The U.S. military paid just under $1 million for two 19 cent flat washers. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
C&D Distributors, LLC, bilked the Pentagon over ten years for $20.6 million in excessive shipping costs for a variety of small parts whose value rarely exceeded $100, according to acting Department of Defense inspector general Gordon Heddell. The problem is that the electronic acquisition system the military used to buy such small parts didn’t bother to check whether the shipping costs seemed reasonable. The company, and the surviving sister of the twins who ran the company, are awaiting sentencing, according to Heddell’s statement to the House Subcommittee on Defense Committee Appropriations Thursday at a hearing on defense outsourcing.
Nor is it hard to find examples throughout history. Heddell helpfully provided some dating all the way back to the Revolutionary War, citing letters from George Washington that vendors were overcharging him, and that suppliers often defrauded the Continental Army, such as contractors who “provided Continental forces with barrels of meat that were filled with stones and tree roots and provided other spoiled food rations, such as rancid flour. The contractors also provided Continental forces with gunpowder that had deteriorated, and thus was unusable.”
The situation today isn’t much different:
“Today, instead of debris-laden barrels of meat, contractors have built inadequate or unusable facilities, provided defective equipment and parts, stolen fuel, bribed contracting officials, grossly overcharged for goods, and failed to deliver products in a timely manner, if at all.”
The report goes on to list many other instances of waste, fraud and abuse committed not only by defense contractors, but by military contracting officers such as John Cockerham, who was to have received over $9 million in kickbacks for delivering hundreds of contracts to various unscrupulous suppliers during 2004 and 2005.
Heddell says the problem is that DoD’s acquisition workforce did not grow when annual defense spending more than doubled since 2001, allowing for more opportunities for fraud and abuse and reducing the ability of the department to conduct oversight. He stated that his office is “actively involved in aggressive audit planning” and has launched a web site to help auditors and others to detect fraud.
The problem is, of course, that few in the government are watching how your money is spent before it’s spent. It isn’t hard to find examples of waste, fraud and abuse throughout the government, in any agency. As Heddell was quick to note, such problems in government acquisition have existed since the dawn of the country, and likely since the dawn of time. One can find fraudsters even in the private sector if one looks hard enough, but it’s much easier and more profitable for criminals to defraud the big, lumbering, stupid government.
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Ultimately, the war supporters in Congress prevailed in the vote on the resolution. Still, the vote was significant because it places every member of Congress on the record as supporting or not supporting the unconstitutional, costly, violent occupation of a country that never attacked us. This vote should serve as an important reminder to the American people of where their representatives really stand when it comes to policing the world, empire building, and war.
Gardner Goldsmith explains why claims by politicians that consumers can become "irrational" and why claims by the same politicians that government can help "fix" markets are both false and misleading. He also explains what the terms Praxeology and Epistemology mean, which is key in understanding how to place free markets in their proper place among human history.
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pilby
Feb 27, 2009
if you steal from thieves, have you done something immoral?
Comment #2
Feb 27, 2009
You become a hypocrite.
Michael Hampton
Feb 27, 2009
I think it just proves that there’s no honor among thieves after all. Or at least no honor between thieves.
Ray
Feb 28, 2009
For each of these examples there are probably a hundred where the reason for the high price or the high shipping charges were the requirements of the contract.
I know of one where a shipping charge on four pieces of pipe that you could hold in your hand and which you could purchase at any hardware store; was several thousand dollars. But someone in the chain of command (so nobody could be singled out for fault) decided that the items were security sensitive. That while they were to be used in the area in or around California, that for “reasons of security”, they needed to be purchased in Florida, and then driven to the location by the vendor with two people in the vehicle at all times and without stopping except to refuel. Then they had to immediately turn around and drive home without rest at the facility and again without stopping except for fuel until they returned home.
While I can’t see a way to justify a million in shipping charges on a item of this size, given the nature of the decision making process and the expense of dealing with the results I certainly can easily see items of almost no value racking up huge shipping charges.
steve
Feb 28, 2009
People have been getting ripped off by “shipping and handling” charges since they were created this story is NO!
surprise.
DUMB SHITS
Mar 01, 2009
They need to send it to me those shit for brain scum bags. I could make better use of it for people in this country. SHIT HEADS!!!
Mar 02, 2009
ShortWoman» Blog Archive » Chalene vs. Tony: A Beachbody Showdown
Doc
Mar 03, 2009
It’s worse than you report. The Federal Government has tripled in budgetary size in the past 20 years, yet the number of Federal positions has only increased about 12%.
that means that most of the increase was in contracts – whether parts, or more commonly, people. Many Feds tell me that they routinely manage 15 or 20 contractors’ activities and materials.
think of it this way – 5% waste in a $2,000,000,000,000 budget is $100,000,000,000. And something tells me it is a lot more than 5%.
Bob
Mar 05, 2009
That’s a lot of zeros, Doc.
Reminds me of a joke.
The President is informed at a briefing from his generals, that two Brazilian soldiers were killed in Iraq that morning.
The President is visibly shaken and refuses to speak.
Finally with a tear in his eye, he slowly asks, “General, how many is a brazillion?”
Bob
Mar 05, 2009
I think it was a George Bush joke.
Golden shit balls
Mar 06, 2009
They are now going to charge us out of our taxes $500,000 every time they take a shit. Now pay up!!! Don’t hate them because, they are worth it!! MY ASS!! NUTJOBS
Million dollar Cayle
Mar 06, 2009
Don’t be alarmed sit right down and be prepared for the worst. Caylee Anthony who was that murdered little child may have not been killed by her slutty party animal mommy. Slut or party animal maybe but, that does not make anyone a killer. Chloroform is the only evidence they have. Did you know thier are sleazy ass Muslims cops (yes here in the USA) keeping poor innocent dogs tied up starving to eat victims to make it look like a homicide or missing person case? These are sick people doing this all the time. They wear black and lure animal loving victims to these forest like areas. Do not fall victim. They even enter people’s homes when they are not there. Law enforcement have keys to do this. Be sure to get a good guard dog or alarm system. Did you know that chloroform is pressent in starving dog slobber and mouths ect?? These sick psychos must be stopped. They also used duct tape to speed the decomoposition of the body that can be used with certain blood types. Stop them America wake up and smell the coffee. Caysee Anthony did not even graduate highschool and they are saying she is a chemist. Sure ya right??? The FBI NEEDS to check the hair of the child for dog dna samples. There are many missing people’s bones at these Muslim nut case lure sights. I have seen them. STOP THEM AMERICA. They are scum!!!
Jeff Hoyt
Mar 07, 2009
Oh God in Heaven, not again…
Good joke, Bob, but I trust you’ll forgive me for not subscribing to this thread.
JEFF
Mar 09, 2009
FUCK you JEff get real!!!
Jeff Hoyt
Mar 11, 2009
Ref “Government employees who despise you” Post #42
Bob
Mar 13, 2009
Your turn to keep him distracted for a bit, Jeff.
Good work! Fantastic job.
Jeff Hoyt
Mar 15, 2009
Thank you, Bob, but I have to admit that he proved me wrong…
In that other post I said the invectives becomes more difficult to understand. I’ll have to concede this one was crystal clear.
Still hard to take seriously, though.
Hope all is well.
Jeff
Jul 09, 2009
Peacepaint » Military America