the Russian action and capability were demonstrated - quietly of course - a few weeks ahead of schedule, the message to the cesspools in Washington and London seems rather clear:

"April fools, boys!"

See you on the flip side.