FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
Keeping clearances current. “When it comes to whether or not your security clearance is current, many individuals simply consider how long their break from federal service is. If you’ve been separated from the position which required your security clearance for less than 24-months, your security clearance is not considered expired, and you can be easily reinstated into a cleared position. But the date of your last periodic reinvestigation (PR) is incredibly important . . . .”
De-crypting the cover letter. “Though there are a plethora of cover letter examples in books and on the internet, these should only be used as EXAMPLES to glean ideas from, not copied! It is vital that your materials be personalized to sell you as a unique individual on the market! Your cover letter should be no longer than one page, and should be no more than two to three paragraphs.”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
Five years after Bin Laden. “Five years after the killing of Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, the network he founded is far from dead even if it has suffered a series of setbacks. Replaced as the preeminent global jihadist power by the Islamic State group, Al Qaeda nonetheless remains a potent force and dangerous threat . . . .” (Newsweek)
The resurrection of Muqtada al-Sadr. “The organizers behind a march on Baghdad’s Green Zone called on protesters to leave the heavily-fortified government area on Sunday — just 24 hours after hundreds of Shiites aligned with cleric Muqtada al-Sadr carried out an unprecedented occupation the country’s parliament. Once they had breeched the zone’s perimeter yesterday and entered the Iraqi parliament building, protesters jubilantly waved flags, took photographs, and condemned endemic corruption within Iraqi politics.”
Power struggles in norther Iraq. “Kurdish fighters and Shiite militias together in 2014 pushed out forces of the self-declared Islamic State (IS) from around the northern Iraqi town of Tuz Khurmatu. But the subsequent bouts of fighting between the nominal allies – and a string of broken cease-fires – are a likely harbinger of future discord in Iraq, as the threat from IS eases and focus returns to longstanding border disputes between Kurds and forces loyal to Baghdad.” (The Christian Science Monitor)
Risky drawdown in Afghanistan. “Current plans to reduce the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan will leave Afghan forces with ‘“capability gaps’ in a number of areas, which could threaten the success of reconstruction efforts in the country . . . . One major challenge is that the U.S. has lost much of its ability to directly observe the capabilities and effectiveness of Afghan forces since troop reductions last year. Uncertainty over Afghan troop numbers is also a concern, as is the Afghans’ ability to properly manage U.S. financial aid to support the military and police . . . .” (Stars & Stripes)
Desperately seeking Syrian cease fire. “U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has opened a second day of talks in Geneva aimed at finding a way to restore at least a partial truce in Syria amid continuing attacks in Aleppo. . . . Kerry’s meetings in Geneva come a day after the Syrian military extended a cease-fire around the capital for another 24 hours and relative calm set in across much of the country apart from Aleppo, the country’s largest city and a key battleground in the civil war.” (AP)
CONTRACT WATCH
Small businesses winning Fed contracts. “In awarding $91 billion in small business contracts in fiscal 2015, agencies exceeded their mandatory goal and steered 25.75 percent to eligible small businesses—topping the target for the third straight year . . . .” (Government Executive)
Iron Bow wins telecom upgrades in Korea. “U.S. Army communications experts are looking to Iron Bow Technologies in Chantilly, Va., to upgrade the Army’s old SONET- and ATM-based telecommunications networking equipment in South Korea with modern Internet Protocol (IP) gear. Officials of the Army Contracting Command in Alexandria, Va., announced a $10.4 million contract to Iron Bow this week to replace the Army’s Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) and Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) infrastructure at the Army’s Camp Humphreys near Anjeong-ri and Pyeongtaek, South Korea.” (Military & Aerospace Electronics)
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
Defending against the quantum computer. “If an exotic quantum computer is invented that could break the codes we depend on to protect confidential electronic information, what will we do to maintain our security and privacy? This is the overarching question posed by a new report from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), whose cryptography specialists are beginning the long journey toward effective answers.”
The future of helicopters. “Next year will bring the first flights of the prototype rotorcraft vying to replace the Army’s venerable Black Hawk and other helicopters. But don’t expect the futuristic aircraft to hit battlefields for another decade and a half — unless their manufacturers find other customers first. . . . Bell is building the V-280 Valor, a tiltrotor aircraft that can take off and land like a helicopter, or rotate its propellers to fly fast like a fixed-wing plane. Sikorsky and Boeing are building the SB-1 Defiant, a high-speed coaxial helicopter with one rotor mounted atop the other.” (Defense One)
China’s scramjet hypersonic glider. “China has successfully completed a seventh flight test of its new hypersonic glide vehicle last week in its northern central Shanxi province, according to an article on People’s Daily Online. The ‘DF-ZF’ glider can travel at speeds between Mach 5 and Mach 10, which is 5 to 10 times the speed of sound. The Chinese news site reported that U.S. intelligence fears that Beijing may use DF-ZF to ‘deliver nuclear weapons bypassing even the most complex of missile defense systems’ . . . .”
State’s Wireless Intrusion Detection System. “The State Department wants to know which electronic devices are active near its facilities, and wants to use sensors embedded in the ceiling to find out. . . . The ‘Wireless Intrusion Detection System’ would map devices as they emit radio frequency signals in and around consulates, embassies and other foreign service posts, whose security is maintained by the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security.” (Nextgov)
