There have been a lot of comments on my comment about security clearance. So, let me give you a little primer on how it works.
There are 4 levels of security; Unclassified, For Official Use Only, Secret and Top Secret. All these classifications mean is how the information is handled. It has to do with what you do when it is not in your immediate possession, how it's transported and who you can tell.
In all of this there is an overarching rule called "need to know". The bottom line here is that you don't tell anyone unless they have a need to know and it doesn't matter what the level is. For example, if you have some information and it's classified as Secret and the General of the base comes in and asks you to tell him what it is, but he doesn't need that information to do his job, you don't tell him.
Further, the guys talking about special access codes are correct. They can come at the Secret or Top Secret levels. You get those codes because you're working on a special project. They include more in-depth background checks and some times monitoring of the holder. There are numerous variants of this depending on the project.
The beauty of this system is that people who really have the clearance,
don't ask. They understand the value of security and let you do your job without getting in the way. If the General came to my workplace and wanted to know what I was doing, he would recognize my hesitance right away and move on to another subject.
The easiest way to tell a poser, when talking about security clearance, is what they claim to be privy to. I had a guy tell me once that he had a clearance above Top Secret and that he could get into any place or get any information he wanted at Edwards because he had this clearance. I called him on it right there, but he persisted. Oh well, if it makes you feel important, OK.
Watching the local broadcast of a Cardinals baseball game one night Joe Buck interviewed a Marine returned from Iraq. He congratulated the kid for "winning" the Purple Heart.
It's a mistake in wording, but it also shows a lack of understanding. These guys deserve too much respect for me to insult them by thinking of it as a game. Medal of Honor, Navy Cross, Air Force Cross, Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, Purple Heart and maybe a couple others I can't think of, are all given to those who didn't expect it. They didn't try to get one, they were just in a particular situation they didn't want to be in.
I was a Remington Raider (clerk) during Nam with a training unit. I'm always hesitant when places like my Masonic Lodge ask all the veterans to stand up for recognition. Feel I didn't do all that much.
Don't sell yourself short; you served. It wasn't your choice to not be shot at. Without your efforts the guys on the front lines couldn't do their job as well as they did. Thank you for that service.