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I asked this question 6 months ago, I liked the reply. ---- Most programmers are very much unlike you or I. Think about those legions of DoD/DoD contractor eng

I asked this question 6 months ago, I liked the reply. ---- Most programmers are very much unlike you or I. Think about those legions of DoD/DoD contractor engineers that trust government implicitly and totally, and really don't give a shit about more "hacker"/"technologist" subjects. ---- https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5836416 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5836416

Amadou 13y ago
The other half of that equation is that the requirements for a security clearance tend to filter out the people who are mentally predisposed to question authority. It is a very rare person who can see all the things wrong with the various Wars on Dignity (drugs, terror, etc) and yet has a nose so clean as to qualify for a top secret clearance. It's kind of like the saying about walking a mile in someone else's shoes before you criticize them - most people just can't conceive of what life is like for someone with an entirely different set of experiences and the logic of authoritarianism is so deceptively simple. That's not to say that the people with clearances aren't perceptive, just that they are likely to have a focus on other, more technical, issues.
- paxswill 13y ago
  Just because someone can see what's wrong doesn't mean they do anything about it. Without that evidence of action, there's nothing for a background check to turn up. Getting a security clearance is not incredibly difficult.
  - BrandonY 13y ago
    Indeed, there are over 4 MILLION top secret holders. That's almost twice as many people as are in prison.
- Daniel_Newby 13y ago
  You have it utterly backwards. In my experience, clearance holders have a far more bleak outlook on government than you. If you think people will elect madmen and witch hunters no matter what, which seems to be the case, you might as well make sure the spy-fest is good enough to stop the occassional war. In this view there are not well-meaning plans with collateral damage, but planned crass destruction with collateral benefits. Incidentally, the U.S. system is strongly anti-authoritarian. There is no wise man or even thug running the show, just a parliament of whores tarting themselves up for the next election. We could really use some authorities in charge. Even a bad plan would be better than what we have if we just stuck to it.

Amadou 13y ago

The other half of that equation is that the requirements for a security clearance tend to filter out the people who are mentally predisposed to question authority. It is a very rare person who can see all the things wrong with the various Wars on Dignity (drugs, terror, etc) and yet has a nose so clean as to qualify for a top secret clearance. It's kind of like the saying about walking a mile in someone else's shoes before you criticize them - most people just can't conceive of what life is like for someone with an entirely different set of experiences and the logic of authoritarianism is so deceptively simple. That's not to say that the people with clearances aren't perceptive, just that they are likely to have a focus on other, more technical, issues.

paxswill 13y ago
Just because someone can see what's wrong doesn't mean they do anything about it. Without that evidence of action, there's nothing for a background check to turn up. Getting a security clearance is not incredibly difficult.
- BrandonY 13y ago
  Indeed, there are over 4 MILLION top secret holders. That's almost twice as many people as are in prison.
Daniel_Newby 13y ago
You have it utterly backwards. In my experience, clearance holders have a far more bleak outlook on government than you. If you think people will elect madmen and witch hunters no matter what, which seems to be the case, you might as well make sure the spy-fest is good enough to stop the occassional war. In this view there are not well-meaning plans with collateral damage, but planned crass destruction with collateral benefits. Incidentally, the U.S. system is strongly anti-authoritarian. There is no wise man or even thug running the show, just a parliament of whores tarting themselves up for the next election. We could really use some authorities in charge. Even a bad plan would be better than what we have if we just stuck to it.