I Worked As A North Korea Analyst For The NSA. When DOGE Showed Up, I Made A Choice I’m Still Reeling From.

The writer, a Marine veteran with an English degree who stumbled into an NSA career via a language listed almost as an afterthought on his resume, describes building years of expertise as a North Korea analyst before DOGE's arrival upended his position. He recounts passing the agency's Korean test and security vetting at 31, then slowly gaining influence pushing the agency toward clearer, less risk-averse analysis.

He writes that despite frustrations with the agency's cautious culture, he found the work meaningful, and briefly left for Microsoft before returning to the NSA. The piece frames DOGE's disruption as an unresolved reckoning he is 'still reeling from,' rather than a clean before-and-after story.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.