When I first enlisted in the Navy back in 1974, in all the paper work one filled out there were some lines with questions you had to check off regarding citizenship status, where you were born, your nationality and one seemingly innocuous question. "Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Part?" Checking this would surely doom your enlistment. This was a general filter and in any later screening that was done based on the job you would be filling out more detailed questionnaires. These were required for background checks necessary for obtaining a security clearance.
There are few jobs with the military that do not require at least some form of screening and a minimal security clearance. I was what they called an AX, which is an Aviation Electronics Technician specialized in Anti-submarine Warfare Equipment. The job required a high security clearance as well as some special access clearance on top of the security clearance (we handled crypto equipment, coding and repair of such) and to add to the mess, I was a nuclear weapons loader (this was a collateral duty, you had to volunteer for). Checking that box YES would have been the end for my career before it even started or had I checked NO and they found out I had even been to a meeting of the Communist Party USA, I would have been jailed for willfully lying on a document you had to swear over.
Not so much today it seems especially if you want to work for the President in the White House.
More and more Senior Advisors to the President are turning out to be communists. What is up with that? How is it that our enemies just a few years ago, are taking their turn at our President's ear? Don't they need security clearances to get that close to the PresBO?
The few Senior Advisors that are not outright communists are at least a pretty shade of red. They lean towards Socialism in such a way that the combined group will turn the country towards the very form of government that I fought against during the Cold War. All right before our very eyes.
These advisors are being appointed by the PresBO to be his Czar's and "Special" advisors to the president outside of the normal constitutional process. You know the one whereby the Senate gets to interview and advice and consent with the appointment. Nope, these guys are being appointed without even getting a background check by the FBI.
Who better to know how to get around the constitution than a constitutional lawyer, the PresBO. God help us all.
BT: Jimmy T sends.
4 comments:
I guess being a Commie just ain't the threat it used ta be, what with the demise of the Evil Empire and all. (sigh) (yeah... my tongue IS in my cheek, why do you ask?) :D
Funny how a few years take the edge off that whole thing. I have a story about running into Sailors from a ship of the USSR that I need to edit. But back in 1977 that was a big thing especially to someone with a security clearance. None of that mattes now.
BT: Jimmy T sends.
I didn't volunteer for the Nuke Load Team. Hated that job.
"Note acknowledged, continue."
One of the worst collateral duties I ever had, near only to my tour as Urinalysis Coordinator.
I have a story about running into Sailors from a ship of the USSR that I need to edit. But back in 1977 that was a big thing especially to someone with a security clearance.
I have a similar story... I ran into some Rooshians off a trawler docked in Wakkanai, Japan in a bar back in '68 or so. I held an SSIR clearance at the time and was in the spook biz, albeit as a maintainer and not on the ops side. I dutifully reported the briefest of contact... and the frickin' debrief with our security guys exceeded the actual encounter by an order of magnitude. I shit thee not. I know where you're comin' from on this, believe me.
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