4 ms·

It seems people are already downplaying this because it's volunteer. However, this is actually an awesome opportunity. First thing I see in the job posting [1]

It seems people are already downplaying this because it's volunteer. However, this is actually an awesome opportunity. First thing I see in the job posting [1] is "Security Clearance: Secret". That Secret is worth quite a bit, especially for technical positions at government contractors. That's money in the bank in the long term and can almost always guarantee a job. Secondly, the best way to get a technical government position (it's pretty competitive), whether it's at a federal laboratory or DHS, is to get to know the right people. Yes, it's more about who you know than what you know. [1] https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/356670600 https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/356670600

secret123456 13y ago
A Secret clearance also comes with a cost. You will have to accept a level of control from the government. You will have to agree that you will be subject to harsher penalties than a typical citizen, if you pass on ANY classified information to an authorised person. For example, reading or passing on a Snowden document, without authorisation, will become a crime for you. An individual can't revoke the clearance once granted, so the obligations last a lifetime. A Secret clearance isn't a romantic carte blanche to read secret documents of your choosing. That world is compartmentalised and you will be fed information on a "need to know" basis. In a computer analogy, a clearance isn't a loosening of permissions, but a tightening, in that you are agreeing to harsher penalties if you stray outside the boundaries of what others decide you "need to know".
- mapt 13y ago
  The world is now compartmentalized, since Bradley Manning. We appear to have had a stretch there where they just ran a Secret Clearance wiki and document dump, and a separate TS/SCI wiki and document dump, and that was it except for the genuinely sensitive things.

secret123456 13y ago

A Secret clearance also comes with a cost. You will have to accept a level of control from the government. You will have to agree that you will be subject to harsher penalties than a typical citizen, if you pass on ANY classified information to an authorised person. For example, reading or passing on a Snowden document, without authorisation, will become a crime for you. An individual can't revoke the clearance once granted, so the obligations last a lifetime. A Secret clearance isn't a romantic carte blanche to read secret documents of your choosing. That world is compartmentalised and you will be fed information on a "need to know" basis. In a computer analogy, a clearance isn't a loosening of permissions, but a tightening, in that you are agreeing to harsher penalties if you stray outside the boundaries of what others decide you "need to know".

mapt 13y ago
The world is now compartmentalized, since Bradley Manning. We appear to have had a stretch there where they just ran a Secret Clearance wiki and document dump, and a separate TS/SCI wiki and document dump, and that was it except for the genuinely sensitive things.