sorry

time to bring home all the troops

Mornin’, Christy.

Seem to be an awful lot of entities that are “too big to….” The Navy hasn’t done away with the Seabees and I’ll take their construction skills over KBR’s any day. The Army Corps of Engineers used to be equally skilled.

In the spirit of helpfulness, I have the teensiest suggestion about implementing penalties and corrective actions for KBR: put Bunny Greenhouse in charge.

Now THAT would be tasty.

Nice post, Christy! In reading James Bamford’s book “The Shadow Factory,” and then in the course of his Book Salon chat here last Sunday, I was struck again and again by both the volume of stuff that has been privatized to contractors like KBR, and the complete and utter lack of any oversight. Amazing.

This, too, needs to change.

Morning everyone. Cold and snowy here this morning…

Jeebus. Now KBR’s efforts in Iraq are “too big to fail”? How many people do they have to kill before they’re banned?

The problem with KBR is that too many of the essential functions — food, housing, etc. — that used to be solely military are now done by KBR via these types of sweetheart contracts. And because they cannot function without delivery services, food, etc., and they can’t revamp that on a dime, they’ve made themselves not immediately irreplaceable.

Morning everyone. I was just reading this Thomas Frank article in the WSJ via Daily Kos.

Today contractors work alongside government employees all across Washington, often for much better pay. There are seminars you can attend where you will learn how to game the contracting system, reduce your competition, and maximize your haul from good ol’ open-handed Uncle Sam. (”Why not become an insider and share in this huge pot of gold?” asks an email ad for one that I got yesterday.)

so let me see if i understand this:

banks too big to fail
pols too big to jail
contracts too big to cancel?

where the heck does this end?

This to big to fail shit is getting old.

Companies like Halliburton or the Carlyle Group don’t make any money if the Seabees do things. That cannot stand in a Republic world.

Wouldn’t having Bunny Greenhouse in charge of administering and meting out punishments and such just be perfect? *g*

I’ll just push my wheelbarrow to the back door of the treasury and see what I can haul away !

Are the seminars offered by the Milo Minderbender School of Self Service?

I always hear my rightwing friends babble about “Halliburton is the only company that can do the job” shit.

I tell them, whatever happened to competition being the cornerstone of capitalism?

-G

Good morning Christy

yes, the perfect stamp of approval on the effort.

The only thing that could surpass it would be to have Bunny also teach incoming members of the Obama administration: “This is how it’s done.”

So is the no-bid, cost-plus crony contract shit.

OT I just wanted to take the time to Thank all of you at Firedoglake for your posts this year. You kept us sane!!! (sorta) Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and take the time to relax.

Our pleasure. Keeps us sane, too. (sorta) *g*

I’ll help Bunny along a bit and suggest that the fine for KBR should be somewhere in the vicinity of 70% of everything the DoD has paid them since September, 2001.

My SIL is a programmer with FAA. He sees a great deal of this outsourcing stuff. Much of the ineptitude starts with really lousy specifications for the job that is to be performed. When the product fails the same contractor is rehired. Millions are wasted unless you have Elaine Chow (sp) cook the books for you.

Very cool photos of Obama.

While we’re a bit OT, I’d like to offer congrats all around to the DFH’s on derailing the Brennan appointment. Special kudos to Jane for her great appearance on Maddow’s show and for her shout-out to Glenn for his work. Some days it seems like we are merely crying on each others’ shoulders and then days like yesterday come where we actually have a positive impact. Even AP is crediting the blogs on this victory.

I’m for restitution too, towards making US whole after the Great Bush Rip-Off.

Mornin’ Reverend,

The President Elect wrote a series of letters to Federal Employees in late October:

The letters, sent to employees at nine agencies, describe Obama’s intention to scale back on contracts to private firms doing government work, to remove censorship from scientific research, and to champion tougher industry regulation to protect workers and the environment.

WaPo

KBR – Al Quiada in Houston

Good morning, Christy. I would love to send a letter to decision makers in support of hiring Bunny. Any idea where we might send such an email?

Honestly, I’m kind of where Spencer is on the Brennan thing — he had an article yesterday about him. Brennan had bad points, but good ones too, and no one in the experience level that we would need has completely clean hands. They just aren’t. But with Brennan backing out this early, it does make me wonder what skeletons may have been hanging out in the closet just waiting to be pulled out by some enterprising person…or old personal enemy…

Absolutely no idea. Honestly, the way the Pentagon is at the moment, getting supportive e-mails would likely doom her to never touch it. But I still think she’d be fantastic, and was hoping some of Dorgan’s staff might see this… *g*

What a nightmare. Makes me really excited t fly again… *g*

That’s appalling, on so many levels at once.

There is so much corruption. The Irak genocide includes genocide against our own troops. Most of these mercenary contractors are criminal organizations, and are being protected by Republicans in the Senate.

Even so, the testimony earlier this week of three whistleblowers before the Senate’s Democratic Policy Committee (DPC) stands out for the sheer outrageousness of their accusations—namely that U.S. private contractors looted Iraqi palaces and ministries, stole military equipment, fenced supplies destined for U.S. troops, and even operated a prostitution ring that may have contributed to the death of fellow contractor…

Cassaday said he later observed his colleagues returning to KBR’s camp with equipment they had stolen from the U.S. military, including refrigerators, artillery round detonators, two rocket launchers, and about 800 rounds of small arms ammunition. After he informed the KBR camp manager of the thefts, Marines searched the camp with dogs to recover the stolen property. For his trouble, Cassaday said, KBR security officers jailed him in his tent for two days. He then spent another four days in “protective custody” before being transferred, against his will, to work in a laundry.

The practice of stealing equipment and supplies destined for the U.S. military was so pervasive that KBR employees invented a slang term to describe it: “drug deals.” But thefts were not limited to military supplies, said Linda Warren, another former KBR employee who testified at the hearing. Upon her arrival in Baghdad in 2004, she was shocked by the number of contractors involved in criminal activity. “KBR employees who were contracted to perform construction duties inside palaces and municipal buildings were looting,” she said. “Not only were they looting, but they had a system in place to get contraband out of the country so it could be sold on eBay. They stole artwork, rugs, crystal, and even melted down gold to make spurs for cowboy boots.” Like Cassaday, when she complained to her superiors about the thefts, she was punished. She said her vehicle was taken away, her movements were closely monitored, and her access to phones and the Internet were cut off. Eventually, she was transferred out of Baghdad.

Barry Halley, [was] a former project manager for Worldwide Network Services, a Washington, D.C.-based firm that was working on subcontract for DynCorp. According to Halley, his site manager in Iraq, who he said was employed by a “major defense contractor,” moonlighted as the leader of a prostitution ring serving American contractors in Iraq that indirectly caused the death of a colleague. “A co-worker unrelated to the ring was killed when he was traveling in an unsecure car and shot performing a high-risk mission,” he told the committee. “I believe that my co-worker could have survived if he had been riding in an armored car. At the time, the armored car that he would otherwise have been riding in was being used by a manager to transport prostitutes from Kuwait to Baghdad.”…

Committee chairman Senator Byron Dorgan of North Dakota has been advocating for the creation of a permanent, bipartisan Wartime Contracting Commission to look into the types of accusations raised this week, but so far, says Piatt, Senate Republicans have blocked the measure.

It took me forever to find this video of Bunny’s interview. I remembered it being on NBC, but could not remember who the person was who interviewed her. Wanted to give folks who didn’t really know about Bunny’s story a feel for who she is…

Sometimes it is a good thing to bring in a new person that has not been infected by the group think that exists in many of these agencies.

man I wish there was the temperament to federalize KPR and black water profits…along with all the acquired wealth of Cheney and bush that can be documented obtained because of Bush’s rediculous war

Mornin’ Christy,

a longtime admirer of Ms Greenhouse and Senator Dorgan for being her lone champion in Congress

I had never read of her background – forget giving Bunny a job, put her Mamma and Daddy in charge . . . of anything !

The Navy hasn’t done away with the Seabees and I’ll take their construction skills over KBR’s any day. The Army Corps of Engineers used to be equally skilled.

They certainly haven’t. My son is a Seabee (Reserves) serving in Iraq right now building housing at one of those large remote bases. He is running a construction crew.

kudlow just mentioned the left wing blogisphere as being shocked that he likes all these econ appts. says we think there must be somethin wrong with the picture.

Kudlow is kidding himself if he thinks that anyone on the left thinks of him at all except to laugh out loud. *g*

If folks could give this a digg, I’d appreciate it.

God bless him and keep him safe. when is he scheduled to come home ?

I needed to laugh out loud this morning.
Problem is, he’s laughing too, all the way to the bank.

sure. mebe he is hopin fer a litle publicity. don’t recall anybody talkin bout him here.

Hopefully he will come home March timeframe but we don’t really know for sure. From what I understand, at times they have as little as 24 hours notice. We believe he is in a pretty safe area being on a large base.

1,838 DAYZ AND THE KILLIN’ GOEZ ON AND ON AND…

Citizen sadlyyes:

“time to bring home all the troops.”

Yes indeed but leave the KBR and Blackwater thugs there for the Iraqis ta take care of. We ken pull a RICO on the corporate bosses back here while their thugs get the shit kicked out of ‘em by the folks on the street. Righteous justice seems ta me.

KEEP THE FAITH AND PASS THE INDICTMENTS, THAT’S WHAT THE RULE OF LAW IS ALL ABOUT!!!

remember too firedogs, per Christy’s links, they didn’t just capriciously kill these soldiers but lied to their families – the Maseth case is the most well known but there was an Ohio family that was told it was suicide – beyond disgusting

i used ta git emails askin me ta go there ta work. told em they was nuts.

The FDA is also carrying out a criminal conspiracy against the citizens of America. Some scientist are rebelling. There is a link to their letter, but note the REDACTIONS, that censorship in the second paragraph of the pdf file.

A group of scientists working in the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health division has revolted against the corrupt managers of its own department, accusing them of committing crimes by claiming, “There is extensive documentary evidence that managers at CDRH have corrupted and interfered with the scientific review of medical devices.”

http://energycommerce.house.gov/Press_1…

This letter seeks your urgent intervention because serious misconduct by managers of the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at the Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH)
is interfering with our responsibility to ensure the safety and effectiveness of medical devices for
the American public and with FDA’s mission to protect and promote the health of all Americans.
Managers at CDRH have failed to follow the laws, rules, regulations and Agency Guidance to
ensure the safety and effectiveness of medical devices and consequently, they have corrupted the
scientific review of medical devices. This misconduct reaches the highest levels of CDRH
management including the Center Director and Director of the Office of DevIce Evaluation (ODE).
physicians and scientists at CDRH have
sought intervention from the FDA Commissioner.

***physicians and scientists***
are responsible for ensuring the safety and effectiveness of all
devices before they are used on the American public. The devices we regulate are
crucial and fundamental to medical practice***
devices constitute a substantial
American health care system with more than 500 milion adult and***pediatric***procedures performed every year in the United States.

Citizen Sixty Something:

Bless yer heart and yer son…yes indeed the Seabees have always had their sh*t together and they don’t ever take the Navy bs very seriously either…best thing though is ta get ‘em the hell outta there.

The DPC had excruciating testimony from some of those families. It was beyond painful to see what those families had gone through.

i suspect there is a code of silence over there. too much illegal activity and too risky for an informer.

…oh, but let’s forgive and forget, and move on. */s*

sadly, the KBR employeee sexual assault victims attest to that

Citizen Hardin Smith:

This is why there must be an independent investigative process set up outside the Congress with the chops to refer for prosecution. I certainly don’t want Obama or the Congress ta be occupied with the initial investigation, after all they’re predominantly male and can’t deal well with more’n one thing atta time…I want the media and the whole country to be focused on a multi-partisan investigative tribunal to deal with the entire war and it’s lead-up. Only torture and rendition and habeus should be handled by the executive with the remediation made public.

Accountability may be knocking for KBR after the negligent deaths of American servicepeople in Iraq.

I hope so. I want the taxpayers to get their money back. I hope there are some lawsuits as well (nice and public).

lawsuits can make some of this public. If we can’t count on congressional oversight . . .

No agrument from me on getting them out of there!

from christy’s link:

A contractor providing services to the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan has committed serious violations of its contract, mainly by conducting inadequate inspections of electrical wiring and grounding at American bases, according to Pentagon sources.

[picture removed-s] Ryan Maseth, a 24-year-old Green Beret, died in his shower January 2.

The Pentagon findings on Houston, Texas-based KBR stem from the widely publicized death of Sgt. Ryan Maseth, a highly decorated 24-year-old Green Beret from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Maseth was electrocuted while taking a shower at his base in Baghdad.

His January 2 death was just one of many deaths now believed to be linked to shoddy electrical work done at U.S. bases, managed by U.S. contractors, according to Pentagon sources.

The Pentagon’s Defense Contract Management Agency recently gave KBR a “Level III Corrective Action Request” — issued only when a contractor is found in “serious noncompliance” and just one step below the possibility of suspending or terminating a contract, Pentagon officials said.

kbr could have been shut down by congress years ago. i have trouble seeing their oversight as anything more than a fig leaf of cya.

Christy,
At a billion a day who could watch it all?
It kills me that each day more die because of our inability of us Americans to self police those who would lead us.

To those who love people and use things Happy Thanksgiving
To those who love things and use people, When you change there will be Peace.

Isn’t KBR essentially a foriegn owned company now that Halliburton moved offshore? I don’t see how they can be doing this work, but that’s just me one of those hairy lib-rals, not one of those upright neocons.