What's Going On At The Pentagon?

[Zaphod58]

But it is a bit of a coincidence that the missile (or airplane or whatever) hit and destroyed the accounting department at the Pentagon where the paper records that could be used to reconstruct the audit trail were stored.

Or is that a 9/11 myth? :shrug:

It was the Army accounting offices and the DIA comptroller offices.  All of the records that were destroyed were backed up at other locations, and offices. Even if the entire auditing office lost all of their records, the program office, and the contractors have records of the money being spent. They didn't lose all of the records that were needed.

[SurferSoul]

The accounts have been investigated and everything checks out, like $400 for toilet seats and $200 for a pack of toilet rolls. 
Turns out shits expensive for the department of compartmentalisation.

[Zaphod58]

The accounts have been investigated and everything checks out, like $400 for toilet seats and $200 for a pack of toilet rolls. 
Turns out shits expensive for the department of compartmentalisation.

It turns out when you have to make things to very exact, non standard specifications, on a relatively small scale, that they end up being expensive as hell. Go figure. The biggest problem is the “use it or lose it” aspect of the budget process. Until we get rid of that, and the requirement to go through GSA for everything this will continue.

[Zaphod58]

The procurement process is broken, and has been since 1794 when the Navy tried to buy the first US built frigates. I just saw an example where someone had to buy plastic storage containers. They had to go through GSA using authorized suppliers. They only needed a few, but through the GSA it would take a week to get approvals, and nine days, minimum, to deliver. Each container would be $46. At Home Depot a bigger container was under $10.

[SurferSoul]

It turns out when you have to make things to very exact, non standard specifications, on a relatively small scale, that they end up being expensive as hell. Go figure. The biggest problem is the “use it or lose it” aspect of the budget process. Until we get rid of that, and the requirement to go through GSA for everything this will continue.

Don’t they have the engineering corps for that purpose? I get that custom jobs and ones offs are more expensive, but I was only half joking with my previous comment. I’ve seen some of those supposedly MIC accounts and if true it stinks of corruption. 
Let’s not forget that the CIA were running drugs, apparently to fund their black ops, they would need a way to commission outsiders/contractors for certain things and a fair chunk of that money would be used to bribe people. It’s well known that accounting is used to pull off nefarious financial shenanigans which why audits are essential.

[Zaphod58]

Don’t they have the engineering corps for that purpose? I get that custom jobs and ones offs are more expensive, but I was only half joking with my previous comment. I’ve seen some of those supposedly MIC accounts and if true it stinks of corruption. 
Let’s not forget that the CIA were running drugs, apparently to fund their black ops, they would need a way to commission outsiders/contractors for certain things and a fair chunk of that money would be used to bribe people. It’s well known that accounting is used to pull off nefarious financial shenanigans which why audits are essential.

The engineers with the military are mostly for large works like building bridges, dealing with wetlands, etc. The until level engineers are more for figuring out the best way to repair and inspect stuff. When it comes to purchasing new equipment all the engineering and R&D work is done with the contractor, and if they say "We spent $3.2B designing this engine that is 99% the same as the previous engine, and we just changed the name and added an oil line to it" then the Pentagon says "Ok, sounds good" and writes them a check. There's zero oversight, because the people in the Pentagon that should be doing the oversight are planning to retire and go to work for the contractors and make millions annually. 

There's a ton of corruption going on, simply because the government is involved. If you look into the history, all the way back to the late 1700s you'll see it. In 1794 the Navy was tasked to build the first frigates to be used to protect US shipping from pirates. They were allocated $688,000 to build six ships. The Navy planned to build them all in one ship yard, considered to be the best in the country at the time, but Congress didn't like that plan. So instead of all being built in one ship yard, the Navy ended up with six ships built in six shipyards "to spread economic benefits" to multiple states and "speed construction time". So it's no surprise that it's still a mess today.  The two biggest problems are Use it or lose it, and Congress having the ability to determine what does and doesn't get done by the service. I'm not saying there should be no Congressional oversight, but Congress is more concerned about them getting their money and looking good for their states so they get reelected than in having the best, most efficient force out there, so they're going to do idiotic things every chance they get that the military then has to cover.

[rickymouse]

It’s kind of a ridiculous story that no one believes because it sounds so ridiculous. But it’s the sad truth. Every program office uses their own accounting system. That data has to be imported to the program that keeps track of the main budget. The only problem is that all these different programs are not compatible with each other so it all has to be put in by hand. That leads to mistakes, and “receipts” get lost or are input wrong and filed away in some drawer in an office in the basement, with no stairs, and a burned out light. So when they do the audit things don’t add up, because someone saw a discrepancy, and went “Oh yeah, we spent that money”, and puts it into their “check book” to account for all the funds being spent, and we end up with knowing the money was spent, knowing where the money was spent, but not knowing how the money was spent.

I used to go to the auctions at the air base up here before it left.  I got to know some of the people running the auction there, and like always I asked a lot of questions.  The questions were usually like...why are you selling a brand new jet engine at an auction.  The answer to that is that the air force had bought some spares, and they no longer used that engine in newer jets...so the airforce sent them three of them...which they then auctioned off at the Saywer air base.  All three sold, and the price reflected the scrap value.  One guy who got one built a car out of it for racing...but they did not give the fuel injection system with the engines...so he bought one from somewhere for about a grand after paying five hundred bucks for the engine.

The guy would take the car to events around here like fairs and local races, he never actually raced it, just fired it up and used it to move the car around.  Impressive noisemaker.  I asked him why he didn't use it for racing and his reaction was...do you know how much parts for that engine cost.

The Sawyer base has been gone for a long time now, and I do not know if the guy still has that car he built, he was older than me, so he must be in his mid seventies now.  I know someone who bought one of the other engines, he resold it I think, he died maybe fifteen years ago now, so I cannot ask him..he was maybe fifteen years older than me.

[sahgwa]

Did find this short vid quite funny.

Am sure it's just as bad in other countries but when it comes to 'accountability' where are all the accountants lol?


[Video: https://youtu.be/ATib-85UbU8]

[Image: https://denyignorance.com//images/addsmilies/beer.gif]

It's just the gov saying 'eff you peasants, shut up and you are lucky we are letting you have the illusion of choice' while they steal our money and use it to enslave us. same old.

[Karl12]

It’s kind of a ridiculous story that no one believes because it sounds so ridiculous.

But it’s the sad truth. Every program office uses their own accounting system. That data has to be imported to the program that keeps track of the main budget. The only problem is that all these different programs are not compatible with each other so it all has to be put in by hand.

That leads to mistakes, and “receipts” get lost or are input wrong ..

Well yes it does sound like a pretty ridiculous excuse - especially given the humongous volume of money involved.

Do you work for the Pentagon and is this direct knowledge?

Have read that BlackRock developed the financial software systems for the Federal Reserve but when it comes to the Pentagon (and HUD) the specific company involved was Lockheed Martin.

[Zaphod58]

Well yes it does sound like a pretty ridiculous excuse - especially given the humongous volume of money involved.

Do you work for the Pentagon and is this direct knowledge?

Have read that BlackRock developed the financial software systems for the Federal Reserve but when it comes to the Pentagon (and HUD) the specific company involved was Lockheed Martin.

No I don’t work at the Pentagon but this has been well known for decades. 

Different companies doing different programs is normal for the government. How do you think it happened that they ended up with so many different accounting programs in the first place.