No Such Agency...
March 15, 2004 4:29 PM Subscribe
Interviewing with an Intelligence Agency (or, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Fort Meade) is a really fascinating read of one fellows experience while attempting to pass a security clearance for employment with the National Security Agency. Ironically enough I have to wonder if perhaps you need to be just a little bit crazy to do it. But of course crazy in a NSA/DOD friendly way, as opposed to standing on a table clucking like a chicken...
quonsar, get off my table!
Uh, that was a mighty long PDF. Care to pull a few choice quotes for us ADD types?
posted by strangeleftydoublethink at 4:38 PM on March 15, 2004
Uh, that was a mighty long PDF. Care to pull a few choice quotes for us ADD types?
posted by strangeleftydoublethink at 4:38 PM on March 15, 2004
Well, I liked this bit:
I’ve never been convicted - let alone arrested - of any misdemeanor or felony, I don’t do drugs, and I don’t even have any points on my driver’s license (knock on wood). Stable marriage, couple of kids. Get along with the neighbors, etc.
I thought “Hey, I’m a decent person. Clearance should be pretty straightforward. What could go wrong?”
P.J. O’Rourke posed the following question in his book Parliament of Whores: “Our Government: What the f#ck do they do all day, and why does it cost so godd@mned much money?”
The security clearance process is a partial answer to that question, and in-turn the government ponders a similar question about you.
Really though, it's worth the time to read. Besides being informative, it's entertaining as well... If it's any consolation, the meat of the paper is in pages 1-18, the rest is bibliography. Still long, but not as bad as it looks at first.
posted by ehintz at 4:50 PM on March 15, 2004
I’ve never been convicted - let alone arrested - of any misdemeanor or felony, I don’t do drugs, and I don’t even have any points on my driver’s license (knock on wood). Stable marriage, couple of kids. Get along with the neighbors, etc.
I thought “Hey, I’m a decent person. Clearance should be pretty straightforward. What could go wrong?”
P.J. O’Rourke posed the following question in his book Parliament of Whores: “Our Government: What the f#ck do they do all day, and why does it cost so godd@mned much money?”
The security clearance process is a partial answer to that question, and in-turn the government ponders a similar question about you.
Really though, it's worth the time to read. Besides being informative, it's entertaining as well... If it's any consolation, the meat of the paper is in pages 1-18, the rest is bibliography. Still long, but not as bad as it looks at first.
posted by ehintz at 4:50 PM on March 15, 2004
Now this is what the FPP is all about.
[This is fucking awesome.]
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 7:14 PM on March 15, 2004
[This is fucking awesome.]
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 7:14 PM on March 15, 2004
Oh my god - CONTENT! On the interweb!
Thanks very much, ehintz. That was better than what was on TV tonight.
posted by stonerose at 7:46 PM on March 15, 2004
Thanks very much, ehintz. That was better than what was on TV tonight.
posted by stonerose at 7:46 PM on March 15, 2004
[this is good]
No wonder the security services around the world seem to be in so much trouble. Indeed, the process sounds like it is "designed to retain only the most bland" at a time when lateral thinking and creative solutions are needed more than ever.
posted by dg at 8:13 PM on March 15, 2004
No wonder the security services around the world seem to be in so much trouble. Indeed, the process sounds like it is "designed to retain only the most bland" at a time when lateral thinking and creative solutions are needed more than ever.
posted by dg at 8:13 PM on March 15, 2004
No biggie, but I would have liked a pdf warning. I'll go read now...
posted by CunningLinguist at 6:55 AM on March 16, 2004
posted by CunningLinguist at 6:55 AM on March 16, 2004
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beGAWK!
posted by quonsar at 4:30 PM on March 15, 2004