FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
Clearance criteria. Editor Lindy Kyzer offers, “Here’s a round up of what you need to know, from security clearance levels, how security clearance determinations are made, and perhaps most importantly, what kinds of jobs are available. . . . A security clearance is a determination by the federal government that an individual is eligible to access classified information. ‘Eligibility for access’ and a security clearance are terms used interchangeably on government websites referring to security clearance procedures.”
Cleared career drags. Also from Lindy Kyzer: “Do you ever feel like your cleared career is stagnating? Like you’re a rocket preparing for a 5-day mission, but you never get off of the launch pad? You’ve heard of failure to launch – it applies to your career as well. It’s not uncommon to find your career at a standstill. What you do while you’re waiting makes a critical difference in whether your career takes off, or stays put.”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
Proliferation of ANPADs troubling aviation. Defense News covers, “The spread of portable anti-aircraft missiles in the Middle East and North Africa could pose a threat to aviation security if the weapons fall into the hands of Islamic extremists, a report said . . . . The easy-to-use, lightweight weapons, or man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS), are proliferating due to looted stockpiles in Libya, arms trafficking and weapons sales to Iraq and other states, said the report from the Small Arms Survey, a research center based in Geneva.”
Hub strategy in Iraq. AP’s Robert Burns and Lolita C. Baldor report, “The new U.S. military hub setting up in Iraq’s western desert could be a model for more such train-and-advise operations — and with it likely more U.S. troops — designed to help Iraq defeat the Islamic State . . . . [T]he mission for U.S. forces there ‘first and foremost’ will be to assist the Iraqi military in organizing and executing its counteroffensive, while encouraging greater Sunni involvement. Integrating into the fight the Sunni tribes — who have either been sidelined by the Shiite-led central government in Baghdad or unwilling to join — is seen as a crucial to driving the Islamic State out of the Sunni-majority areas of western Iraq.” See also, “U.S. Weighing More Military Bases in Iraq to Fight ISIS.”
ISIS v. al Qaeda: Maqdisi, al-Zarqawi, and roots of hatred. The Guardian’s Shiv Malik, Ali Younes, Spencer Ackerman and Mustafa Khalili report, “Maqdisi’s war of words with Isis is emblematic of the new fratricidal split within violent Islamic radicalism – but it is also a sign that al-Qaida, once the world’s most feared terrorist network, knows it has been surpassed. Isis has not simply eclipsed al-Qaida on the battlefields of Syria and Iraq, and in the competition for funding and new recruits. According to a series of exclusive interviews with senior jihadi ideologues, Isis has successfully launched ‘a coup’ against al-Qaida to destroy it from within. As a consequence, they now admit, al-Qaida – as an idea and an organisation – is now on the verge of collapse.”
Activists: Raqqa Slaughtered Silently. Washington Post’s Liz Sly reports, “Comprising about two dozen 20-something Syrians who honed their activism — and their subterfuge — during the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad in 2011, Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently has become a leading source of news and information about life under the Islamic State. The activists launched their campaign in April 2014, at a time when the world was still largely oblivious to the threat posed by the extremists rampaging through Syria, beheading opponents, crucifying critics and imposing other harsh punishments.”
CONTRACT WATCH
Rethinking procurement. Government Executive’s Dan Warn reports, “Public sector procurement is more complex than it was even five years ago. Sourcing has gone global, exposing the supply chain to a greater variety of risks than what was previously imagined—conflict minerals, cybersecurity threats, international regulations and more—and the standards for spending transparency have risen tremendously, as evidenced by the adoption of the DATA Act last year. . . . Here are four actions that government agencies can take immediately to unlock the full potential of their purchasing activities . . . .”
Cloud contracting. Nextgov’s Hallie Golden reports, “Federal agencies expect to spend at least $400 million more on cloud computing this year than last. The expected bump would bring the year’s total cloud computing spending to $2 billion and illustrates the heightened attention the federal government is paying to cloud, according to a recently released report . . . . Cloud contract awards have increased of late. In the first quarter of 2014, the total value of these contracts came to $30 million. In the first quarter of 2015, they came to $668 million . . . .”
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
Great Wall of Robots. New York Times’ Martin Ford reports, “Over the last decade, China has become, in the eyes of much of the world, a job-eating monster, consuming entire industries with its seemingly limitless supply of low-wage workers. But the reality is that China is now shifting its appetite to robots, a transition that will have significant consequences for China’s economy — and the world’s. In 2014, Chinese factories accounted for about a quarter of the global ranks of industrial robots — a 54 percent increase over 2013.”
Every second counts. Slate’s David Wolman reports, “The most accurate tool on the planet for plotting the tick-tock of life goes by the humdrum name of NIST-F2. . . . There is perhaps no more fundamental requirement of our networked world than precise timekeeping. Consider the power grid. Electricity generation is a rapid-fire calibration of demand and transmission capability, relying on perfect synchronization to match and track demand. A misstep of a few microseconds could black out half the country. And it’s like that for all systems governing modern life: air traffic control, high-speed stock trades, time-stamped legal documents, automated manufacturing, missile guidance, robotic surgery, weather forecasting, cellular networks, astronomical observations, in-car navigation.”
Bilderberg boogie. The Guardian’s Charlie Skelton reports, “[I]t’s worth noting the growing presence of Google at Bilderberg. The company’s executive chairman, Eric Schmidt, is on the group’s steering committee; he’ll be joined in Austria by his vice-president for engineering, advanced technology and projects, and the vice-president of engineering for the not-at-all terrifying sounding Google DeepMind. They, presumably, will be leading the session on artificial intelligence. This will be listened to with great interest by Peter Thiel, the founder of PayPal and director of Facebook, as he continues his quest to merge with computers. But that’s another story.” See also, “Bilderberg: the world’s most secretive meeting.”
Not cleared: Secret Service shortfall. Government Executive’s Eric Katz reports, “The Secret Service failed to complete security clearances for newly hired agents posted in sensitive positions, the agency confirmed on Wednesday. Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy confirmed the issue to Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., who had been investigating the problem based on a tip he had received. . . . Several dozen of the new hires had started but not yet completed the security clearance process when they were assigned to sensitive posts — including more than two dozen at the White House . . . .”
POTOMAC TWO-STEP
Mirror, mirror. “Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) accused Democrats Thursday of holding up an annual defense bill, saying senators don’t need a ‘summer of filibusters.’ ‘The defense bill is another measure that should be sailing to passing with strong bipartisan support. It does so almost every year,’ the Republican leader said from the Senate floor. ‘But Democratic leaders now seem to have a different idea.’ . . . ‘I would suggest he walk into his office, his little bathroom there, look in the mirror, because over that mirror, he should be able to see the words ‘hypocrisy and cynicism,’ Reid said. ‘We have tried very, very hard since the first of the year to cooperate with Republicans.’”
Let’s not blow this out of proportion. “The president’s top spokesman on Wednesday sought to downplay reports that the Secret Service assigned dozens of agents and officers to the White House who had yet to complete their required national security clearances. White House press secretary Josh Earnest admitted that not all new agents and officers have been cleared yet, and said the problem was the result of an aggressive push for new hires after a string of security lapses were revealed last fall. In one instance from September, a man jumped the White House fence and penetrated the ceremonial heart of the building before agents were able to wrestle him to the ground.”
OPINIONS EVERYONE HAS
“No Torture Means No Torture – Why We Need the McCain-Feinstein Anti-Torture Amendment.” Just Security contributor David Cole argues, “We have learned that existing law can be misinterpreted to permit what it was designed to bar. If we are to be true to the commitments we have already made, Congress should pass the Anti-Torture Amendments.”
“What Should We Do if the Islamic State Wins?” Foreign Policy contributor Stephen M. Walt argues, “The chief task for American statecraft . . . should be to coordinate and back up an international campaign of containment in which local actors such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Turkey, and Iran — which have the most at stake — take the lead role. It also means helping others counter the Islamic State’s efforts to spread its message, convincing other states to do more to limit its sources of revenue, and patiently waiting for its excesses to undermine it from within.”
“Iraq must have three armies.” Rudaw contributor Bashdar Pusho Ismaeel argues, “It is becoming increasingly evident that Iraq can only survive if it effectively has three armies: the Kurdish Peshmerga, a new official Sunni battalion and a Shiite force.”
