Salutations from the Shadows,
We’re still in looking Moscow, still pulling lessons from the city that tested every operative’s skill, patience, and survival instincts. This week’s Moscow Rule, although codified decades ago, is even more appropriate for our time: Technology will always let you down.
In Cold War Moscow, the CIA had clever tools. Cameras hidden in coat buttons, microphones disguised as pens, radios concealed in briefcases. They were impressive for their day, but they were also fragile. Batteries died in the cold, signals cut out at the worst moments, and wires shorted. Time and again, the gadgets failed. What didn’t fail were the operatives who had the discipline to rely on themselves. The true weapon wasn’t the gadget. It was the human being using it.