Wippl in CIRA: Remembering Aldrich Ames
Joseph Wippl, Professor of the Practice of International Relations at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, reflected on his time as a member of the CIA team assessing convicted spy Aldrich Ames for the Central Intelligence Retiree’s Association’s quarterly magazine, CIRA.
Wippl recounted his memories in “Reflections on Ames,” published in CIRA Vol XL, Number 3 in Fall 2015.
From the text of the article:
M. Cordell Hart’s essay [CIRA Summer 2015 Quarterly] on meeting up with his Career Trainee (CT) classmate, Aldrich ‘Rick’ Ames, dredged up memories of my participation for one year as a Directorate of Operations (DO) representative on the Ames Damage Assessment Team a bit over twenty years ago. Most of the debriefings of Ames occurred in the Washington D. C. area, but one also took place at the Allen wood Federal penitentiary. The visit to Allenwood had an unintended effect on me. Every semester and to every class at Boston University, I warn my students never, ever go to jail. I suggest to them that they can most easily avoid the humiliation of prison by obeying the law.
You can read the entire article here.
Wippl is a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer. He spent a 30 year career as an operations officer in the National Clandestine Service (NCS). Learn more about him here.