The Ugly End to the Largest Service Contract in U.S History →
Dealings between KBR and the Army have gotten “very nasty” as the two try to close out the largest government services contract in U.S. history, according to an article in Federal Times.
GAO: Hey Navy. How much will it cost to operate this ship?
Navy: We have no idea. In fact, we are 90% sure our current guess is wrong.
Navy Can’t Calculate Long Term Costs of Newest Ship
Image from the U.S. Navy.
“Many in our government, even some surprisingly senior officials you think would know better, seem to believe that an inspector general should be their partner — or, more correctly, their silent partner,” he said. “In their opinion, my reports should be slipped in a sealed envelope in the dead of night under the door — never to see the light of day — because those reports could embarrass the administration, embarrass President Karzai, embarrass Afghanistan.”
VA withholds bonuses because of backlog in disability claims →
WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs is withholding bonuses for senior officials who oversee disability claims, citing a failure to meet performance goals for reducing a large backlog in claims processing.
Good to see a little accountability.
A Nun, a House Painter, and a Drifter Walk into a Nuclear Complex
It sounds like the start of an absurd joke, but last summer three peace activists broke into one of the most secure nuclear-weapons facilities in the U.S.
Read the full account of their story, and the serious breakdown of security at the nuclear facility, in The Washington Post.
“The biggest source of corruption in Afghanistan was the United States.”
F-35 office sees improved relations with contractor →
The head of the F-35 Joint Program Office told Congress that the program is continuing to improve, in part because of turnover at primary contractor Lockheed Martin.
See those nice new looking incinerators? They cost you $5 million, but they’ve never been used. Instead troops are still relying on dangerous open-air burn pits for their trash.
DOD Inspector General Finds $900 Million Spare Part Stockpile →
The Army bought nearly $900 million worth of spare parts for the Stryker armored fighting vehicle even as the parts became obsolete or unnecessary, according to a report by the Defense Department Office of Inspector General.
Including:
- $57 million worth of uninstalled, obsolete infrared equipment
- 9,179 small replacement gears, of which the Army only needed 15
Almost one million veterans are waiting for their benefit claims to be processed, according to an investigation by the Center for Investigative Reporting. One regional office in North Carolina was so overrun with claims folders that the sheer weight of their content exceeded the load-bearing capacity of the building itself.
These photos were included in a 2012 report from the Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General. To see more photos and learn more about the backlog, go here.
These photos are insane. 1) Because there are so many files and 2) because they are PAPER. Click the link above for even more.
