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From Uber To Eric Schmidt, Tech Is Closer To the US Government Than You'd Think (theguardian.com)
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?"
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?"
This has been a problem in agriculture and other industries for decades.
In our system of Cartel Capitalism - there really isn't a difference between the government and the large companies that buy influence.
Is anyone surprised that tech companies are a big part of the military industrial complex?
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/...
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.