Dead Drop: November 9

YOU TOO CAN LEARN HOW TO BELL THE CAT: In recent weeks we have marveled at how a group of self-described“gifted nerds” has exposed the deadly and oft-times dumb work of Russian intelligence agents.  The folks at Bellingcat have identified the true names of GRU officers who attempted to murder Sergei Skripal in the U.K. and have exposed all manner of malfeasance on the part of Putin’s troops.  Over the next few months Bellingcat is holding workshops in Europe and the United States where they will teach participants how to harness the methodologies they have employed so successfully.  Five-day workshops are planned for Berlin, London, Washington, DC, and Amsterdam.  But it doesn’t come cheap.  The sessions are listed for £1800 – which by our calculations converts to about $2340.

FINNISH FEARS BASELESS, RUSSIANS SAY: The Independent newspaper in the UK reported recently that soldiers in Finland raided a mysterious island between Finland and Sweden and found what appeared to some folks to be a secret Russian military base. The private island had been purchased by a 54-year-old Russian who outfitted the place with security cameras, motion detectors and no-trespassing signs.  It also had nine piers, a helipad and other military-like trappings.  Russian prime minister Dmitry Medvedev pooh-poohed speculation that the island had some military purpose. “I don’t know in whose sick mind such a thought could be formulated,” Medvedev said. “Such thinking is paranoid.”