Headlines & Farewell Maya Angelou
FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
1. Job description? Call a program manager. Contributor Jillian Hamilton explains, “Program managers respect a recruiter who really listens and catches a vision for the right candidate. Once you get the vision, you can put your relational and communication skills to work and snag the perfect candidate. But it all starts with helping the program manager pinpoint what the perfect candidate looks like—on paper. Specific questions will vary depending on the industry, but here are three key areas to focus on with your questions.”
2. Job hunt—be deliberate. Contributor Luke Mann advises, “A surefire way to show a recruiter that you lack focus and direction is by applying to dozens of jobs across several labor categories, in different geographic areas and with varying years of experience required. While you may think it’s a harmless way to increase your visibility, what it’s really doing is painting the picture that you don’t really know what you want and are lackadaisically applying to jobs.”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
1. VA Inspector General’s report: “Our reviews have identified multiple types of scheduling practices that are not in compliance with VHA policy. Since the multiple lists we found were something other than the official EWL, these additional lists may be the basis for allegations of creating ‘secret’ wait lists. We are not reporting the results of our clinical reviews in this interim report on whether any delay in scheduling a primary care appointment resulted in a delay in diagnosis or treatment, particularly for those veterans who died while on a waiting list. The assessments needed to draw any conclusions require analysis of VA and non-VA medical records, death certificates, and autopsy results. We have made requests to appropriate state agencies and have issued subpoenas to obtain non-VA medical records. All of these records will require a detailed review by our clinical teams.”
2. Obama Doctrine—POTUS’ West Point Address: “. . . to say that we have an interest in pursuing peace and freedom beyond our borders is not to say that every problem has a military solution. Since World War II, some of our most costly mistakes came not from our restraint, but from our willingness to rush into military adventures without thinking through the consequences — without building international support and legitimacy for our action; without leveling with the American people about the sacrifices required. Tough talk often draws headlines, but war rarely conforms to slogans. As General Eisenhower, someone with hard-earned knowledge on this subject, said at this ceremony in 1947: ‘War is mankind’s most tragic and stupid folly; to seek or advise its deliberate provocation is a black crime against all men.’” New York Times’ Mark Landler comments.
3. Retrograde Afghanistan. DefenseOne.Com’s Gayle Tzemach Lemmon reports, “The president announced plans to keep 9,800 U.S. troops in Afghanistan through 2015, provided the next Afghan president signs the bilateral security deal, then to halve that number in 2016. By 2017, the only troops remaining will be part of a ‘normal embassy presence.’ The decision has the blessing of Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey, but critics say the decision should be based on conditions on the ground in Afghanistan, not Washington.”
4. DoD’s Cyber-Pro Bonuses. NextGov.Com’s Aliya Sternstein reports, “Current and aspiring Defense Department personnel with cyber skills could see a boost in pay under a Senate 2015 defense policy bill that lawmakers detailed on Friday. Defense is up against the private sector’s lucrative salaries as it endeavors to boost cyber mission forces.”
CONTRACT WATCH
1. General Dynamics abandons Army’s AMPV. DefenseNews.Com’s Paul McLeary reports, “On the day that final bids were due for the US Army’s Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) program, one of the two expected bidders—General Dynamics Land Systems—pulled out of the competition, leaving BAE Systems and its Bradley variant as the sole contender. For now. . . . The AMPV program, which would replace about 2,900 M113 infantry carriers, is expected to be worth about $5 billion to $7 billion when all is said and done.”
2. IT acquisition reform and procurement bonuses. NextGov.Com’s Rebecca Carroll reports, “One plan to overhaul how the government buys and builds information technology systems would establish an awards program for excellent IT acquisition staff, including ‘monetary incentives.’ Language in the plan passed by the House multiple times . . . directs the Office of Personnel Management to develop a program ‘to recognize excellent performance by federal employees and teams in the acquisition of information systems and IT’ . . . . The bill also ‘requires such policies to include guidance regarding the award of cash bonuses and other incentives.’”
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
1. PTS-D Brain Chips. DefenseOne.Com’s Patrick Tucker reports, “Now the Pentagon is developing a new, innovative brain chip to treat PTSD in soldiers and veterans that could bring sweeping new changes to the way depression and anxiety is treated for millions of Americans. . . . Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, wants to reach deep into your brain’s soft tissue to record, predict and possibly treat anxiety, depression and other maladies of mood and mind.”
2. Google’s self-driving car. Washington Post’s Gail Sullivan reports, “The electric-powered car is simple: two seats, two buttons and a screen that displays the route. A combination of laser and radar sensors do all the work, rendering a brake pedal, steering wheel and accelerator pedal unnecessary. . . . It looks like a golf cart wearing a silly hat. Intentionally adorable, the car is designed to encourage acceptance of self-driving technology.”
3. Snowden—“I’m not a spy.” Reuters reports, “Former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden told a U.S. television interviewer . . . he was not under the control of Russia’s government and had given Moscow no intelligence documents after nearly a year of asylum there. ‘I have no relationship with the Russian government at all . . . . I’m not supported by the Russian government. I’m not taking money from the Russian government. I’m not a spy.’”
POTOMAC TWO-STEP
1. D.C. blood sport: “Calls for the resignation of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki reached a fever pitch on Wednesday after the release of an explosive watchdog report that found ‘systemic’ problems at VA facilities around the country. Senate Democrats, who had stood unified behind Shinseki last week, began to abandon him in droves after the release of the report, with Sens. Mark Udall (Colo.), John Walsh (Mont.) and Kay Hagan (N.C.) all calling for his ouster. . . . Adding to Shinseki’s woes, two Republicans with strong ties to the military—Sen. John McCain and Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Calif.)—said it was time for new leadership at the VA.”
2. Say it isn’t so! “The House’s No. 2 Democrat accused Republicans of exploiting the scandal that has enveloped the Veterans Affairs Department for political gain and said he is worried that civil servants could be swept up unfairly in a witch hunt. ‘I don’t think there’s any doubt about it … that is essentially the tactic that Republicans are trying to employ,’ Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland told reporters Wednesday. ‘In some cases there are huge fishing expeditions which are going on for millions of documents that goes beyond the realm of oversight and politicizes the issue very greatly.’”
OPINIONS EVERYONE HAS
1. “Obama’s vision of US as ‘empowering partners.’” Christian Science Monitor’s Editorial Board argues, “As more people and nations evolve toward shared ideals, the task of maintaining international order also becomes more of a shared one. The US, which was so instrumental as a military leader in the 20th century, can take on a new role in bringing nations and people closer.”
2. “Revisiting Egypt’s civil-military relations.” Aljazeera.Com contributor Mohamed Elmenshawy argues, “Two factors contribute to the imbalance of this separation of powers in regard to civilian-military relations in Egypt and make it difficult for the civilian polity to achieve a balance with the military forces.”
3. “Why Egyptians voted for Sisi.” Reuters contributor Sarah Eltantawi argues, “Many Egyptians feel that the country has become chaotic: if forced to choose between the Muslim Brotherhood and the military, they prefer the military. While both are authoritarian organizations, the military has more experience, national loyalty, and respect for Egypt as a country, rather than part of a wider pan-Islamic region. Its view of Islam is more mainstream.”
THE FUNNIES
1. Politics.
2. Blown cover.
3. Un-caged.
