Article

2009-09-11 Economy

U.S. government nervous about stimulus fraud, scams

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Posted by Fred 2009-09-11 08:54|| || Front Page|| [11127 views ] Top

#1 In another case of dishing it out, but not willing to take it -

When George Bush Senior was being methodical about federal funding in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew, the Donks hammered on him for the slow response.

When George Bush Junior open the federal funding flood gates for quick response for Hurricane Katrina, the Donks hammered on him for the loss of accountability and resultant fraud.

Now its their turn. This is a preemptive attempt to avoid the standards they've set for everyone else.

Posted by Procopius2k 2009-09-11 09:05|| 2009-09-11 09:05|| Front Page Top

#2 Such as for groups like ACORN advising two undercover reporters acting as pimp and prostitute on how to get around the law...?

Posted by JohnQC 2009-09-11 09:08|| 2009-09-11 09:08|| Front Page Top

#3 In other news, Farmer Jones locked the barn door after all the cattle escaped.

Posted by charger 2009-09-11 11:08|| 2009-09-11 11:08|| Front Page Top

#4 Sounds like another case for Palintir Technology, the upstart terror-tracking geeks out of California. An excerpt from the WSJ article:

Spy agencies like the CIA and military intelligence organizations have hundreds of databases each, most of which aren't linked up. A single database might contain reports from field agents or lists of known terrorists or companies thought to be financing terrorism. To conduct an investigation, analysts have to query individual databases separately, then try to make sense of the data -- frequently with pen and paper.
With many of the existing search tools, analysts also can't access some files on terrorist suspects or threats because a bit of data in the file is classified at a level higher than they are allowed to see. That is a problem, because making connections among new clues and existing data is a key to foiling terrorist plots. Among the missed opportunities cited by post-9/11 investigations were the failure to see that five of the 19 hijackers used the same phone number as ringleader Mohammad Atta to book their airline tickets, two used the same frequent-flier number, and five used two common addresses to make their reservations.
Palantir's software plugs these gaps by using a "tagging" technique similar to that used by the search functions on most Web sites. Palantir tags, or categorizes, every bit of data separately, whether it be a first name, a last name or a phone number. That means if only one piece of data in a file is classified top-secret, an analyst with a lower level clearance can still see the rest of the data. It also allows analysts to quickly tag information themselves as it arrives in the form of field reports from spies overseas, and to see who else in the agency is doing similar research so they can share their findings.
By connecting different databases, analysts can start making new links. Someone could see, for example, that one terrorist suspect flagged in one database has been living at the same address as the cousin of another suspect whose information is in another database, and that the two men flew to the same city after money was transfer red to a particular bank account.
Some analysts say Palantir's strength is helping analysts draw inferences when confronted with an enormous amount of disparate data. Palantir's tool is getting a thumbs-up from officers using it. "It is much simpler to understand the results of inquiries, and provides more in-depth database links then the current programs in use by the Army today," says Captain James King, an Army intelligence officer.

Posted by Lumpy Elmoluck5091 2009-09-11 11:38|| 2009-09-11 11:38|| Front Page Top

#5 As billions of dollars from the economic stimulus plan pour through the U.S. economy, members of Congress, the administration and regulatory agencies are increasingly worried about ~~the risks of fraud~~ how they can get their own filthy hands on some of it.

Fixed.

Posted by Ebbang Uluque6305 2009-09-11 12:26|| 2009-09-11 12:26|| Front Page Top

#6 It was fraud from the git go when the bill was passed.

Posted by JohnQC 2009-09-11 12:39|| 2009-09-11 12:39|| Front Page Top

#7 A massive theft from taxpayers for the benefit of politically connected bondholders.

Posted by Bright Pebbles 2009-09-11 12:55|| 2009-09-11 12:55|| Front Page Top

#8 I keep wishing the USG would investigate the fraud among large financial institutions that made the whole stimulus necessary in the first place. Something productive might come of that. Are Credit Default Swaps a scam? Instead they are investigating the CIA and wasting time on an even less affordable health care plan.

Posted by Anguper Hupomosing9418 2009-09-11 14:58|| 2009-09-11 14:58|| Front Page Top

#9 no worry, remember- Sheriff Joe Biden is stimulus fraud czar

Posted by Frank G">Frank G 2009-09-11 18:22|| 2009-09-11 18:22|| Front Page Top

#10 Considering the clowns running the gummint right now ARE frauds and scammers....

Posted by Barbara Skolaut">Barbara Skolaut 2009-09-11 18:33|| 2009-09-11 18:33|| Front Page Top

23:41 Frank G
23:40 Frank G
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