» 2011 » November Ms Sparky

BAE Systems accused of retaliation & playing the “mental illness” card (Updated 12/02/11)

Posted on: November 29th, 2011 at 9:54 am — by Ms Sparky

Let me get this straight, war hero and Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. Dakota Meyer goes to work for major US defense contractor BAE Systems in Texas and not only is he ridiculed by his supervisor for his heroism but the company has the audacity to question his sanity? The only sanity in question here are the government entities who continue awarding contracts to these repeat offenders. Why is it, defense contractors who plead guilty to crimes and who continue to be implicated in shady and underhanded business practices are rewarded with new contracts? Why the hell are these parasites being awarded USG contracts allowing them to suck the U.S. taxpayer dry instead of being debarred? And, what’s up with these contractors using the mental illness card against employees who come forward and blow the whistle on their dirty deeds? Seems to me more than one contractor with FCPA issues and ties to Texas has repeatedly used the “this employee is crazy” defense to cover their tracks and protect their profit margins. Maybe the legal leeches that defend these deviants lack the creativity to come up with new ideas or excuses for their clients’ actions.

When will the DoJ learn that settling with criminals is not a deterrent? I’m willing to bet these companies factor in the costs of getting caught into their bid calculations leaving the taxpayer on the hook for covering these hidden fees every time the DoD, DoS and even the DoJ rewards them with a contract. A special gated community provided by the Federal Bureau of Prisons would be a good start DoJ! ~Ms Sparky

Dakota Meyer vs. Bobby McCreight and BAE Systems, Inc.

Decorated Marine Sues Contractor

Sgt. Dakota L. Meyer - Photo Wikipedia

Julian E. Barnes – (Wall Street Journel) – November 28, 2011 – In legal papers filed Monday, the Marine claims that BAE Systems, where he worked earlier this year, retaliated against him after he raised objections about BAE’s alleged decision to sell high-tech sniper scopes to the Pakistani military. He says his supervisor at BAE effectively blocked his hiring by another defense contractor by making the claims about drinking and his mental condition.

Sgt. Meyer’s complaint is likely to pose a more difficult challenge for BAE, a British company with extensive U.S. operations, than a typical employment dispute. In the September White House ceremony, Sgt. Meyer was hailed for braving enemy fire as he tried to save the lives of fellow Marines who had been trapped in a Taliban ambush.

BAE said it would defend itself, but comments by BAE officials Monday made clear they don’t want to be seen as denigrating a Medal of Honor recipient. “Although we strongly disagree with his claims, which we will address through the appropriate legal process, we wish him success and good fortune in his endeavors,” said Brian J. Roehrkasse, a BAE spokesman. He declined to discuss any specifics of the suit.

Through a lawyer, Sgt. Meyer declined to comment on his suit. Representatives of the Pentagon and Marine Corps said they weren’t aware of the suit. (Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in GOV. CONTRACTORS, LAWSUITS. Tags: Ausgar Technologies, BAE Systems, Bobby McCreight, Brian J. Roehrkasse, DoD*, DoJ*, DOS*, Robert Higginson, Sgt. Dakota Meyer, U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), U.S. Marine Corps. 8 Comments »

Supreme Group Probed Over No-Bid Contracts to Feed Troops in Afghanistan

Posted on: November 28th, 2011 at 6:44 am — by Ms Sparky

Supreme Group, a king of U.S. military logistics, earned billions supplying food to troops in Afghanistan. Now, in a case reminiscent of Halliburton’s Iraq scandal, the contractor is under investigation for overbilling taxpayers. Aram Roston reports.

Aram Roston - (The Daily Beast) - November 27, 2011 - At first blush, Michael Jacques Gans doesn’t appear to be your typical defense contractor. An attorney by training, Gans spends his spare time racing a mint-condition, sky-blue Bugatti race car—vintage 1927—on tracks across Europe. He doesn’t reside inside Washington’s Beltway, preferring instead his home in Germany or a multimillion-dollar duplex on New York’s Fifth Avenue, overlooking Central Park.

And Supreme Group, the firm he co-owns with his German-born wife, Nina Von Steuben, and American businessman Stephen Orenstein, is hardly a household name in the U.S. with its main operations in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Dubai. But inside Afghanistan, Supreme is a king of U.S. military logistics, performing a dizzying amount of wartime business that has earned the firm billions of dollars, easily enough to support a luxury lifestyle for its owners.

For the last six years, Supreme has imported all of the U.S military’s food into Afghanistan, and its contract was extended by the Pentagon in 2010 for two years and $4 billion without the normal competitive bidding. But that’s just part of its business. Supreme also runs military mess halls on Forward Operating Bases, trucks gasoline and diesel into Afghanistan from both Uzbekistan and Pakistan, and operates two warehouses that it boasts are now the largest structures in Afghanistan, dwarfing even the country’s ancient palaces. Since 2005, the company’s various Pentagon contracts in Afghanistan have been worth $8 billion.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in Agility/PWC/GCC, GOV. CONTRACTORS, Reports & Investigations. Tags: Agility/PWC/GCC, Dick Cheney, DLA*, Halliburton, Lt. Gen. Robert T. Dail, Michael Jacques Gans, Nina Von Steuben, Retired General's Club, Stephen Orenstein, Supreme Foodservice, Supreme Group USA. 8 Comments »

All I want for Christmas is a new IG & other news

Posted on: November 28th, 2011 at 3:40 am — by Forseti

Pentagon Inspector General Gordon Heddell to Step Down on Christmas Eve
Nick Schwellenbach – (POGO) – November 26, 2011 – POGO got word this morning that Department of Defense Inspector General (DoDIG) Gordon Heddell announced earlier this week that he will step down as IG on December 24, Christmas Eve. Heddell’s email announcing his upcoming resignation is posted below.

Heddell has had a challenging task. To say that the DoD is a bastion of questionable spending and is rife with secrecy would be understatements. But that would only begin to describe the oversight difficulties. It is essentially the only government department that is unauditable. Different whistleblower laws with different standards apply to civilians versus military personnel versus contractor personnel. The chaos of war makes fact-finding more difficult and more expensive to conduct. Plus, Heddell inherited an office that has been described by many insiders who’ve talked to me and others as a backbiting place. The Office of Inspector General (OIG) is a bit of a colossus too: more than 1600 people worked in the OIG as of March of this year. (Click HERE for article)

Birmingham law firms praised for inspiring Bosnian sex-trade exposé The Whistleblower
By Graeme Brown – (Birmingham Post) – November 25, 2011 – Two West Midlands lawyers whose fight to expose a United Nations cover-up of the Bosnian sex trade was turned into a film have said it highlights the importance of pro-bono work which goes on in the region.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Troops home from Iraq & other reasons to give thanks on Thanksgiving

Posted on: November 24th, 2011 at 9:24 am — by Forseti

Guard members home in time for Thanksgiving
Conrad Wilson – (Minnesota Public Radio) – St. Cloud, Minn. – November 24, 2011 – Hugs and smiles reunited family members and friends inside a large military hanger at the St. Cloud airport as 70 members of the Minnesota National Guard returned home from nine months duty in Iraq.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in A Soldiers Story, GOV. CONTRACTORS, Holiday Tribute To Soldiers. Tags: Afghanistan, Anham LLC, DLA*, Holidays*, Iraq, Kuwait, Pentagon, Supreme Foodservice, Thanksgiving. No Comments »

Happy Thanksgiving to those at home and abroad

Posted on: November 24th, 2011 at 7:43 am — by Ms Sparky

All of us at MsSparky.com would like to wish each and every one of you a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday. For those soldiers and civilians still serving overseas, a warm thank you for keeping us safe and secure, we will pray for you continued safety. For those families of deployed soldiers and civilians, we are thankful for your sacrifice and commitment. Lastly, for those who have lost loved ones, a special prayer asking for your peace and comfort will be said at our dinner table today.

I hope you will take a moment and focus on what you are thankful for.

Ms Sparky
Forseti

Posted in Holiday Tribute To Soldiers. Tags: Thanksgiving. No Comments »

DRS Technologies’ parent company is at the center of corruption probe in Italy

Posted on: November 23rd, 2011 at 11:07 am — by Forseti

In 2008, it bought the U.S. military contractor DRS Technologies Inc. in a $5.2 billion deal that Finmeccanica sought to boost its role as a key supplier of defense and security systems.

Monti urges ‘rapid’ resolution to corruption probe

Colleen Barry – (AP Business Writer) – MILAN – November 23, 2011 -Italian Premier Mario Monti’s fledgling government was facing its first emergency on Wednesday, a spiraling corruption probe at state-controlled Finmeccanica, the country’s aerospace and engineering giant. A government official reportedly met with Finmeccanica’s chairman during the day. On Tuesday, Monti issued a statement calling for a “rapid and responsible solution” to the allegations that a slush fund was set up to pay off politicians who referred contracts to Finmeccanica.

Monti, who was in Brussels to meet with European Union officials, said he was following developments closely.

His office could not confirm news agency reports that Chairman Pier Francesco Guarguaglini met with Monti’s undersecretary, Antonio Catricala. But Monti said in a statement he would have the defense and economic development ministers ensure that the company is taking the necessary steps to address the scandal.

(Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in GOV. CONTRACTORS, Reports & Investigations. Tags: Antonio Catricala, DRS Technologies, Finmeccanica, Marin Grossi, Pier Francesco Guarguaglini, Premier Mario Monti, Selex. 2 Comments »

TSA Failed To Enforce Key Homeland Security Screening Process

Posted on: November 22nd, 2011 at 1:23 pm — by Forseti

Photo: Emily Metcalf

Bill MCMorris – (Hawaii Reporter) - ALEXANDRIA – November 22, 2011 – Holiday travelers could receive enhanced pat-downs at the hands of Transportation Security Administration agents in the next few days, but TSA failed to enforce a key foreign pilot screening process that could have prevented the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

For several months in 2010, TSA and Department of Defense contractor Mantech International Corp.failed to enforce the Alien Flight Student Program, which performs threat assessments and background checks on about 35,000 non-citizens learning to fly every year.

“This hasn’t come back to bite us yet, but it only has to be one time,” said one source with direct knowledge of the program.

Another said of the broken screening program, “it was appalling. (Mantech was) hemorrhaging staff like crazy, and it kept getting worse and worse.”

That assessment was confirmed by other sources, all requesting anonymity because they feared their ties to the defense industry and Department of Homeland Security could be jeopardized.

(Read the rest of the story here…)