“It can be tempting to tangle with prominent institutions. But chasing headlines and solving problems are two different things.” — SEC Commissioner Daniel Gallagher. Rolling Stone’s Matt Taibbi described this quote as “a perfect example of how completely broken our regulatory system [is].” Read more at Rolling Stone.
Here's an Idea: Make Wall Street Execs Pay SEC Fines Instead of Shareholders -
Maybe if the money is coming out of executives pockets there will be more incentive to actually change how major financial institutions operate.
Propaganda firm owner admits attacks on journalists -
A strange story about a Pentagon propaganda contractor operating independently to smear two journalists after they investigated his company.
This is why we care about the revolving door.
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Bob Skillen, the chief engineer at a small manufacturer called VX Aerospace, which has a plant in North Carolina, said he was shocked to see what the Army was spending for the Black Hawk drip pans. He designs drip pans that his company sells to the military for a different helicopter, the UH-46, for about $2,500 per pan, or about one-eighth the price that his Kentucky competitor charges. The pans attach beneath the roof of the helicopter to catch leaking transmission fluid before it can seep into the cabin.
“It’s not a supercomplex part,” said Mr. Skillen, an aerospace engineer who used to work for the Navy. “As a taxpayer, I’m just like, this isn’t right.”
” — Read more in The New York Times Story - Earmark Puts $17,000 Pans on Army Craft[video]
Great illustration from The Sydney Morning Herald. Read the accompanying story by POGO’s Winslow Wheeler about the flying lemon that is the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
See that line of light? That’s the stern door of a brand new, and expensive, Navy ship that won’t close. The LCS Freedom has cracks, corrosion, flooding and engine problems, and the U.S. is planning on buying many more ships like it. Read more in the Aviation Week story.
GOP congressman defends pilots for speaking out about F-22 -
Theses pilots risked their careers by coming out about the problems with the F-22. Thankfully, Rep. Adam Kinzinger is standing up for these brave whistleblowers. Read more at The Hill.
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