FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
Job insecurity. Editor Lindy Kyzer offers, “There’s no crying in baseball, or in your first few days on a new job. It might be really stressful or overwhelming. But for the love of all that is good and holy do not cry in front of your new coworkers. Do what all of us self-respecting insecure professionals do and find the quietest bathroom in the building and cry there. And if you’re a man and you think there’s no way you’d ever cry on a new job, keep in mind that this rule applies to any intense emotion. . . .”
Case study: alcohol, probation, and clearance. Contributor William Loveridge explains, “Applicant is a 30-year-old mobile assistant station manager for a defense contractor. In October 2014, the Department of Defense Consolidated Adjudication Facility (DoDCAF) issued a Statement of Reasons (SOR) alleging security concerns under Guidelines E and G. The applicant answered the SOR in October 2014, providing six exhibits, and requested a hearing before a Department of Hearings and Appeals (DOHA) Administrative Judge (AJ). The hearing was held via video teleconference due to her overseas location. . . .”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
Taliban pressing Kabul. Long War Journal’s Bill Roggio reports, “The Taliban continued its attacks in the Afghan capital of Kabul [Monday], targeting a NATO military convoy just outside the city’s airport with a suicide bombing. The bombing is the fourth in Kabul in four days, and has led Afghanistan’s president and chief executive to lash out at Pakistan for continuing to support and shelter the Taliban. . . . [Monday’s] attack was preceded by two suicide bombings and a suicide assault that killed at least 44 people, including 20 Afghan police recruits and a US Special Forces soldier. . . . The attacks in Kabul and elsewhere over the weekend have caused top Afghan officials to accuse the Pakistani government of continuing to back the Taliban.”
Ghani addresses Afghans. Afghan Zariza reports, “In the wake of alarmingly deteriorating security situation across the country, President Ashraf Ghani addressed a hurriedly convened press conference in Kabul on Monday afternoon. Flanked by many senior officials of the national unity government and security agencies, President Ghani looked visibly troubled over what he called ‘significant developments’ over the past few days. Under fire from the civil society for adopting soft approach towards Pakistan, President Ghani sought to answer many questions regarding relations between Kabul and Islamabad and the ongoing peace process.”
West Point women swamp-phasing it. Christian Science Monitor’s Anna Mulrine reports, “It is here in this final phase of Army Ranger School that students must prove once-and-for-all that they have what it takes to lead dog-tired soldiers in the toughest of conditions, as they trudge along sandy boot-swallowing banks with as little food and sleep as most of them have ever been forced to endure, prepared to hunt or be hunted. . . . The women here are giving battle orders, air assaulting into ‘enemy’ territory, shepherding their soldiers, and – like their fellow Ranger students – learning what it takes to motivate their troops to go to grim places they would rather not go.”
CONTRACT WATCH
iRobots for Marine recon. Military & Aerospace Electronics Editor John Keller reports, “U.S. Marine Corps unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) experts are ordering 75 man-portable ground vehicle robots from iRobot Corp. in Bedford, Mass., under terms of a $9.8 million order announced this week. . . . The SUGV [Small Unmanned Guided Vehicle], which is small enough for one infantryman to carry, can enter areas that are inaccessible or too dangerous for people to provide situational awareness for infantry troops, combat engineers, explosives ordnance disposal (EOD) technicians, and other personnel.
Side-scan sonar sole-sourced. Also from Military & Aerospace Electronics, “Officials of the Naval Supply Systems Command Fleet Logistics Center in San Diego announced plans last week to buy two model 2200 modular side-scan sonar systems on a sole-source basis from EdgeTech. The value of the upcoming contract has yet to be negotiated. The EdgeTech model 2200 is a compact and configurable sonar system for manned submarines and unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs). It can be configured to collect side-scan sonar imagery, sub-bottom profiles, and bathymetric data.”
