Sabotaged!

Just another example of the garbage I have had to deal with over the years. This is an exchange from CANVS V SOCOM about a CANVS Color Night Vision Goggle that was tampered with without my knowledge prior to going to be tested by operators!

Mr. Francis Vangel was in charge of all the visual augmentation systems from the head-mounted, handheld and weapon-mounted devices for USASOC. The Defendant called Mr. Vangel as a witness, he testified about a set of CANVS Color Night Vision Goggles sent to him by Kurt Badertscher of SOCOM in April 2007. He spoke of his experience with the goggles in his testimony:

"I just got a snowy GEN 1-2 type of picture which means not good, not clear, not sharp, not high-def resolution. Nothing that I would be interested in. So I started playing with the objective with the diopter settings, with the gain controls and I adjusted everything that I could but I couldn't see any color."

Prior to Mr. Vangel taking the stand, while I was on the stand he inspected the CANVS Color Night Vision Goggles produced into evidence by the Defendant. I testified that one of the goggles had filters not supplied by CANVS, and that a goggle configured with the two identical LIF filters that were on the goggle as entered into evidence by the Defendant would not function properly. I then removed the incorrect filters that were on the objective lenses, and replaced them with the proper optical elements provided by CANVS that were originally shipped with the goggle.

Under cross examination, looking through the same CANVS Color Night Vision Goggle that he originally examined in 2007 with the wrong filters, this is what Mr. Vangel testified to after looking through the same goggle but with the proper filters as delivered with the goggle by CANVS:

Q Do you see any colors in the flag behind the Judge?
A Yes, sir.
Q Excuse me, what?
A I see red, I see white and then I see black for the -- you know, I know it's blue because it's a flag but I see black. But I do see red and white. And then the -- you know, the background of the stars is black to me. Based on what I saw here I would say that the performance of the tubes that I saw (in 2007 with the wrong filters on the objective lenses) was lesser than these tubes" (note the goggle and tubes were identical, just the correct front end filters were on the goggle after I fixed it earlier while was on the stand)

I do not know if the incorrect optics were placed on the CANVS Color Night Vision Goggles sent to Mr. Vangel intentionally or by accident, what is known is that by placing two identical LIF filters not supplied by CANVS on the goggle; the device was effectively sabotaged resulting in no possibility of demonstrating a color night vision capability.

I couldn't resist, enjoy: Sabotage (Beastie Boys)

National Security

There was an exchange during my testimony in the CANVS V SOCOM case in front of the ASBCA that really pissed me off. It highlights a total lack of understanding or a willful attempt to get me in trouble by the lead defense attorney representing SOCOM. Here is the excerpt from the court transcript:

"I asked Mr. Walkenstein has he ever held a national security clearance since he left the Army. The answer is no. And so to that degree he has had conversations with Special Forces, intelligence community, et cetera. But in all those dealings it was not under national security. There may be sensitivities to the organization or to the agency, and Mr. Walkenstein refused to chat about these various people based upon his own belief he needs to protect the national security. He's under no obligation to protect the national security and this is very difficult to understand why we would not discuss Mr. ********** (Redacted) in open conversation."

First let me point out that the very same attorney that said this entered into evidence materials that clearly showed that his "the answer is no" comment is not true. I have been around lawyers too long, because I was wondering what law says that you have to obey the law? Here is the answer:

Article 14 Section 1 of The Constitution establishes that every citizen of The United States is under the jurisdiction of the law.

In edition to having to obey the law because I am a natural born citizen of the United States of America, I also took an oath of office when I entered the enlisted ranks of the US Army, and again when I earned the rank of Warrant Officer. Here is the oath:

United States Uniformed Services Oath of Office:
I, Jonathan Alexander Walkenstein, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

Please notice that there is no expiration date on this oath. I am also bound by numerous laws related to the re-transmission of sensitive and or classified materials to protect National Security. Specific examples of some of the related laws include:

• Executive Order 12356 (April 2, 1982; Ronald Reagan)
• Executive Order 12958 (April 17, 1995; Bill Clinton)
• Executive Order 13292 (March 21, 2003; George W. Bush)
• The Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982 (Pub.L. 97–200, 50 U.S.C. §§ 421–426) [This is the basis in law for Mr. Walkenstein hesitance to discuss Mr. ********** (Redacted)

The Defendant is wrong; Mr. Walkenstein is bound by Oath and Law to protect the national security of The United States.