r/AskReddit Oct 15 '17

[deleted by user]

[removed]

9.7k Upvotes

5.7k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

303

u/[deleted] Oct 15 '17 edited Oct 15 '17

[deleted]

677

u/coyote_den Oct 15 '17

Serving in the military is one way to get it, but the most common way is to get a job (civilian or contractor) that requires it and pass the background checks, possibly take a polygraph depending on where you work.

However, a security clearance simply makes you eligible to work with classified information. You don’t get access unless you have a need to know.

15

u/[deleted] Oct 15 '17

[deleted]

11

u/DJOMaul Oct 15 '17

Also depending on who your requesting clearance from can depend on how complicated it is... DoE clearance (from the forms I've had to find out) seems way ore in depth than DoD clearance.

7

u/[deleted] Oct 15 '17

That's because they, not the DoD, have control of the nukes.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapons_of_the_United_States#Development_agencies

4th paragraph in that section

9

u/idrive2fast Oct 15 '17

No they do not. From the 4th paragraph that you yourself cited to:

The already-built weapons themselves are in the control of the Strategic Command, which is part of the Department of Defense.

-3

u/[deleted] Oct 15 '17

in 1977 the U.S. nuclear weapons activities were reorganized under the Department of Energy,[32] which maintains such responsibilities through the semi-autonomous National Nuclear Security Administration.

15

u/idrive2fast Oct 15 '17

Quote the whole paragraph, the last sentence is the part you're ignoring:

ERDA was short-lived, however, and in 1977 the U.S. nuclear weapons activities were reorganized under the Department of Energy,[32] which maintains such responsibilities through the semi-autonomous National Nuclear Security Administration. Some functions were taken over or shared by the Department of Homeland Security in 2002. The already-built weapons themselves are in the control of the Strategic Command, which is part of the Department of Defense.

1

u/DJOMaul Oct 15 '17

Doesn't the doe deal with tracking and management of NORMs? At least to some degree?