INTERVIEW BY LAURA COHEN
A long row of trees line the backyard as you look out of the walls of windows of the Virginia home. It is the room where the Director of Griffith Colson Intelligence Service (GCIS) spends much of his time. The trees divide the property between one home and another, with the help of a creek that runs beneath the tree-line. In the anxious days of a challenging economy and Wall Street woes, W. Edward Griffith is somber and fine-tuned.
W.EDWARD GRIFFITH (above)
Griffith has come a long way since co-founding GCIS when he was still in Los Angeles. When he announced he was going to move his agency to Virginia, his critics laughed. Griffith, at 44, is easy to talk to and smiles as he grabs a cup of coffee in his GCIS Director’s mug. Very little about politics surprises him. He is a realist, a visionary, and honest enough to know where he stands on the nation’s security. He also counts himself as an ‘outsider’. He and his wife Alysyn are both openly bisexual.
Griffith has had to end a barrage of attacks since getting into the private intelligence business five years ago. A series of stories were circulated about him and his family. He has since become a staunch supporter of cyber security and more penalties for those who spread slander against another via the web.
The Director in an Internet Television Broadcast (right)
Griffith does not claim credit for the success of GCIS. He knows that the private intelligence industry has faced challenges, but adds that his agency was one of the first to appoint a diverse accountability board. The GCIS Executive Security Council is comprised of individuals Griffith said he appointed because “they have no hesitation to keep me and the agency in check”.
Griffith spoke candidly with SpyChix Magazine about his agency, his wife, his children, friends and the future of the country. Here are some excerpts from that interview:
Alysysn Bourque, Griffith’s wife and Deputy Director of Communications at GCIS. Bourque is also CEO of Net City Media Group
Q: You have become more vocal about political issues lately as Director of GCIS. Are you interested in a run for public office?
A: No, not at all. I see my job as one that offers as much as we can to the people of the United States and I am content in my job here at GCIS. I don’t have political ambition, but I do have an ambition to lift-up the leaders of our community as much as I’m able. But as far as politics, I plan on remaining director for many years to come.
Q: Since founding GCIS, what have you learned that has made you a better director?
A: I’ve certainly learned more about humility. (Laughing). I think I have learned that some people are simply vicious and when they have the power of the Internet, they have no hesitation to destroy people through innuendo and lies. I am fortunate that I have been surrounded by good friends, my wife, who is the love of my life, smart and strong children and an ESC (Executive Security Council) that has weathered these storms with us. I have learned to rely on people and their advice more than I did when I first started this agency.
Q: Your wife is Alysyn Bourque. She is the GCIS Deputy Director of Communications. What is your relationship like?
A: The fact is that Alysyn is much more than just our deputy director of communications. She is one of the most accomplished, intelligent, loyal people I’ve ever met. I fell in love with at first sight, and that is exactly how it happened. The fact that I have been blessed to have her as my partner and my wife only humbles me more. (Laughing). She founded Net City Media Group and is one of the hardest working people I’ve ever had in my corner. She is an attentive, wonderful mother and equally attentive and loving as a wife. We have been through so much together. People go through all sorts of things in the early years of their relationships and we’ve had our rough times. But the one thing we did was commit to one another that we’d stick it out together. We’d make it work and in order to do that we’d make changes necessary in our lives to solidify our marriage.
The Director shares an intimate moment with his wife (left)
I love her. I always say I knew love when I met Alysyn and somehow she had the strength to take me on. I can not imagine life without her on any level. The fact that some people took advantage of our growing pains to try to destroy that to which we were committed, only shows the resolve we had to survive it. We are survivors and our children are a testament to that.
Q: You are openly supportive of Israel, and GCIS even has an Israel unit. Why the strong focus on Israel?
A: Alysyn and I both come from Jewish heritage. My great-grandmother Rose came from Austria at the age of 14 by herself. Her family couldn’t afford to all come to the United States, but she was placed on a ship and sent to this country. She concealed her Jewish identity because of the terrible climate of anti-semitism in the country at the time. Alysyn’s family is traced back to the Jews in France and in the United Kingdom. As a family, we are as committed to Israel and our faith as we are our business. We are not ashamed of where we come from. Alysyn and I are both committed to the success of our Machaseh Security Service unit for this very reason. We are Messianic, but Jews nevertheless.
Alysyn and daughter Cricket prepare Sabbath Dinner as Noah sits at the table.(above & below)
Q: GCIS was forced to make cut backs in certain areas. How has the agency survived our current economic climate?
A: As an agency, we have survived because we have had a team of committed people. They believe in the mission. As a family, we’ve sacrificed the extras and placed as much back into the agency as possible. There have been plenty of nights where beans and rice were for dinner. We just accept what challenges we’re given and we don’t complain. Our children have been amazing in that regard. God has blessed me with a wonderful family.
Q: You recently said that you believe Israel will strike Iran. Do you still believe this?
A: It is my personal analysis. I do believe this. I think this administration has done a poor job at guarding the watchtower of our national security and that of our allies. Israel faces a grave threat, as does the United States of America. Iran has missiles pointed to Israel and U.S. interests. Iran is a direct national security and global threat and I have said for more than a year that there is no other option but a military strike against the Iranian nuclear infrastructure.
Q: You gave a 911 speech in 2010 and another in 2011. You were attacked on both by the left. Why do you think you were the target of critics for those speeches?
A: I don’t spend much time worrying about why. The fact is our country is vulnerable and our enemies are resolved on our destruction. I don’t have the luxury of worrying about what my critics think. I am a husband and a father and the security of my family is the primary issue I need to be concerned about.
Q: What do you do to relax?
A: I look forward to sabbath dinner every week. Alysyn and our daughter Cricket do a wonderful job with every sabbath. That period is our downtime as a family. We play backyard pitch and catch often and we watch movies as a family. Other than that, I’m pretty much working, along with Aly, which is what we love to do.
The Director shares a moment with the son (Noah) he raises with Alysyn (above)
Q: Who are you supporting or president in 2012?
A: I’m bouncing back and forth between Perry and Romney. I began supporting Rep. Bachman, but she just didn’t hold her ground for me. I think we have a great Republican slate of candidates and I love to listen to Herman Cain during the debates. But so far, I’m in between Romney and Perry.
Q: Thank you or chatting with us today.
A: My pleasure. Thank you for having me.
About The Spy And Private Eye Museum
Inside The Spy Exchange, Austin, Texas
From Ralph Thomas
Hi I’m Ralph Thomas and I’d like to welcome you to PI Vintage and the Spy And Private-Eye Museum. If you have anything to do with investigation, you will likely have an interest in the rich history of private investigation and the spy world. I have been collecting a lot of this kind of stuff since I was 16 years old and still in high school.Of course, at that period of time, this stuff was, ah well new! I can remember a time when my junior high school buddy and pal David Mollison and I only dreamed of becoming investigators. We were very young then but we both made those dreams come true. After decades of logging thousands of hours of surveillance, conducting tens of thousands of investigative interviews, locating thousands of missing persons and doing almost every other kind of investigation under the sun, something happened to David and I that happens to us all. We woke up one day and discovered we were not young any more. It’s funny how people’s focus on life developes. First, it’s usually about making a living. Then, it’s about becoming recognized by one’s peers. However, as one grows older and hopefully wiser, the thing you do for community seems more important than anything else.
To me, community is the private investigative profession and members of the law enforcement community. As a general American history buff, I have now witnessed enough in life to understand that some of the tools I have used in the past and some of the people I have had the opportunity to come to know, is now part of recent history itself. This section then is an attempt to preserve the history of investigation and spying and freeze in time, if you will, the tools and gear as well as some of the people the profession uses to obtain the successful investigative objective from the past. I can tell you though life experience that as one gets older, time seems to move faster and faster. Unless people like Ben Harroll of the PI Museum in California and A. Dvorsak’s efforts in what used to be the USSR, a great deal of the tools and gear as well as the history of the past will end up in ash heaps and garbage dumps and lost forever. There are very few right now who have developed a goal to preserve what is there right now. I urge you not to throw anything away or hawk it for fifty cents at a garage sale if it’s related to investigative, law enforcement and/or the spy profession. As I think back right now, I often wonder what happened to the Dektor 101 PSE machine I had, some of the past cameras I used in my career, some of the equipment even from several years ago.
I can remember as a kid, staying at my grandmother’s house. She had old carved furniture setting on hand laid wood floors. At the time, this stuff was old and no one wanted it. It was considered a bunch of junk. Today, that same furniture would be worth tens of thousands of dollars as a lot of it was passed down to her from her mother. The same holds true of investigative gear so remember that. I can remember just a few years ago, I purchased my first digital camera. It was called the Mavica and was sold by Sony. I liked that camera because it used a floppy disk drive. Today it’s old and vintage. This in and of itself is a lesson on how fast things change these days.
This section doesn’t have much to do with selling you anything nor promoting something other than the fact that I have a believe that the history of private investigation and spying needs to be preserved. We are working very closely with Ben Harroll’s PI Museum in California and this site is really a joint effort of many as we want to feature as many other like sites on the internet and give the professional investigator a place to learn about the history of investigation, spying and law enforcement with a focus on the equipment and gear of days gone by. We also want to inform those with interest of other brick and mortar museums you can go to in person to see a lot of this kind of stuff in the flesh for yourself. At the bottom of the front page for this section is a hugh collection of links that keep you informed of like museums you can go to in person. I’d like to give you a short run-down on a few of the places I like the best.
If you are in the San Diego area in California, be sure to make time to contact Ben Harroll to see his PI Museum. Ben has been collecting this stuff with a passion most of his life and he has been one of the major leaders in his community for the development of Gaslamp Quarters, a several block area with old buildings that was at one time earmarked to be torn down by the city. Because of the leadership of people like Ben, Gaslamp Quarters has been saved and the old buildings completely redone. Both his investigative agency and his PI Museum is now located in this area. Ben’s PI Museum is likely one of the world’s most extensive collections in the world relating to private investigation.
If you are ever near the Waco Texas area, you will find the Texas Ranger’s Hall Of Fame one of the most interesting law enforcement museums in the world. I happen to stop in the place and every time I travel from Austin to Dallas or Forth Worth, I always plan several hours to see what they have that’s new.
When it comes to shock and awe on investigative and spy stuff, by far the largest museum of it’s kind is The International Spy Museum in Washington DC. The museum is located in a several story building in downtown Washington so plan on spending at least a half a day to see everything. They have a gift shop you will want to spend at least a half an hour in.
Finally, if you are planning to come to the Austin, Texas area, we now have a lot of this collection on display in two separate rooms off of the Spy Exchange And Security Center, one of the nation’s largest showrooms for investigative and security gear as well as books and manuals. So be sure to plan on stopping in at our showroom in Austin, Texas to see spy and private-eye history unfold for you in person. If you have any questions, or comments, you can email me at RThomas007@mac.com
My Best,
Ralph Thomas, CEO
Thomas Investigative Publications, Inc.
Spy Exchange And Security Center
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NATO Expelled Two Russian Diplomats Accused of Spying
SPYCHIX WIRE REPORTS — A NATO diplomat claims the Russians were expelled over the case of Herman Simm, who was jailed for treason for handing over over 1,900 pages of information to Russia’s Intelligence Service.
Two Russian diplomats Victor Kochukov and Vasily Chizhov have lost their accreditation to NATO”S headquarters in Brussels. It is not clear how much this will impact relations with Russia. Since Barack Obama has taken office things seemed to be improving however as we have stated in previous articles the long unresolved conflict over proposed missile defense systems remains a major issue and concern of bothe the USA and Russia.
Russia has complained bitterly about NATO’s plan to hold a peacekeeping exercise next month in Georgia. But NATO says Russian officers were invited to take part in the two-week event and Russia is aware the exercise presents no threat.
NATO spokesman James Apparthurai said Thursday he could not confirm whether any diplomat’s accreditation had been withdrawn because he could not comment on intelligence matters.
Afghan employee kills U.S. citizen at Kabul CIA base
An Afghan security guard employed by the U.S. Embassy opened fire inside a CIA office in Kabul on Sunday evening, killing an American contractor and injuring a second person, U.S. and Afghan officials said, in the second major breach of embassy security in two weeks.
The killing adds to a sense of insecurity already heightened by a 20-hour siege of the diplomatic district in mid-September, and the assassination a week later of the top government peace envoy, former President Burhanuddin Rabbani.
The CIA compound inside the Ariana hotel is one of the most heavily guarded in Kabul, and has been off-limits to the public — along with the road that runs beside it — for almost a decade.
The compound lies at the heart of the capital’s heavily guarded military, political and diplomatic district, a virtual “green zone” that is almost impossible for ordinary Afghans to enter.
In Washington, U.S. officials said that an investigation of the shooting was continuing. “Although all possible motivations for the attack are being investigated, no further details on the motivation are available at this time,” a U.S. official told Reuters on Monday.
U.S. officials said that the investigation would be wide-ranging and that at the moment there was no favored theory. Among possible motivations which will be examined are whether the attacker acted entirely alone in pursuit of a personal grievance, or whether the attack was instigated or supported by militants, such as the Taliban or Pakistan-based Haqqani network.
My rating: 
add to my books 
The Enemy Within: A History of Espionage (General Military)
by Terry Crowdy 
· rating details · 7 ratings · 1 review Writing 2, 500 years ago, the Chinese philosopher-general Sun Tz� advised that “knowledge of the enemy can only be obtained by other men.” If this is the case, and history suggests it is, the study of espionage must come out of the shadows. One should always know one’s enemy. More so if it is an enemy within.
The International Counter-Terrorism Officers Association (ICTOA) is a Non-Profit association founded by members of the New York City Police Department. The ICTOA is comprised of law enforcement personnel, firefighters, military, first responders, private/corporate security, and other related professionals.
Following the tragic events of September 11, 2001, police officers, firefighters, emergency workers, military, security and many other first responders found themselves standing side by side for the same purpose… to save lives
The ICTOA was founded on one basic principle – Unity. We recognize that security is not only a law enforcement issue, but also an issue that must be addressed by all. In order to maintain vigilance, we as a society must unite not only to combat terrorism, but to understand it. This is not an easy task, but through a combined effort of our membership it can be accomplished by banding together to act as a whole instead of as parts. This combined effort will be achieved through Training, Education and Networking.
The ICTOA is committed to supporting our members with the most advanced counter-terrorism measures to date. Networking internationally will insure the safety and security of all nations.
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