Slashdot Mirror


The Private Outsourcing of US Intelligence Services

mrbluze writes "It appears that more and more of the data collection sanctioned by the US government is passed through the hands of private enterprise, Salon reports. 'Because of the cloak of secrecy thrown over the intelligence budgets, there is no way for the American public, or even much of Congress, to know how those contractors are getting the money, what they are doing with it, or how effectively they are using it. The explosion in outsourcing has taken place against a backdrop of intelligence failures for which the Bush administration has been hammered by critics, from Saddam Hussein's fictional weapons of mass destruction to abusive interrogations that have involved employees of private contractors operating in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Aftergood and other experts also warn that the lack of transparency creates conditions ripe for corruption.'"

2 of 256 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Corruption by cfulmer · · Score: 3, Informative

    You're right -- it's trollish, mainly because it's wrong. Go to fact check here for the actual truth. Cheney has received some deferred compensation and turned over a bunch of his stock options to charity. Apart from that, he has no continuing interest.

  2. Re:Glad I live in America by Jah-Wren+Ryel · · Score: 3, Informative

    I'm not defending this bullshit, but seriously, would you rather live in China, Venezuela, or Russia?

    My country good or bad, but my country. I believe the quote you are reaching for is, "My country, right or wrong!"

    Except, that's not the whole story. The actual quotation is really:
    "My country, right or wrong; if right, to be kept right; and if wrong, to be set right."
    --Carl Schurz
    --
    When information is power, privacy is freedom.