We were told our security clearance was just like a credit rating— something you manage through your own choices and actions.
Correct. That is why the emergence of John Walker was so ‘shocking’.
They put the ‘fear of God & worse’ into us that excessive drinking, running up bills, ‘risky’ life style (All the ‘things’ that are sorta legal now).
Get caught in the ‘wrong bunk’ and you could/would find oneself in the brig and if not DD’d, one would be assigned to every nasty job they could come up with.
I went to a school in 1956-57 that I still don’t ‘talk about’ unless with another like soul.
Mainly because the ‘other guy’ would have no idea WTF one is/was talking about when it comes to Crypto and because we were basically raised with a sense of honor and honoring ones word.
Remember the ‘shock’ people had when in the movie ‘Code Talker(???)’ N Cage was assigned an Indian, supposedly as his guard BUT in reality to keep him out of the hands of the enemy -no matter how.
It sort of came with the territory and the advice given was to watch your tongue ‘loose lips sink ships’ and behave oneself at ALL times.
Of course being schooled by the Nuns and ‘Allan Funt’, one always looked over their shoulder.
AF probably the ‘birth’ of the statement
YOU can judge a mans character by the way he acts when he THINKS no one is watching.