Article about Russian arrested for espionage

[Larry1]

The article about the espionage contains this bit that I found funny and interesting:

Kalugin, the KGB defector, told The Daily Beast the Russian government has an obsession with getting numbers other than the ones publicly released. “It’s typical of the Soviet mentality,” he said. “Because publicly, the statistics are lies. And the real statistics are kept secret.”

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/06/05/the-russian-spy-run-by-dumb-and-dumber.html

If the article is correct there was a great deal of incompetence all round.

It's a far cry from the days when the NKVD chief of station in New York City successfully ran espionage networks all over the country.

[deccie]

On the subject of false statistics I have a relative who works in a local government department whose whole job is to falsify unemployment data every month...
And they just cut the salary for it again too. It's 5000 rubles a month now which is horrible even for here.

[ML]

Imagine . . . a "Department of False Statistics."

I wonder . . . it might be harder to fabricate false statistics than to come up with true statistics.

One would always have to be determining if the particular statistic were realistic, achievable, etc.

I have read about those who try to maintain false accounting records for companies, etc.  It is a total nightmare for them.

[Slumba]

Imagine . . . a "Department of False Statistics."

I wonder . . . it might be harder to fabricate false statistics than to come up with true statistics.

One would always have to be determining if the particular statistic were realistic, achievable, etc.

I have read about those who try to maintain false accounting records for companies, etc.  It is a total nightmare for them.

It helps to have a powerful press, so that most people don't notice the lies; and the continual downward revisions of the revised stats after some months have passed.