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From Uber To Eric Schmidt, Tech Is Closer To the US Government Than You'd Think (theguardian.com)

Posted by msmash on from the frenemies dept.

An anonymous reader shares an article on The Guardian: Alphabet's executive chairman, Eric Schmidt, recently joined a Department of Defense advisory panel. Facebook recently hired a former director at the U.S. military's research lab, Darpa. Uber employs Barack Obama's former campaign manager David Plouffe and Amazon.com tapped his former spokesman Jay Carney. Google, Facebook, Uber and Apple collectively employ a couple of dozen former analysts for America's spy agencies, who openly list their resumes on LinkedIn.

These connections are neither new nor secret. But the fact they are so accepted illustrates how tech's leaders -- even amid current fights over encryption and surveillance -- are still seen as mostly U.S. firms that back up American values. Christopher Soghoian, a technologist with the American Civil Liberties Union, said low-level employees' government connections matter less than leading executives' ties to government. For instance, at least a dozen Google engineers have worked at the NSA, according to publicly available records on LinkedIn. And, this being Silicon Valley, not everyone who worked for a spy agency advertises that on LinkedIn. Soghoian, a vocal critic of mass surveillance, said Google hiring an ex-hacker for the NSA to work on security doesn't really bother him. "But Eric Schmidt having a close relationship with the White House does," he said.Danny Yadron, said, "What's worse for a Silicon Valley executive: ties to the Chinese military or friends in the US Defense Department?"

29 of 48 comments (clear)

  1. Revolving door. by pubwvj · · Score: 4, Informative

    This has been a problem in agriculture and other industries for decades.

    1. Re:Revolving door. by PPH · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I recently finished reading The Profiteers. About how Bechtel worked within and manipulated government policy to make a buck. I'm sure that in a few decades, someone will write about various players in the information business and how they played public policy and Congress to create an economic environment conducive to their success. New century, old game.

      --
      Have gnu, will travel.
    2. Re:Revolving door. by dbIII · · Score: 2

      "Confessions of an Economic Hitman" that came out a few years ago was by a Bechtel insider and covered a bit of their relatively recent history from that perspective so is also worth a look.

  2. Cartel Capitalism by xtronics · · Score: 3, Interesting

    In our system of Cartel Capitalism - there really isn't a difference between the government and the large companies that buy influence.

    1. Re:Cartel Capitalism by thinkwaitfast · · Score: 2

      Thomas Jefferson said the same thing according to a history book I read.

    2. Re:Cartel Capitalism by 110010001000 · · Score: 1

      Some wise men once said "The gang and the government are no different"

    3. Re:Cartel Capitalism by matbury · · Score: 1

      Just capitalism. The cartel part is redundant.

    4. Re:Cartel Capitalism by rtb61 · · Score: 1

      Computer companies being tied so closely to governments means one thing and one thing only to me. No electronic elections ever, an extraordinarily bad idea. Pencil and paper and eyeball counting only as a strict law, not to be cheated at any level, not local, not state and not federal. You get your ballet, you go to your private booth and either make and 'X', in the appropriate place or list of numbers in order of preference. You put your marked ballot in the appropriate box and under supervision that closed box is taken to the counting place, a room next door to the polling place and then volunteers from all of the people running in that election open up the boxes and start counting the votes, each count is checked by other volunteers and the whole thing is supervised by the electoral commission. Done on weekends to make access for everyone much easier.

      If you miss out on voting, make a complaint and if more than 1% miss out, a new election for those locations is required (none should miss out, hence the very low 1% requirement). So if you complain and the check the polls to confirm you did not vote, that complain is counted as a requirement to redo that election process (also those officials who failed should be charged with criminal negligence, their crime is the most extreme in a democracy, the treasonous and purposeful corruption of electoral process).

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    5. Re:Cartel Capitalism by phayes · · Score: 1

      Given that socialism and communism and indeed just about every ism that exists explicitly do the same thing, I think that all you attempting to channel Candide and blame capitalism for this ill need to get over yourselves.

      --
      Democracy is a sheep and two wolves deciding what to have for lunch. Freedom is a well armed sheep contesting the issue
    6. Re:Cartel Capitalism by CrimsonAvenger · · Score: 1

      We give the government $5,000,000,000,000 or so dollars to play with every year, and people are surprised that someone decides to bribe them for a piece of the action?

      Color me astounded.

      And that's ignoring the fact that government employees don't make a lot of money, which makes them easy to bribe, from Congresscritters all the way down to low-level bureaucrats.

      Seriously, it makes perfect sense for businesses to take money to Washington to buy legislation, regulations, everything else - the return is insanely good, the backfire risk minimal.

      Is there a solution? Not a feasible one - the best solution would be to reduce the power and size of government to the point that it's not worth the bother of bribing them. But noone but a few lunatics (like me) wants to do that, so here we are, and here we'll stay....

      --

      "I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
  3. Closer than who thinks? by tomhath · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Is anyone surprised that tech companies are a big part of the military industrial complex?

  4. Re: that last paragraph by fustakrakich · · Score: 1

    That's some hell of a choice you leave there. Does it have to be either or? And if so,wouldn't the answer be quite obvious? Well, maybe not to the Chinese.

    --
    “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
  5. didn't /. just cover this topic? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    The Android Administration: Google's Relationship With the Obama White House

    Not a dupe but kinda close. And its the closeness that really bothers me.

  6. Don't worry by Cyphase · · Score: 1

    It's okay, the United States is The Good Guys(tm). They just want to keep us safe.

    --
    by Cyphase ( 907627 )
  7. How else do you get experienced people? by thinkwaitfast · · Score: 2

    Even my college wasn't nearly up to date on the technology that I encountered while working. And while I've never worked for the government I have bounced between almost a dozen companies in my career. I doubt that I would treat the government any different if I needed a job and they were hiring.

    1. Re:How else do you get experienced people? by sumdumass · · Score: 2

      I'm not so sue this is about experienced people as much as it is about laws being crafted or not made at all to benefit the companies. You have noticed that despite an outcry, no movement has been done on any data protection laws similar to what Europe has. You are the product they sell to others. Financial institutions and government agencies suffer data breeches by using faulty software products and no accountability is pointed towards the product that had the zero day hole in it which was billed as the best solution.

      But it is no strange occurrence that tech sector leaders would have access to the government. They spent a lot of money on electing this government. Schmidt himself was an Obama supporter and has created a company (groundworks) specifically to help Hillary get elected. It's business as usual so the profits continue as usual.

    2. Re:How else do you get experienced people? by thinkwaitfast · · Score: 1

      What's the alternative, laws created in a vacuum. Or worse, based on a Hollywood movie? You're never going to get he people you want, the best you can hope for is someone who will pick the person you want for advice.

    3. Re:How else do you get experienced people? by sumdumass · · Score: 1

      You don't see a problem when the only advice that matters is the advice coming from those giving you money and helping you get into the positions of power that their advice would actually matter with?

      The president is not normally saddled with the mundane workings of government. So it isn't about technology the government uses or employs. It is about laws like the EU data privacy and such that google and other companies are running into issues with.

    4. Re:How else do you get experienced people? by thinkwaitfast · · Score: 1

      Sure, but is keeping experienced people out the solution? The ACLU has written on this that I don't feel like searching for.

  8. a dozen?! by Gravis+Zero · · Score: 1

    wow that's so many compared to Google's 28,457 other software engineers. -_-

    --
    Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
  9. Same Old Same Old by Woldscum · · Score: 3, Interesting

    John Podesta, Podesta Group and the Clinton Fund. Google that for some king of sleaze stuff. Podesta Group was BPs chief lobby pre and during the oil spill.

    http://freebeacon.com/issues/p...

    https://www.opensecrets.org/lo...

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/...

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...

  10. Dumb Question by skam240 · · Score: 1

    "Danny Yadron, said, "What's worse for a Silicon Valley executive: ties to the Chinese military or friends in the US Defense Department?""

    Easy, ties to the Chinese Military are worse. The US Defense Department at least answers to a democratically elected government.

    Dont get me wrong, the US government is far from an angel but out government does answer to its governed people at least on some level and we don't also claim massive amounts of ocean space belonging to other nations as our own.

    Really, what a dumb question to ask...

    --
    I ignore Anonymous Coward posts. If you want to discuss something, that's awesome. Log in.
    1. Re:Dumb Question by Plus1Entropy · · Score: 1

      Parties are not part of the government. They are private organizations that can set up whatever rules they want for picking a nominee.

      --
      Only crack the nuts that crack. You don't put the ones that don't crack in the sack.
  11. Quick learners by dumky2 · · Score: 1

    If you think government is the bad guy that unjustly shook down IBM, Microsoft and others, then it's good that companies have learnt to soften the blow.
    If you think government is the good guy, then it sure is easy to capture and sway.
    But if your cynical, then you see hints of both worlds. Government is the corrupt bad guy *and* it can be captured to further nefarious ends (such as gaining anti-competitive advantages).

    --
    These comments are mine; I do not speak for my employer.
  12. Hijacking Ideas by JimSadler · · Score: 1

    I am certain that our government has a lot more ability to use common operating systems and popular programs to spy on us. i wonder how there is any hope of keeping government agents from picking up insider tips or innovative ideas and designs and making personal profits from the work of unsuspecting victims.

  13. America Inc... by jenningsthecat · · Score: 1

    And the vast majority of its citizens are employees, (and sometimes even slaves), of the vast corporation called United $tates of America. Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?

    --
    'The Economy' is a giant Ponzi scheme whose most pitiable suckers are the youngest among us and the yet-unborn.
  14. Correction - Cartel SOCIALISM by xtronics · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I meant to say Cartel Socialism -- under real capitalism (which we left a long time ago) the government does not pick the winners and losers - the market does. (Remember to big to fail? Tarp? Congress voting on secret trade bills they can't read?). Calling something 'that it is not', does not change what it is. Even huge companies go broke (and need to - should!) under free-enterprise.

    One can measure the degree of socialism by the percentage of GDP that is government spending ( in fact THE definition back when words meant something).

    The USA (41.6%) is now at a level similar to Norway (43.9%) - way past Russia (35.8%) and China (23.9% vaild?). And this does not include the amount of private spending mandated by government regulation. To say that the USA is not a socialist country reminds me of 1984(the book). As a result, the USA is in decline while Russia and China's economies are expanding.. See:
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

    The US government spending continues to increase - and as it does the appearance of Cartels - companies whose existence and freedom from competition depends on government interventions - increases. And the middle class disappears.

    One very good measure of corruption is the size of the middle class. (It is shrinking rapidly). The DemoPulicans have all been bought. They do not support the interests of the people - but only the interests of who is bribing them - from inside and outside of the country.

    1. Re:Correction - Cartel SOCIALISM by xtronics · · Score: 1

      Norway has^H^H^H had oil revenues to support their experiment. The USA does not.

      And this quote is false: "It's not the amount of spending, it's the services provided for citizens"

      Services do not define socialism. Instead it is the loss of free enterprise and the amount of government spending as a part of GDP in that it reflects the lost choices of the public. When a government elite bureaucrat chooses what to buy - you don't get to. ( The money I spend goes at least 2x farther anyway ). The government is not smarter than the public - or the free market - this has been proven every time these little experiments have been tried.

      I don't want the government choosing what type of health insurance I get - I don't want the government choosing what type of dishwasher, washing machine I get. I don't want the government telling me what to eat.. it is this old fashioned idea of freedom.

  15. That's a GREAT one, I saw it years ago... apk by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    See subject: How he went into countries as a "consultant" after they took over media, communications, education etc. (std. fare for conquerors in war) for "indoctrination" & control of the masses AFTER they engineered economic ruin in said nations, nation after nation, to get them in their control & into debt etc. (also std. fare for conquest + control).

    * I may have some of that "wrong" but feel free to correct or enlighten me again fixing my mistakes - but that's what I recall of it.

    When I was younger, I used to wonder WHY other nations of the planet hated the USA (we're composed of them all after all) - when in Europe in 2010 I asked people from all over their (& even nations like Argentina on trains there in conversation) why- their answer?

    "It's not your people. It's your leaders and they are NOT politicians but instead big money behind the curtain pulling their political bought and paid for puppets strings..."

    Imo @ least? We NEED a separation of CORPORATION & STATE & to cut the Eisenhower Military Industrial Complex + Federal Reserve & IMF banking systems RIGHT OUT of the system here in the USA... like how Church & State were separated.

    Look: I love my country - I really God's honestly do, but I don't like KNOWING how we operate for "the HOLY DOLLAR", the "god of the 1%" greedy is all...

    APK

    P.S.=> IIRC also/lastly - it noted how Chavez held them off by informing his people to WATCH OUT for "their kind" doing it... apk