Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
antipolygraph.org
Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
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Re: Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
#2I had a contract doing a WebGL 3D space sim and graphing thing for a guy who was then going to recruit me to apply the technology for military applications. They wanted a browser-based simulator.
But he told me that the application process in order to get clearance would involve a nasty investigation questioning everyone who knew me about all kinds of personal things.
It seemed like a fun project that would pay decently, but it didn't make sense for me to subject myself to some kind of intense invasion of privacy or interrogation.
The other part of it is that the software was going to be used for warfare planning. And I consider war to be unethical profiteering.
In my opinion things like polygraphs and invasive investigations AND most things related to war and spying belong in movies rather than a sane and ethical world.
Re: Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
#3If they know polygraph doesn't work, why do they still do it?
Re: Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
#4If they know polygraph doesn't work, why do they still do it?
It does somewhat work in the same way that homeopathy somewhat works. The placebo effect of convincing people that it works produces some results on naive people.
Not to mention that eliminating the polygraph would require someone to admit that they were wrong about using a polygraph.
Re: Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
#5>> To prepare for the test, I read A Tremor in the Blood by David T. Lykken. The book described the use of control versus relevant questions as well as countermeasure such as butt-clenching.
This explains that other thing I read yesterday, in a different article about the polygraph test:
"There may be something that's put on the tip of the finger that records blood flow and we also use something called a movement detector which is on the seat and picks up if you're trying to beat the test," Prof Grubin explains.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-45736631
So that's not a "movement detector". It's a butt-clench detector.
That's just the level of seriousness I'd expect from modern-day sorcery with wires and computers, instead of fetishes and incantations.
Re: Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
#6If they know polygraph doesn't work, why do they still do it?
From what I've read about it, it works to some extent as long as people believe in it. They want to get their clearance and believe cheating could be detected, so they tend to be more truthful. It's based on intimidation and observation. The examination starts when you enter the building and stops when you leave it.
Re: Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
#7If they know polygraph doesn't work, why do they still do it?
Because belief is not rational. The people that passed the polygraph tests and administer them to others may acknowledge the flaws but they still 'know' that a lie detector is the best they have got. They also know that some people will just confess at the thought of being wired up to such a machine, to give evidence that, unlike the lie detector, is admissible in court.
The most interesting story is how the authorities nabbed the guy who was most dedicated to dismissing the lie-detector baloney:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/may/12/polygraph-cr...
His consulting work of helping people pass lie detectors was his downfall. Had he just stuck to campaigning against the lie detector and not wanting to offer services to those needing to pass a lie detector test then all would have been okay for him and he would not be having to serve one of those silly 100 year sentences that American justice demands.
Re: Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
#8If they know polygraph doesn't work, why do they still do it?
Why Facts Don’t Change Our Minds:
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18099488
Re: Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
#9I had a contract doing a WebGL 3D space sim and graphing thing for a guy who was then going to recruit me to apply the technology for military applications. They wanted a browser-based simulator. But he told me that the application process in order to get clearance would involve a nasty investigation questioning everyone who knew me about all kinds of personal things. It seemed like a fun project that would pay decen…
I get why people think they should/could object to war and think choosing projects is enough.
If you work on OSS, you're contributing to the military industrial complex indirectly.
If you pay your taxes, yes, you pay for schools, but you're also paying for an intelligence system and armed contingent within your country. Most HNers are contributing to NATO.
The Internet started life as a DARPA project in order to coordinate response after nuclear war.
Be a conscientious objector if you wish, just don't build stuff on the Internet and complain about how evil all things related to defence are.
And I'd be fascinated to know what forms of profiteering you consider ethical.
Re: Personal Statement of a CIA Analyst
#10I was a team leader at a USSOCOM unit and had to take a poly to be read into a couple of three-letter agency programs. In the middle of the test, the smug 23 year old fresh college grad administering the thing tells me I'm being deceptive and obviously support jihadi terrorism. This as I'm getting ready to leave on my 12th deployment. I've never wanted to so violently break someone's face as right then in that moment.