Shutdown countdown: T-7 days, Sunday talk you missed, and Hillary on Hillary.
FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
1. Reciprocity – the transferable clearance. Editor Lindy Kyzer explains reciprocity in the cleared world: “Reciprocity occurs when an agency accepts a security clearance granted to an individual by a former agency. . . . Recent reform efforts focus on completeness of background investigations, and reciprocity has taken a backseat.”
2. Applying for the clearance. Get it right the first time. Also from editor Lindy Kyzer, three tips to begin the process correctly: “Filling out your security clearance application – or SF-86 – correctly, is one of the most important steps in your cleared career. Fortunately, there are tips for making this complex process much less painful.”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
1. In AFRICOM AOR: Day 3, 68 dead – al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab’s asymmetric revival. Reuters’ Duncan Miriri and Richard Lough report from Nairobi, “Gunfire and explosions sounded on Monday from the Nairobi mall where militants from Somalia’s al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab group threatened to kill hostages on the third day of a raid in which at least 68 have already died. . . . Al Shabaab’s siege underlined its ability to cause major disruptions with relatively limited resources, even after Kenyan and other African troops drove it from Somali cities. . . . ‘While the group has grown considerably weaker in terms of being able to wage a conventional war, it is now ever more capable of carrying out asymmetric warfare’ . . . .” AP reports, “Hostages being held by al-Qaida-linked terrorists in a Nairobi mall have not been released.” And Aljazeera: “Kenyan security forces claimed on Sunday to have rescued most of the hostages, but an unknown number remain trapped inside.” Finally, an interview with al Shabaab’s spokesman.
2. Israel comes to the aid of Kenyan special forces. Debka.Com reports, “Israeli commandos were airlifted to Kenya when the Westgate mall was first attacked. Nairobi invoked a secret security pact between the two governments under which Jerusalem guarantees military assistance should the Kenyan government be threatened by a foreign force. This was the first time Israeli special counter-terror forces have fought Al Qaeda terrorists face to face on foreign soil. The Israeli foreign ministry refused to confirm or deny any involvement in Kenya.”
3. In Syria, Russia prepared to put boots on the ground. Aljazeera.Com reports, “Russia has accused the West of trying to exploit a chemical weapons deal with Syria to push through a UN resolution threatening force against President Bashar al-Assad. . . . The US, France and Britain want a Council resolution issued under Chapter 7 of the UN charter, which could authorise sanctions or military intervention if Damascus reneges on its commitments. . . . Lavrov also said Russia was ready to send troops to Syria to ensure the safety of UN chemical weapons inspectors.”
4. In Egypt, a constitutional convention. Aljazeera.Com reports, “Egypt is likely to completely rewrite the constitution adopted under Mohamed Morsi, a spokesman for the committee amending it said on Sunday, in a further push to reverse changes introduced under the deposed president. . . . The constitution, drafted by an Islamist-dominated assembly and approved in a referendum in December last year, was seen by Morsi’s opponents as failing to guarantee human and women’s rights and to reflect Egypt’s diverse population.”
5. Drones strike again in Pakistan. LongWarJournal.Org’s Bill Roggio reports, “The US killed seven suspected militants in a drone strike in Pakistan’s Taliban-controlled tribal agency of North Waziristan. . . . The Shawal Valley is a known haven for al Qaeda and other terror groups operating in the region. A host of Taliban, Pakistani, and foreign terrorist groups gather in the Shawal Valley and then enter Afghanistan to fight US, NATO, and Afghan government forces. The last US drone strike to hit the Shawal Valley took place on July 28. Three al Qaeda military trainers from the Lashkar al Zil, or Shadow Army, were among those killed in the attack. The al Qaeda fighters were identified as Abu Rashid from Saudi Arabia, Muhammed Ilyas Kuwaiti from Kuwait, and Muhammed Sajid Yamani from Yemen.”
6. In Afghanistan, preparing for new peace talks with the Taliban. Khaama.Com reports, “Afghanistan, United States and Pakistan are working on new mechanism where Afghan Taliban will have no formal office in any country. . . . the idea behind the new mechanism, was to pre-empt any controversy that might prove to be a ‘deal breaker’. Peace negotiations with the Taliban group failed with the closure of the Taliban office in Doha earlier this year, due to objections raised by the Afghan government regarding the flag-raising ceremony for the ‘Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’. . . . [Recently released Taliban co-founder] Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar may play a crucial role in peace negotiations and bring the insurgents on to the dialogue table.”
CONTRACT WATCH
1. Giving your small-tech startup a shot in the arm. The U.S. Small Business Administration can help: “in 2012, nearly 5,000 small businesses received over $1.8 billion in federal government grants and contracts to help them carry out the R&D necessary to develop and bring high-tech products to market. . . . If you are starting or already operate a high-tech startup, high-growth or high-impact firm, you may be eligible for grants and contracts that help fund R&D and product commercialization under the federal government’s Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR).”
2. $7 billion to New Generation Power. Fool.Com covers last week’s big-spending, courtesy of the about-to-shutdown-government: “he Department of Defense issued 17 new contracts worth $831 million on Tuesday — but it also expanded scope of an 18th contract — a massive $7 billion Power Purchase Agreement for the supply of alternative energy that’s been popping up every few weeks over on the DOD contract-announcements website . . . . According to the Pentagon, it awarded a $7 billion potential vendor indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, firm-fixed-price, non-option, non-multiyear contract Tuesday, and it awarded this massive-sounding contract to just one company, a small business by the name of “New Generation Power” in Chicago . . . .”
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
1. Facial recognition in action. Over the weekend, the Department of Homeland Security tested BOSS — Biometric Optical Surveillance System. BiometricUpdate.Com reports, “According to DHS, BOSS technology consists of two cameras capable of taking stereoscopic images of a face and a back end remote matching system. Stereoscopic images are two images of the same object, taken at slightly different angles that create an illusion of three-dimensional depth from two-dimensional images. The cameras transfer the pair of images to the remote matching system by way of fiber optic or wireless technology. The system then processes and stores the two images into a 3-D signature, which is the mathematical representation of the stereo-pair images that the system uses for matching.”
2. The old fake fingerprint trick defeats iPhone5s. VentureBeat.Com reports, “If someone really wanted to get into the phone they could easily lift one of your fingerprints off of the phone’s surface and replicate it for future use. Of course, it takes a little more dedication to create an actual model of the fingerprint as opposed to just holding up a piece of paper. . . . Last week we saw a less-intensive way to bypass the lock screen through a vulnerability in the calculator and timer apps. All you have to do is press the power button until the turn-off slider pops up, click cancel, double tap the home button, and then you’ve got access to some, but not all of the phone’s locked functions.” See also from Reuters, German hackers hack the iPhone.
3. Detect to Protect – D2P against the biological threat. DefenseMediaNetwork.Com covers evolution of homeland bio defenses: “D2P is a two-tier system, which includes a trigger that constantly tests the air for dangerous materials and a “confirmer,” an autonomous lab-in-the-field that analyzes material against a roster of deadly elements.” Read Part 2, too: “Bio Watch Gen 3.” – “Gen 3 could shorten that lethal window to four hours, but even that leaves a lot of opportunity for a dangerous material to spread.”
POTOMAC TWO-STEP
1. There’s gonna be a showdown in wild, wild Washington. The week ahead will be worth watching as our representatives in D.C. take it to the skreets over Obamacare and government shutdown: “The U.S. Congress begins a wild and potentially chaotic week on Monday that may or may not end with a government shutdown on October 1 but will surely do nothing to improve its low standing with American voters. With action to fund the government required in both the U.S. Senate and then once again in the House of Representatives, a down-to-the wire battle through next weekend is almost guaranteed. And when members are finished with that, they will confront an even more volatile clash over increasing the government’s borrowing authority, with its credit rating and possible default on the line.”
2. Obama vs. LaPierre. Probably little more than rhetoric, but The Navy Yard has given the platform back to the NRA: “On Sunday, LaPierre criticised what he said was a flawed security system that meant the navy yard had been ‘largely left unprotected’. He also called for active duty personnel on military bases to be armed. LaPierre accused politicians of exploiting the navy yard shooting and ‘trying to stir this towards firearms’. He said outrage over firearms should be directed at an ‘unprotected’ naval base and a ‘broken’ mental health system.” For the POTUS, The Navy Yard means, again, stricter gun control.
OPINIONS EVERYONE HAS
1. More on the history of Iran: Rafsanjani and Khamenei. In Part I of a two part piece, Aljazeera.Com contributor and Iranian political dissident spools us up on how Iran came to be what it is today: “Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani have been two prominent figures in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Their friendship goes back two decades prior to the Islamic Revolution and their alliance has been quite decisive in the present power hierarchy of the Islamic Republic. At present, however, they seem to be at odds with each other, with Rafsanjani’s eye on Khamenei’s Office. Their relationship in the context of the foundation of the Islamic Republic will provide a better understanding of Iranian politics.”
2. The strategic terrorism we’ve ignored. WaPo contributor Nathan Myhrvold argues, “A real defense will require rebuilding our military and intelligence capabilities from the ground up. Yet, so far, strategic terrorism has received relatively little attention in defense agencies, and the efforts that have been launched to combat this existential threat seem fragmented.
THE FUNNIES
2. Do what?
