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DC Fires Tech Contractors, Puts Employees On Leave
theodp writes "After Gov. Tim Kaine intervened on his behalf, Vivek Kundra was quietly reinstated to his Federal CIO post on Tuesday after a brief leave following an FBI raid on Kundra's former DC office (Kundra was not implicated). Now, the Washington Post reports that the City of DC plans to fire 23 Technology Office contractors and place 4 employees on leave in the aftermath of the arrests of a Security manager and contractor on bribery charges last week. Another government employee has since been arrested for his role in the scam, and the mayor has promised that the tech office will undergo a 'full and formal review.'"
It's really a shame that the U.S. government can't just annex DC and treat it as a federal protectorate. Treating it like a real city with a whole set of councilmen and a mayor just gives the mentally defective permanent residents of the city too much power to vote in corrupt government officials to rule over them.
Anybody want to hire a C programmer? I'll be available effective next Friday.
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
Anybody want to hire a C programmer? I'll be available effective next Friday.
Really? That sucks!
There's going to be a lot more layoffs in the next couple of months. The worst isn't over.
"Sushil Bansal, the contractor who owns Advanced Integrated Technologies Corporation."
"Seventeen of the contractors work for AITC"
That's where the problems lies - a contractor hiring other contractors through his own company. Interferes with the proper chain of management and encourages bad practices and fraud.
Last year recently turned down a contract at a very large supplier to a UK government agency in part because I was being compelled to work through the company owned by one of the other contractors on the project. From colleagues on the project I heard that the guy was a hard task master and never allowed his team to engage in any upfront design work. Of course they did what he asked because he was paying them directly, when they should have acted more professionally and insisted on some proper design work.
A year later - he's been let go, not sure what's happened to the people who worked through him - and the project is collapsing.
With a massive scandal like this, if he wasn't involved and didn't know he couldn't have been all that involved with his office.
He stole some dress shirts from JC Penney for a total of $134. He was 21 at the time. Youthful and dumb not an extortionist like Blago.
And I don't see how what Kundra did at 21 really makes Obama like Blago either. Or are you suggesting that Obama chose him for his sterling petty thievery skills? Awesome, we should send him to every JC Penney around the world to steal shirts. That will fix the economy.
Not saying we shouldn't hit Obama, but this seems pretty small next to everything else going on. Why smokescreen good questions with stuff like this? The RIAA has some control within the DoJ and you're worried about what Kundra did at 21? Obama needs dissent thrown his way, but can we at least make sure that what we're screaming is really important?
We've got four basic possibilities here:
1. Kundra was actively involved in the fraud.
2. Kundra knew about the fraud and did nothing about it.
3. Kundra didn't know about the fraud.
4. Kundra knew about the fraud and reported it to police.
We know the fourth isn't true - the investigation was started when they tried to bribe a contractor.
The first two mean that Kundra is corrupt and not fit for office. The third means that Kundra is incompetent and not fit for office.
Since we've eliminated the fourth possibility, all the remaining possibilities mean that Kundra is not fit for office.
I do agree with your assessment.
Something was seriously wrong in that office and for Kundra to not be a participant or not even know leaves me wondering why he is still going to hold a position in President Obama's administration. Obama's vetting process sucks to say the least, worse is the pass too many get in the press till the vast right wing conspiracy stirs up enough dust on radio to force the printed press to jump
* Winners compare their achievements to their goals, losers compare theirs to that of others.
I saw him punching a kitten in the throat once.
It's a perfect time for being wasted.
A perfect time to watch the stars.
- Burden Brothers, "Beautiful Night"
This story falls in line with my experience working in the Commonwealth of VA. Which is: Local sub getting defrauded on state and local government projects by out of state corporation under the protection of state government employees. I had this happen twice to the company I worked at within a year, and I cannot say how happy I am to be out of there. I am still in awe about the widespread incompetence, opportunism and evil intent in that part of the country.
Advise: When representatives of the Attorney General's office are running coverup campaigns - including desperate meetings on a sidewalk of your state capital - it is time to look for a new job.
I want lulz.
And lulz I have been given.
Ramen.
He stole some dress shirts from JC Penney for a total of $134. He was 21 at the time. Youthful and dumb not an extortionist like Blago.
And I don't see how what Kundra did at 21 really makes Obama like Blago either. Or are you suggesting that Obama chose him for his sterling petty thievery skills? Awesome, we should send him to every JC Penney around the world to steal shirts. That will fix the economy.
Not saying we shouldn't hit Obama, but this seems pretty small next to everything else going on. Why smokescreen good questions with stuff like this? The RIAA has some control within the DoJ and you're worried about what Kundra did at 21? Obama needs dissent thrown his way, but can we at least make sure that what we're screaming is really important?
21 is an adult.
So, do you really think an adult who thinks it's OK to steal belongs in government? Because he sure as shit thought laws didn't apply to him when he was 21. What lesson did he learn from that? "Don't steal", or "Don't get caught"? Given the pattern of Kundra's life, my bet is on "Don't get caught".
Age 21: Kundra busted for shoplifting
Age ?: Entire office Kundra led busted for corruption, Kundra "not implicated"
Sure looks like the lesson he learned from that shoplifting conviction was "Don't get caught".
As for why this is important, it looks to be an Obama pattern: incompetence. From putting a tax cheat in charge of the IRS to going through two failed Commerce Secretaries to all but creating international incidents by flubbing receptions with visiting heads of state to making fun of the Special Olympics to having aides say he's "too busy" to deal with international relations, Obama's demonstrating a run of utter incompetence.
And Kundra's another example.
Good God, can you imagine the 500+ "Bush is teh evil!!!!" me-too posts this topic would have generated if Bush had done just ONE of those blunders? Much less ALL of them in a just a few weeks?
I've been ignoring the shoplifting thing because I agree it was just something dumb kids sometimes do. I didn't realize he was 21 at the time. I myself was busted for shoplifting as a young man. The difference? I was 13 when I screwed up.
If you're 21 and shoplifting that's not a "youthful indiscretion" it's theft, plain and simple. And I'm sure there are plenty of incredibly smart technical people who would love to fill the CIO role for this White House, and probably lots of them don't have theft convictions.
Yes, DC is the seat of the federal government. But it's also a city, with a mayor, city council, school district, etc. And probably a few IT people.
To attribute what DC's local government is doing to the feds just doesn't make sense. Lots of other local governments (state governments, city governments, county governments) are also having to lay off people. That doesn't mean it's the federal government initiating the layoffs.
The fact that this article is tagged "democrats", as if this action has something to do with the national democratic party disappoints me. This is a local government issue. Further, DC is a city where republicans don't get elected, so labeling something as a "democratic" policy means absolutely nothing, and DC's local government is not very influential in national democratic circles.
I am contracting at a major Canadian bank. The Sr. VP and CIO of the company have no clue that than an AVP has a brother who owns a placement/contracting firm. I am the only guy on that development project who hasn't come from that agency. I am kept around as exihbit A , to be paraded whenever someone begins to get curious about this department's hiring policy. I dont piss off the AVP and my contract gets renewed every six months.
My point is that hiring process is inherently corruptible and dumb. I am glad at least somebody is getting his just desserts.
I wonder is other Slashdotters from Toronto have faced similar situation elsewhere.
Surprised that headline didn't read Los Angeles instead of DC.
I would say that I would have to fire just about every single IT manager I have worked for in the last 20 years if I was a CEO. Kickbacks, favors
etc are a huge problem in every IT organization I have ever been in. If I am ever find myself to be in a position as CEO I would imagine
I would be firing quite a few IT managers. I would have a few rather simple rules, a vendor comes to your office for a meeting, no outside
the office meetings etc. If given anything of value of more than 1 dollar you shall return it, in the event I find out that you did not, it
will result in immediate on the spot termination. Not having at least three competing bids on any capital expenditure exceeding $2000(and I mean all, OS, word processors, software, consultants etc)
would result in termination. Names and addresses of competing bid vendors would be required for all purchases(used for follow up conversation).
Stealing at the age of 21 can't be called youthful dumbness. He is a grown up ass at age 21. May be stealing at age less than 15 to 17 could be called youthful dumbness. If at age 21 he can't differentiate between right and wrong, he is not fit for office.
-ItsME
Sniper: ... Sir ... Target in sight.
Controller: Kill Target.
Sniper: ... Yes Sir.
Sniper: ... Sir ... Target in sight.
Controller: Kill Target.
Sniper: ... Yes Sir.
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This is what is needed to "allign" AIG, Goldman Sacks, and the other perps!
If Vivek Kundra is Brahmin, he might be a Grima.
I do understand the whole "taxation without representation" problem there, but I've always thought that D.C. folks were trying to resolve that in totally the wrong direction.
Space game using normal deck of cards: http://BattleCards.org
I can confirm that; my experiences in three Asian nations also had to incorporate bribery as a way of life. I think may of our corporate chieftains revel in offshoring to those nations for exactly that reason, in fact; becoming a wheel offshore is personally very lucrative.
Orwell: "In a Time of Universal Deceit, telling the Truth is a Revolutionary Act"
Barack Obama - hell bent on bankrupting the USA once and for all.
- Chairman Barack Hussein "The Teleprompter" Obama is deeply connected to corruption, Rahm Emanuel (Radical authoritarian Statist-Zionist whose father was part of the Murderous Civilian Killing Israeli Terrorist Organization known as IRGUN), Connected to Rod Blagojevich (Rahm inherited Rod's federal-congress seat), Connected to Ayers, a man who promotes the concept that civilian collateral damage is ok in a war against freedom, Preacher Jeremiah Wright, who is himself a black-elitist who wants all the people who largely "pay the freight" to suffer, 31 million on food stamps, more blacks are in prison and on food-stamps per capita than anyone else. The problem with Wright is simply this: the facts are "racist."
- Obama: Racist, AIPAC-Zionist, Corrupted and a Traitor and a Liar who can't even produce a valid birth certificate (which is not a certificate of live birth)
- Raytheon lobbyist in Pentagon
- Goldman Sachs insider second in command at Treasury.
- Cabinet has had several nominees and appointees with multiple tax fraud issues.
- The head of the IRS and the head of the Treasury, Geithner, is a Tax Cheat
- Lied about no lobbyists
- Lied about having a new degree of accountability and a SUNSHINE period of new laws, he has signed bills with little or no review at whitehouse.gov as promised.
- Appointed a second amendment violating Rich-pardoning treasonist Eric Holder as AG, the top cop of the USA, a man who helped a fugitive evade justice.
- Has not put a dime in for a single new nuclear power plant but wants to help bridges and roads to promote more driving.
- Obama, Blagojevich and Rahm Emanuel have a LOT to hide. They literally lived next to each other, Rahm had (until being Chairman Obama's Chief of staff) Blagojevich's old federal congressional seat. Blagojevich helped Chairman "The Teleprompter" Obama cheat his way to the Illinois senate by getting other candidates thrown off the ballot in Illinois. Why do you think Blagojevich was so mad? Obama DID owe him, big time. Rahm and Obama are using Blagojevich and trying to cut his head off to keep him away.
- Tony Rezko, Iraqi Arms Dealer Nahdmi Auchi, and of course Aiham Alsammarae. Chairman "The Teleprompter" Hussein Obama is so corrupted its a joke.
- Fools and "useful idiots" twist the pie charts by leaving welfare, workfare, interest on debt, social security, Medicare and Medicaid out and focusing only on non-whole "discretionary" pie charts.
2007 high level pie chart, Federal Budget, USA
2009 Pie chart, detailed, Federal Budget, USA
- Chairman Obama is drastically increasing spending and creating more entitlements that will make the US less competitive (especially against China, India, East Europe/Russia). This will be a huge disaster and change you can believe in will strap you and your grandkids with more debt. No taxation without representation? Obama is spending money for the next two-three generations and they can't even vote yet, or even have been born.
- An alternative to the dollar and a forex and a reserve currency came up at the last G20 meeting. The world will not take faith in Obama's liar-socialist spending and welfare state, why should the taxpayers (plebian citizen-slaves of a police state).
- The spending going on now vastly eclipses all previous spending. In fact, the massive trillion plus debts is a thing of the 80's onwards. Congress signs the checks, remember that Year after year, as egregious as the pentagon spending is, that the social spending is completely a waste of money and it is unfunded over the long term. Eisenhower built the interstates, the US could build a new power infrastructure with this money but instead is being pissed into creating more of an entitlement system that is STILL unfunded, and without massive poll-taxes a