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I would also add to the argument that the following things are also happening and will happen: 1) More money being wasted to support certain corporations (Booz

I would also add to the argument that the following things are also happening and will happen: 1) More money being wasted to support certain corporations (Booz etc) in return for future plum jobs by these representatives/senators or heads of these agencies. Thus the cycle continues in favor of supporting these programs rather than analyzing whether we really need it or not. 2) Abuses by contractors or employees when they have this much access and power in seeing all the private data 3) Corruption of these committees due to the feeling of being "in" where others are not. In other words, it's going to get worse.

Loughla 13y ago
Do you have any citations for any of these items? Or is it just time for wild speculation? I am pretty good at that: And they'll listen to who is pregnant in the future, and force us to all get implants for the babies, thereby making a super race of Americans to rule the world! lightning flash MWAHAHAHA. Please cite any proof you have.
- GVIrish 13y ago
  Look up Thomas Drake, he was an NSA leaker who exposed a very high level of waste with the Trailblazer program as well as an incestuous relationship between contractors and those who awarded the contracts.
- monkmartinez 13y ago
  It is well known by people who pay attention to Financial markets, that government officials from the Treasury often end up working at places like Goldman Sachs, Fannie Mae and a myriad of other "private" and quasi-governmental corporations. This is often a two way street... look up; Tim Geithner, Hank Paulson and more. These are the big notable cases. Go read http://zerohedge.com http://zerohedge.com or the http://market-ticker.org http://market-ticker.org they point this stuff out all the time. There is ZERO reason to believe this doesn't happen for ALL sectors of government. So, I would say, the burden of proof would land on the shoulders of those who say that it DOES NOT happen.
- vermontdevil 13y ago
  Look at Clapper. Where was he before going to DNI? How about McConnell? Lot of examples out there. Not hard to connect the dots if you spend less time reacting like a third grader.
- positr0n 13y ago
  Anecdote: I interviewed at Booz Allen Hamilton when I was in school and got a bad taste in my mouth from the place. They talked about how you could work your way up but you could only get past a certain level by bringing in business. To get to partner, you need to be bringing in at least $x million a year for the company. They told us that no one is hired directly in at partner level except for a 3-star general they just hired in last month because of the connections he had.
  - declan 13y ago
    This is commonplace in other business situations as well, including law firms. Partners at many large law firms can make $1.5M a year in profits (not salaries, because they're part-owners). You need to bring in far more than that to cover your take.
    - rhizome 13y ago
      Generally, "partner" == Rolodex
- malandrew 13y ago
  It's called a revolving door and regulatory capture. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolving_door_(politics) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolving_door_(politics) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture This isn't exactly here say and speculation.

Loughla 13y ago

Do you have any citations for any of these items? Or is it just time for wild speculation? I am pretty good at that: And they'll listen to who is pregnant in the future, and force us to all get implants for the babies, thereby making a super race of Americans to rule the world! lightning flash MWAHAHAHA. Please cite any proof you have.

GVIrish 13y ago
Look up Thomas Drake, he was an NSA leaker who exposed a very high level of waste with the Trailblazer program as well as an incestuous relationship between contractors and those who awarded the contracts.
monkmartinez 13y ago
It is well known by people who pay attention to Financial markets, that government officials from the Treasury often end up working at places like Goldman Sachs, Fannie Mae and a myriad of other "private" and quasi-governmental corporations. This is often a two way street... look up; Tim Geithner, Hank Paulson and more. These are the big notable cases. Go read http://zerohedge.com http://zerohedge.com or the http://market-ticker.org http://market-ticker.org they point this stuff out all the time. There is ZERO reason to believe this doesn't happen for ALL sectors of government. So, I would say, the burden of proof would land on the shoulders of those who say that it DOES NOT happen.
vermontdevil 13y ago
Look at Clapper. Where was he before going to DNI? How about McConnell? Lot of examples out there. Not hard to connect the dots if you spend less time reacting like a third grader.
positr0n 13y ago
Anecdote: I interviewed at Booz Allen Hamilton when I was in school and got a bad taste in my mouth from the place. They talked about how you could work your way up but you could only get past a certain level by bringing in business. To get to partner, you need to be bringing in at least $x million a year for the company. They told us that no one is hired directly in at partner level except for a 3-star general they just hired in last month because of the connections he had.
- declan 13y ago
  This is commonplace in other business situations as well, including law firms. Partners at many large law firms can make $1.5M a year in profits (not salaries, because they're part-owners). You need to bring in far more than that to cover your take.
  - rhizome 13y ago
    Generally, "partner" == Rolodex
malandrew 13y ago
It's called a revolving door and regulatory capture. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolving_door_(politics) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolving_door_(politics) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture This isn't exactly here say and speculation.