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From: mff@wuphys.UUCP (Swamp Thing)
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: Billion Dollar Coffee Pots . . . yawn.
Message-ID: <365@wuphys.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 5-Sep-85 11:06:42 EDT
Article-I.D.: wuphys.365
Posted: Thu Sep  5 11:06:42 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 7-Sep-85 05:30:00 EDT
References: <266@decwrl.UUCP>
Reply-To: mff@wuphys.UUCP (Swamp Thing)
Organization: Physics Dept., Washington Univ. in St. Louis
Lines: 38

In article <266@decwrl.UUCP> arndt@squirt.DEC writes:
>
>The $435. claw hammer . . . there are 13 MILLION contracts let by the
>Defense Department each year to over 300,000 contractors . . .this error
>was caught by a Navy employee and the contractor refunded the price.
>
>The $640. toilet seat . . . is not a toilet seat but a heavy molded plastic
>cover for the entire toilet system of the P-3 aircraft.  The toilet seats
>themselves cost only $9.37 ea.  The contractor refunded 85% of the cost of
>the cover when the department stopped the purchase.
>
>VIRTUALLY EVERY SINGLE CASE OF FRAUD AND ABUSE UNCOVERED AND FLAMED BY THE
>MEDIA (and in net.flame) HAS BEEN UNCOVERED BY THE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT'S OWN
>OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL FIRST!!!

The thing that ticks me off about this kind of stuff is that when a contractor
gets caught gouging the pentagon, the nastiest thing that can happen is he has
to give some of the money back!  Imagine if the rest of society worked like
that.

"Gee officer, can't I keep some of the money I stole from the bank?"

"Well, how about if you give us back 80%?"

"Oh, ok.  Well, nice talking to ya."


						Mark F. Flynn
						Department of Physics
						Washington University
						St. Louis, MO  63130
						ihnp4!wuphys!mff


"There is no dark side of the moon, really.
 Matter of fact, it's all dark."

				P. Floyd