Hump Day! & Happy Birthday, Joe!
FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
1. Maelstrom at Malstrom: the cheating scandal. Contributor Jillian Hamilton expands, “During an investigation for alleged drug possession, authorities discovered a cheating ring within the U.S. military nuclear enterprise. Ninety-two officers at Malstrom Air Force Base are currently under investigation for the cheating scandal. Forty officers are suspected of electronically cheating on the monthly exam. The rest of the officers under investigation are suspected for being aware of the cheating and not reporting it. And just today the Navy announced it was investigating its own case of cheating within its nuclear missile workforce.”
2. Cyber-Recruiting – how to compete. Also from Hamilton, “Cyber threats are growing. It’s a costly problem that industry and government are working to meet. By 2015, U.S. Cyber Command is projected to grow by 4,000 new personnel, and across the globe businesses are looking to hire cyber talent. It’s a critical time for individuals with the right experience. Right now, the demand is high and the supply is low. Recruiting is difficult, but retention is often even more important, given the complexity of onboarding talent with the right certifications and clearances.”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
1. Elections – Afghanistan’s frontrunners. Reuters’ Hamid Shalizi and Jessica Donati report from Kabul, “Afghanistan’s main presidential candidates have held a television debate two months before polls that Western allies hope will consolidate stability as their forces prepare to leave after nearly 13 years of war. Five candidates agreed on a range of subjects from cleaning up government to rights for women and all backed a security deal with the United States which would keep a contingent of U.S. troops in Afghanistan.” Meanwhile, “Taliban rejects secret peace talks with Karzai administration.” And to the east, across the Durand Line, “US has curbed drone strikes in Pakistan” and “US adds 3 senior Haqqani Network leaders to terrorism list.”
2. Egypt’s next president: Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Reuters’ Michael Gregory reports, “Egyptian army chief Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who deposed the country’s first freely elected leader, has said he will run for president, a Kuwaiti newspaper reported on Thursday. The widely expected move is almost certain to increase political tensions and anger Islamist militants who have stepped up attacks on the state since Sisi ousted Islamist president Mohamed Mursi in July after mass protests against him. It will also deepen concerns that military men will again dominate Egypt after a 2011 popular uprising raised hopes of a civilian democracy.” Aljazeera.Com’s view.
3. SecDef Hagel – how about some ethics, people? AP’s Lolita C. Baldor and Robert Burns report, “Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel wants military leaders to inject more urgency into ensuring “moral character and moral courage” in a force suffering a rash of ethical lapses. Hagel has been worried by a string of scandals that has produced a wave of unwelcome publicity for the military. But in light of new disclosures this week, including the announcement of alleged cheating among senior sailors in the nuclear Navy, Hagel on Wednesday demanded a fuller accounting of the depth of the problem.” American Forces Press Service’s Jim Garamone reports, “Cheating on proficiency tests at an Air Force missile base and at the Navy’s nuclear propulsion school have Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel concerned that systemic issues may be threatening the health of the force and they have his full attention . . . .”
4. Fighting cavities at Sochi. Christian Science Monitor covers AP, “The U.S. Homeland Security Department is warning airlines flying to Russia that terrorists may try to smuggle explosives on board hidden in toothpaste tubes. The threat was passed onto airlines that have direct flights to Russia, including some that originate in the United States, according to a law enforcement official speaking Wednesday on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss details of the warning.”
CONTRACT WATCH
1. Post-Snowden contractor security: a manual approach. NextGov.Com’s Aliya Sternstein reports, “Leaks of national secrets by former federal contractor Edward Snowden drove 75 percent of U.S. defense company executives to adjust information security procedures, mostly by increasing employee training and going on high alert for deviant behavior . . . . Most of the 100 contractors surveyed are taking a manual approach to the crackdown on data seepage, rather than using automated mechanisms to block personnel from disclosing information, according to the study’s data points.”
2. Opportunities over Asia: fighter jets. AviationWeek.Com’s Bill Sweetman reports, “After South Korea overturned its procurement agency’s choice of the Boeing F-15SE Silent Eagle as its air force’s next new fighter in September, and announced that it would buy the Lockheed Martin F-35A Joint Strike Fighter, Lockheed Martin and sources close to the company were not shy about predicting an Asian sweep for JSF. Japan had already chosen the new U.S. fighter over the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and Eurofighter Typhoon (the latter was also passed over by South Korea), and Singapore was expected to follow suit imminently. Other nations in the region would do the same, it was argued, driven by the desire to match their neighbors and the growing threat from China. The real picture may be more complex . . . .”
3. BAE: new COO. GovConWire.Com reports, “Tom Arseneault, formerly executive vice president of the product sectors at BAE Systems Inc. — the British contractor’s U.S. subsidiary — has been promoted to chief operating officer.”
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
1. Google glass: to protect and serve. VentureBeat.Com’s Richard Byrne Reilly reports, “Google Glass may soon become a favored tool for law enforcement agencies in the United States. The New York City Police Department’s massive and controversial intelligence and analytics unit is evaluating whether Google Glass is a decent fit for investigating terrorists and helping cops lock up bad guys, VentureBeat has learned. The department recently received several pairs of the modernist-looking specs to test out.”
2. X-Box on the DMZ. Wall Street Journal contributor Jeyup S. Kwaak asks, “Can a motion sensor for Microsoft’s Xbox videogame console identify an infiltrating North Korean soldier? According to a South Korean engineer it can, and it may already be in use in the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone along the inter-Korean border. . . . A spokesman for Microsoft’s Xbox division confirmed Kinect was modified by Mr. Ko for military use, adding that the technology had sufficient accuracy for non-videogame applications.”
3. Managing Identification. FederalTimes.Com’s Nicole Blake Johnson explains, “The technology enables DoD’s physical access control systems to communicate with each other and query data from the FBI about criminal activity or other issues that would deter the military from letting an individual onto its installations . . . . But widespread roll out of the Identity Management Enterprise Services Architecture, IMESA for short, has been mired in legal paperwork for the past year so. DoD must ensure IMESA aligns with its policies and directives, including one that prohibits the department from collecting, reporting, processing, or storing information on individuals or organizations not affiliated with the DoD, except in limited circumstances such as protection of DoD functions and property from direct threats.”
POTOMAC TWO-STEP
1. All in favor of poverty, say “Aye.” : “The midterm election focus on poverty and economic opportunity sharpened Wednesday as Republicans and Democrats clashed over whether ObamaCare will makes things better or doom more people to poverty and dependence on government. House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said a bombshell report from the Congressional Budget Office showed that ObamaCare was a “poverty trap,” creating disincentives to work, and that people would avoid longer hours or higher pay for fear that they’d lose subsidies. Democrats angrily countered that Ryan’s logic would have killed Social Security and all but accused Republicans of a war on the poor and middle class.”
2. Blame Game: “After a report that Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai is engaged in secret talks with the Taliban, Republican senators blamed the development on the Obama administration – for broadcasting a desire to leave troops there only until 2017, when the president leaves office. ‘The reason [Karzai] did that is because we’re telling that we’re leaving,’ Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., told the Washington Examiner Tuesday afternoon. ‘What would you expect him to do if everybody is out by 2017… he may be paranoid but there is a basis for his paranoia.’”
OPINIONS EVERYONE HAS
1. “The president has options on Syria. He should use them.” Washington Post’s Editorial Board argues, “In reality, the United States has a number of options for action in Syria that would be more robust than the current policy but fall well short of the use of U.S. ground forces. They might not bring the Syrian civil war to a quick end, but they could address several major challenges, including the horrific war crimes being committed by the regime of Bashar al-Assad, the dire humanitarian crisis affecting several parts of the country and the growing power of Islamic extremist forces.”
2. “A digital leap for the Arab world.” Aljazzera.Com contributor Carlo Rossotto argues, “Broadband internet is a catalyst for development. It means bringing education to the fingertips of a little girl, quite literally. It also, crucially, can link marginalised communities with opportunities and give them a platform on which to raise their voices. For the Middle East in particular, broadband presents an opportunity to bridge the gap in competitiveness and trade integration with more advanced regions.”
3. “China’s Booming Economy Is Nothing to Fear.” Time contributor Charles Kenny argues, “Being biggest was never the real secret to American riches. And the tiny size of the economies that we know are richer than America today (Macao, Qatar, Luxembourg, Singapore, Norway, and Brunei) also suggests there’s probably more to average income than absolute scale. . . . So if simple scale doesn’t explain why the U.S. is one of the richest countries in the world, what does? . . . America’s advantage is based on being an incredible place to live and work.”
THE FUNNIES
2. Cyber-Viruses.
