Slashdot Mirror
$18M Contract For Transparency Website Released — But Blacked Out
zokuga writes "The US government recently approved an $18 million contract for Smartronix to build a website where taxpayers could easily track billions in federal stimulus money, as part of President Obama's promise to make government more transparent through the Internet. However, the contract, which was released only through repeated Freedom of Information Act requests, is itself heavily blacked out. ProPublica reports: 'After weeks of prodding by ProPublica and other organizations, the Government Services Agency released copies of the contract and related documents that are so heavily blacked out they are virtually worthless. In all, 25 pages of a 59-page technical proposal — the main document in the package — were redacted completely. Of the remaining pages, 14 had half or more of their content blacked out.' Sections that were heavily or entirely redacted dealt with subjects such as site navigation, user experience, and everything in the pricing table. The entire contract, in all its blacked-out glory, is here."
Listen, I worked on the project. This is no big deal. Basically, it's [12 LINES REDACTED]. So I don't know what all the fuss is about.
I judt got a nre Kinesis keybiartf so please excusr ant egregiou typos.
Now that it's slashdotted, it's completely blacked out!
black out? you guys have new code word everyday. just can't accept an African president can you.
********, * ***** you're ********. The ********** between a ********* and a ******** is **** **** ********** than that.
[Some content redacted due to FOIA exemptions]
He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
You should know that I take it personally when people talk about my mother like that ;)
I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
I'm seeing this phrase on more and more bumper stickers. I don't know who to attribute it to.
"I'll keep my guns, my freedom and my money. You keep the change."
You think THOSE typos were bad? This was supposed to be a contract for $18,000!
I am the richest astronaut ever to win the superbowl.
Now I know why its $18 million - they are using Sharepoint.... from Open Source software to the Evil Empire..
E
Eric Aitala
www.f1m.com
Thanks for that thorough debunking.
"... and to the representative democracy, for which it stands ..."
"Our two-party system is like a bowl of shit looking at itself in a mirror." - Lewis Black
Maybe the blacked out portions refer to a time machine.
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You mean overpay by an order of magnitude or more? No thanks!
"I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey
Fix Wikipedia - it's easier. You can even mention this discussion as a source :)
Apple has "Mac vs PC", Microsoft has "Laptop Hunters", Linux has recession
You'll never land a government contract with that attitude mister. If you can't build a website for over $16 million, you probably don't even know what you are doing.
Well, in all technicality, we have a democratic republic. In our constitution (constitutional) it calls for voting (democratic) to figure out who the representatives are (republic) to the fereral government (federal).
Ah, there's the problem, the government's gone feral!
- None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license. -- John Milton
Whoever we elect has to deal with all the other people we elected. Not to mention the thousands of people who've spent years of their lives (and upon whom we've spent millions of dollars) to become experts in their fields so they can accurately advise the president.
Though I am sure Ron Paul would have had all the answers. He would have know how to forestall a second great depression, made peace with the suicide bombers in Iraq and the Taliban in Afghanistan, reversed the spread of AIDS and malaria in Africa and brought prescription and health care costs to 1970s levels.
Why, his very presence would have inspired NASA to ...
oh wait, he would have spent all his political capital trying to do away with the income tax. his platform of drastically reduced federal spending and lax regulation would have been perfectly timed for our recent recession. the slashing of federal spending just as private capital was drying up would have an incredible impact on our way of life.
and then after the fallout and devastation following the second great depression the survivors could get to the real business of building a new utopia based on the works of Ayn Rand.
now that is change I can believe in! sign me up!
It breaks my pluginses, my precious!
Do you have a government vehicle?
Yes, I drive a Chevy.
Phase 1 - In the site itself
Phase 2 - On Facebook, etc
Phase 3 - ???
Phase 4 - Profit!
Fixed that for ya.