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'Revolving Door' Spins Between AT&T, Government
An anonymous reader sends this quote from the Center for Public Integrity:
That AT&T just won an eight-figure contract to provide the federal government's General Services Administration with new mobile devices isn't itself particularly notable. What is: Casey Coleman, an AT&T executive responsible for "delivering IT and professional services to federal government customers," oversaw the GSA's information technology division and its $600 million IT budget as recently as January. ... While there’s no evidence anything illegal took place, the public still should be aware of, and potentially worried about, Coleman’s spin through the revolving door between government and companies that profit from government, said Michael Smallberg, an investigator at the nonpartisan watchdog group Project on Government Oversight. ... Federal government employees leaving public service for lucrative private sector jobs is commonplace. The Project on Government Oversight has called on the federal government to — among other actions — ban political appointees and some senior-level staffers from seeking employment with contractors that “significantly benefited” from policies they helped formulate during their tenure in government.
AT&T's not a manufacturer of mobile devices. Surely the government's wasting our tax dollars buying from a middleman.
We're the Phone Company. https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
TFS does a fine job of pointing out the potential drawbacks of the fact that people at the top of their field tend to remain in that field as they change jobs. Since the potentially negative side is somewhat clear, I won't say more on that, just acknowledge it.
On the other hand, suppose you're hiring someone to negotiate contracts to build roads. Wouldn't it be a good idea to hire someone who knows something about road-building projects, and the contracts involved? A former manager of a road-building company is uniquely qualified to understand the issues, the ways a road company
company might try to screw over the taxpayers. They are far better able to protect the taxpayers' interests than I would ben for example, because I don't know anything about road contracts. So I WANT my taxpayer interests represented by someone with high level experience in the industry.
A well thought out post touching on the complexity in dealing with a contentious issue.
What exactly are you doing on slashdot?
This article and the one before it about hollywood vs google are indicators of the same problem. When government and industry collude, the public becomes the enemy.
Evil cheating bastards.
the real solution here is to put pressure on the govt employees so there has to be a "cool down" time after they conclude their govt service and before going to a regulated company. For example 12 months. This way you can't be the lead govt guy, then jump to a private company when it's time to negotiate a multi-lucre contract. NOTE: the best way to put pressure on somebody is to have them sign to a "cool down" clause when they are hired. Typically you do this by $$$, i.e giving someone an extended vacation.
That is a valid point, but it overlooks that it doesn't have to be the exact same company. The question is, did ATT get the contract over another provider because of his involvement or because it was the best deal for the people? That question would not be there if a different carrier got the contract.
Verizon and AT&T are the only two reasonable choices if the coverage area is the whole of the United States. If they drop down to Sprint or T-Mobile, they're making significant compromises in coverage. After that, you're getting into the range of Cletus' Phone Emporium.
Revolving door between and
Not news. Just cronyism. Been around since families were created. Really.
I've said this before, the corps that work with the government on spying get favored status, and quite a few of them collaborate with the government to facilitate NSA espionage and other "things".
I'm certain Apple, Microsoft and Google do the same.
This isn't a democracy or a republic, it's an oligarchy and a borderline fascist one at that.
"If any question why we died, Tell them because our fathers lied."
So you give someone a bunch of money for a year long vacation, and THEN they can start collecting their payola? Sounds like a sweet deal. I'm not sure I understand how this is supposed to solve anything. A year-long cooldown won't make much of a difference in the long term for them. It's also a bit unfair, because it blocks entry into the private sector with a pretty onerous restriction - presumably on the employer, as it would be insane for the government to have to cover that. That means only the top few percent of government employees ever have a shot at making the jump to the private sector successfully if they desired to do so. Presumably everyone else would have to take temp jobs at McDonalds to get by for a year, because they can't get a job in their actual field of expertise.
Look, as much as we hate to admit it, the person you'd want to hire at a private firm would be the person that knows the ins and outs of the government agencies your company deals with. That's common sense, but if you look at it from a cynical angle, it smacks of corruption and payoffs. Lobbying the government in it's best form is simply letting your representatives know what your industry concerns are and trying to convince them to see things your way. Everyone passionate about a cause does it all the time. Lobbying in its worst forms is outright bribery, and that happens plenty of times as well.
I'm not sure what we can do about this. If you restrict or eliminate lobbying via draconian laws, you're essentially limiting access to our representative government, and that's probably unconstitutional anyhow. The only way to counter this is with a transparent government and media, public watchdog groups, and an engaged electorate that closely watches the government and exposes corruption where it occurs. I don't think there are any magic bullets or laws we can pass to "solve" this issue, to be honest.
Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.
Have gnu, will travel.
On the other hand, that experience also makes it easier to screw over the taxpayers. I can't think of any good reason why a company would think it more important to look out for taxpayers than to look out for their own bottom line.
Your argument works much better going the other direction, but you don't see a whole lot of people going from high level private sector jobs to the public sector.
Going the other way, from government (back) to industry, our procurement systems are such that it takes a degree of expertise to navigate the process and actually get, then maintain, a contract. Often, the government could save money by just ordering from Walmart.com, but to avoid having a bureaucrat order from his brother, there's a huge procedure with a shit load of rules. So if you're trying to work out a contract with say, the FCC, there are real and legitimate reasons to hire someone intimately familiar with the FCC's procurement processes, their bureaucracy, and their priorities and culture. That may even benefit the taxpayer- I would do a better job of serving my agency's needs than some vendor who doesn't understand our business and culture would. Of course personal connections also help. The personal connections can be problematic, all the rest is good. I WANT my local fire department to get tools from former firefighters, who actually understand what it's like to work in a fire, getting doused with water and in heavy smoke. The guys who have been there and done that make better vendors, who provide more appropriate and effective products and services.
Again, I'm not saying there is no disadvantage, ever. There can be. Balance that against the advantages. As an example, we have experienced firefighters and snipers on staff. Our staff sniper better understands her former colleagues needs, thereby allowing us to better provide the services they actually need to get their job done.
Saying "the government should not collude with private industry," and calling the government to stop, does not provide any motivation for the government to change anything.
Large numbers of people funding lobbies that oppose this practice, and voting for candidates that take decisive action at stopping it, would provide sufficient incentive. A few articles online provides nothing.
The practice in common in many western countries that enjoy a good rank in corruption index. But in my opinion this should really be counted as corruption, the high salary being the bribe.
When you fall for the agitprop hating on government, the private sector swoops in to do the same thing for twice as much and unappreciated gov't workers bail to become contractors. If this is surprising to you, you don't understand much about how the world works.
That is the same shit spouted by Lars Larson, Almost verbatim, on his Wed show.
Hi Lars!
I think it was Milton Friedman who explained there are 4 ways to spend money.
1) Spend your own money on yourself.
You look for a compromise between cost and quality
2) Spend your own money on somebody else.
You look mostly for cost
3) Spend somebody else’s money on yourself.
You look mostly for quality
4) Spend somebody else’s money on somebody else.
You really don't care.
I love Jesus, except for his foreign policy.
The Military Industrial Governmental Iron Triangle is not news. Those who are the power-broker elite move freely between industry, the military, and government. The only thing that's surprising is when a major corporation doesn't have a revolving door like this.
It is easily justified by the elite power-brokers under the guise of "leadership".
Unfortunately, depending on the nature of the job, a full year out of work in that industry might make difficult to remain relevant.
There really isn't a good solution. Either one accepts that those that have extensive knowledge of an industry are going to, from time to time, be able to translate their experience on one side to benefit them on the other side in exchange for hopefully being able to do a good job on both sides, or you end up with inexperienced people making more mistakes or worse decisions than the experienced ones that potentially post a conflict of interest.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
Until we have solid laws in place to prohibit such "revolving door" actions, there will continue to be abuses of the public's interests in these situations.
Yeah? And by what method do you expect to apply this 'pressure'?
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
They always seem to be trying to make up their minds. On Star Trek doors go sheesh! but we have revolving doors that go Whump! Whump! Whump!
I'd have three revolving doors, two on the outside rotating in opposite directions and one in the middle that changes direction at random times, even when a person is in it. I'd put wheels on a potted plant and have it bumping along. I'd have one in a shaded area with a bright strobe light in it. I'd have a revolving door with mirror panels surrounded by a curved mirror and a curved, mirrored sliding shells that advance with the door on opposite sides and stop, to close off the tube completely and trap them for three full rounds, then advance again to present an opening as if it had always been there. I'd have a revolving door with rising and falling wedges that 'arrive' at the far end one step down or up. I'd have a camera at the top of the wedge looking down, and a bright LCD display set into the floor that is re-playing the top-down view from the last occupant, including a glimpse of the screen with the one previous, et cetera. I'd have a message that says, "say Hello!" and play back the hellos of previous occupants at random. I'd have a glass floor with a hypnotic spiral disc spinning quickly in the opposite direction. I'd have a narrow brightly lit aquarium with fish as door panels. I'd have a gauntlet of a dozen revolving doors synchronized to pass occupants on, each one lit with a progressive hue of the rainbow. And ping pong ball releases.
Next up at Slashdot: 'Escalator' Trundles Between Verizon, Government
<blink>down the rabbit hole</blink>
i said it above. when a govt muckety muck signs a contract, include a clause with "forced paid vacation" after vacating your post. The duration of the vacation can vary depending on the mucketyness of the muck. as a result, nobody can jump from govt to industry to snap up a quick contract.
I'm not sure I understand how this is supposed to solve anything.
ok, here's the deal. A senior govt person has gained experience that can be valuable for decades. He should be able to switch to a top private job where he can make use of that value. The person has lots of insider knowledge of how a company can win big deals. But this knowledge has a very short shelf life. it is like having an inside scoop on who will win the next horse race. A commonsense solution, take the head honcho out of the game for a bit, and then he rejoins when any insider-type knowledge is stale. But he can still apply his wisdom and experience for the coming years.
the trade off is that the govt would have to cover it. This is why it is a "forced vacation". but the cost would be much less than any graft that would be avoided. The duration of the cooldown period would be titrated depending on the seniority or level of influence.
That's why there is no hope of having a functioning democracy in the United States. Powerful interests control everything, from what people hear and see, to what people eat, when they will be spied on, tortured, or beaten to death by a cop. I'm just glad I don't live in such a terrible place, with such a dismal healthcare system, such high unemployment, and evil leadership that spends its days committing economic or actual terrorism around the world, while starving ordinary Americans of their basic human rights.
You said nothing. Where is this 'clause' going to come from? Under what section of the U.S. Code can I find this? Who will enforce it? And how? Absent any legislation, what incentive is there to include such a clause if there is no perceived benefit to any the affected parties?
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
you're unbelievable! An employment clause! you know, you start a new job and you sign an agreement that says you'll get paid X, you'll get X weeks of vacation, X days of sick leave, and X weeks of paid cooldown when your employment is terminated. it's all completely legal, and there is benefit to both of the "afflicted parties".
I think perhaps you're overestimating the value of *what* they know, and underestimating the value of *who* they know. The latter knowledge is not going to be obsolete in a year, and the former can be easily gained by inviting an old colleague out to a nice lunch (at company expense, of course), and discussing out what's going on back at the old office.
Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.
The point of government service is to serve. Some people join the military and may fight for their country; others serve in a different way. One way you can serve is to acquire a government job and dedicate your time and expertise to the benefit of your country. There is NO guarantee of a huge payola, 'extended vacation', or extremely lucrative private sector job after you separate. Arguably the people who volunteer (yes, volunteer!) for government service give far less than those individuals who serve in the military. Why should they be allowed to use our government as a stepping stone to riches? This practice is tantamount to insider trading, albeit it is more than information trading hands. I suggest a 5 year 'cool down' period following federal service for all individuals at the executive level. If they want to work in industry they should do exactly that... work in industry; leave the government jobs for those who truly wish to serve.
And here's yet another example where traditional Copyright Industry territory is being invaded! That's right! The revolving door was between RIAA/MPAA (members) and the Government. And now those telco boys are butting in there too? It's a scandal and something should be done to restore the Old Way Of Things!
When the copyright term is "forever minus a day", live every day like it's the last.
Whom I've proven INCOMPETENT & A LIAR here http://slashdot.org/comments.p...
LITERALLY SAYING that YOU won't say something unless YOU knows its true? Ahem - BULLSHIT:
I caught YOU SPOUTING ERRONEOUS FALSEHOODS ABOUT WINDOWS, you incompetent stooge bullshit artist -> http://it.slashdot.org/comment...
(Quoted right there in black & white... you pompous ARROGANT "fake it till you make it" mgt. stooge!)
APK
P.S.=> Then "the great raymorris" (not, great bullshitter is more like it) *TRIED* to shoot his weak piehole off on hosts?
LMAO - Then, I utterly ANNIHILATED HIM, making raymorris "eat his words" http://it.slashdot.org/comment...
Where, truth be told?
OTHER SLASHDOTTERS' TESTIMONIALS there & BY THE 100's DID IT, since they use hosts files http://it.slashdot.org/comment...
and?
So, WHY'D THE INCOMPETENT FAKE RAYMORRIS TRY IT?
He works for advertiser redirectors (who are helpless vs. hosts)... apk
Raymorris = a "fake it till you make it" marketing bullshitter http://yro.slashdot.org/commen...
* :)
APK
P.S.=> raymorris = an INCOMPETENT LYING STOOGE, & that link proves it MULTIPLE TIMES with his utter lies where I made raymorris "eat his words" on, more than a few times... apk
What we do about it is compensate government people well and protect their jobs from political interference. We did that before in this country and while it wasn't perfect it worked better than what we have now (kind of like our economic policies, come to think of it)
The idea was if you worked for government as a career that you would be comfortable but not rich, and you'd have stability in employment. In return, you don't engage in politically motivated behavior because politicians can't fire you.
This well thought out system was destroyed by the right wing precisely because of its resistance to the revolving door. They WANT corruption. It serves two purposes: their buddies get rich and they get to complain government is broken (omitting that they're the ones who broke it).
So you get the corporate media propagandizing about the lazy civil service worker who's out of touch with whatever he's supposed to be in touch with this week, and OMG he has a pension! Of course, instead of talking about the greed and mismanagement that's led to the demise of private pensions and working to have more of them, we want to take them away from anybody who has one. Makes some people feel better I guess.
And that's how you get this situation. The solution is as obvious as it is impossible to do in a country bombarded by right wing pro corporate propaganda masquerading as news.
http://yro.slashdot.org/commen...
* Were they spiced with your FOOT IN YOUR MOUTH, further "washed down with the BITTER TASTE OF SELF-DEFEAT", you lying bullshit artist?
(Rarely, *IF EVER*, have I seen such an UTTER wannabe around this place, or anywhere online actually, as in yourself... )
APK
P.S.=> Answer = yes, absolutely - & YOU ONLY DID IT TO YOURSELF (how you have the nerve to show your face here, utterly astounds me)... apk
You still provide no legal incentive or mandate to insert such a clause into the contract. Nobody is going to do it. You are living a fantasy. Besides your idea is dumb and harmful to the person. Everybody has the right to work when and where they please. I wouldn't let you take that away, not in a million years. The best thing to do is to make sure no company is granted a monopoly contract that locks out competition. That also will require legislation, but we won't get it with the present crowd in congress. The voters elect corrupt individuals who can't resist temptation. That's where the problem is. Leave the workers alone...
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
I agree with this writer. Having worked with the federal government for over 25 years, I rather see the government spend what is perceived as "too much' to get what they need rather then when the government spends 'too little' and then buys the project twice or three times. Just look at the littered road of projects that fail after millions and many times hundreds of millions has been spent. Does FBI Trilogy/Sentinel ring a bell?
After all, the government is corrupt as hell and AT&T... Well, we don't need to rehash that.
Maybe if there was something, so sort of code or something. Some specification for proper and honest behaviour that would forbid dishonest or harmful actions... I wonder what we could call them?
The only solution when something has decayed to this point is to start over. It's time to reboot by using politicians and corrupt bureaucrats as landfill.
So you give someone a bunch of money for a year long vacation, and THEN they can start collecting their payola?
I agree, make it 5-10 years.
It's also a bit unfair, because it blocks entry into the private sector with a pretty onerous restriction
for who, the employee, or the rest of the country? I also don't see that being a giant hurdle to employement in the private sector. Unless of course the only skill someone has is being a paid shill. In that case, fuck 'em.
Presumably everyone else would have to take temp jobs at McDonalds to get by for a year, because they can't get a job in their actual field of expertise.
not really. Thats an overreaction.
. If you restrict or eliminate lobbying via draconian laws, you're essentially limiting access to our representative government, and that's probably unconstitutional anyhow.
Look, as much as we hate to admit it, the person you'd want to hire at a private firm would be the person that knows the ins and outs of the government agencies your company deals with.
I think thats the point. I could imagine that a private firm could pay this man handsomely, but this hurts the rest of society greatly. What we don't want, is someone who's career niche is simply helping private intrests manipulate or game the government for their own personal intrests. The revolving door creates a class of such people. Go to work for the government, take what they know about the government to the private sector to help the private sector against public intrests, then go back to work to the public sector with intention of getting another job in the private sector, so while at the public sector job, taking actions, not in the public's intrest, but what they can use to convince their next private employer to hire them.
Thats the point, we need to stop this. It works out well for a handful of people, but harms everyone else.