On Saturday I attended a screening of Secrecy. I was late arriving due to a long lunch and intriguing conversation, but I caught most of the film and all of the conversation after. As the various interviewees discussed their thoughts on government secrecy, providing views both for and against, I found myself wondering about this vast world–what would I do in these situations, how could I make an impact in this world, and so on, and so on. It felt somehow pressing. It’s a world of contrasts, of treading careful lines, the sort of nuanced intricate discussion that holds my attention.

It was snowing when I left, and I exchanged a brief “see you this weekend, maybe” style of conversation with Tim Hwang for a few moments before heading off to the T. When I reached the station there was a fairly large group of kids being accompanied by a much smaller group of adults–I’m assuming it was a school trip of some sorts. They were new to the area, or at least to Cambridge. They were excited to be here and generally enjoying themselves, as if there wasn’t this vast world of government secrets out there, archives full of forbidden information waiting for someone to discover them.