Illustration of How Gov't Spends Your Money (Pic)

[ace_800 5,000+ posts]

I'm contracting in the air force. I actually setup the contracts for all the things the government buys. Believe me if someone bought a TV as "training equipment" and its in his house then he could get in deep shit if caught. We do buy alot of dumb shit but most of the time the reason is cause of the companies tht we buy from. The US companies are reasonable, but many of the 3rd country companies **** us and there isn't much we can do about it. Expecially if it is something required.

 

[Flipx99 5,000+ posts]

I'm contracting in the air force. I actually setup the contracts for all the things the government buys. Believe me if someone bought a TV as "training equipment" and its in his house then he could get in deep shit if caught. We do buy alot of dumb shit but most of the time the reason is cause of the companies tht we buy from. The US companies are reasonable, but many of the 3rd country companies **** us and there isn't much we can do about it. Expecially if it is something required.

I am betting it was MWR.

I'm in finance...I'd love to see how that one squeaked through. Methinks that fellow bullshitted him....or lied/stole it.

 

[Flipx99 5,000+ posts]

I never said that it was the job of the government, just using that as a cost comparison that people could relate to.
Is it not the job of the government to make sure our water is safe, and our kids in public schooling get a good education?

Stick up for military spending all you like. I know firsthand one soldier who bought a big screen tv for his house and billed it off as "training equipment". If one does it, I'd place a large wager that there are billions of dollars misspent from the military budget, while we drink piss with a ton of chemicals poured in it.

Yes, the government does a fair job of clean water, perhaps they could do better with public education, but that requires a cultural shift where the best want to become educators, not make tons of money elsewhere.

 

[ace_800 5,000+ posts]

I am betting it was MWR.
I'm in finance...I'd love to see how that one squeaked through. Methinks that fellow bullshitted him....or lied/stole it.

Agreed, probably BS'd him. I've seen a few flat screens requested but it was either MWR or a CC asking for one for their conference room.

 

[Flipx99 5,000+ posts]

Agreed, probably BS'd him. I've seen a few flat screens requested but it was either MWR or a CC asking for one for their conference room.

I am guessing the fellow stole it from MWR if it is true....Unless the guy was Army, Navy, or something. I have no idea how the other services work.

OT, but have you ever been stationed at al udeid?

 

[Jmac 10+ year member]

NASA is such an unbelievable waste of time and money it amazes me.
Why spend money on worthless outerspace while we have all these economic problems?

Wow, what an ignorant comment ...
NASA has invented, helped invent, or drastically improved many technologies that we now use in our everyday lives.

The money invested into the cold war and the space race is one of the reasons why the US became the powerhouse that it is today.

Economic problems will resolve themselves in time. It's also a worldwide issue, so it's not like the US can just throw a bunch of money at it to make it go away.

 

[Jmac 10+ year member]

Only 1.228 Billion on healthy communities and ecosystems, 2.7 on clean and safe water, and only .282B on safe and drug free schools. Yet space exploration gets 17B.
Looks to me like we could shave a tiny bit of military spending and spend a bit more keeping our people healthy and better educated, but what do I know? I mean, how much does a missle cost? We train our soldiers by actually blowing up Hummers, tanks and such. Isn't it enough to know you hit it? You couldnt use dummy missles for target practice? Not only would you save the cost of a missle, which is probably enough to feed a family of 4 for a year, but you'd get to hit the Hummer more than once, too.

Don't show me this sh*t. I go off on tangents easily. LOL

Dummies aren't the same. Sometimes you need to know exactly how shit blows up if your job is to blow shit up or make bombs/missiles that blow shit up.
However, I agree the US needs to spend less on military action, and I think Obama will probably follow through over the next few years, slowly but surely. There's no good reason why the US should still be fighting wars in so many countries right now. It's been almost 7 years since 9/11 and it's costing the US a fortune to be over in Middle East. Not to mention that the US has thousands of soldiers and artillery abroad in the likes of South America and Europe.

 

[sctattooer 10+ year member]

u mad brah?

Hahahaha! Maybe just a bit.

I'm one of the older guys in this forum, been around for quite awhile. I understand that the world isn't the same place it was 30 years ago, but if I remember correctly, the government is supposed to be by the people, for the people. It just saddens me that we have to focus on being the country who can kick everyone's ***, instead of being the proud leader we once were.

American jobs have dwindled away, disease is killing more Americans every day than any other 2 countries combined, and the simple pleasures we used to allow ourselves are either being taxed out of reach or regulated away. Yet our main focus is military domination and looking for life forms in space.

I agree that NASA is important, don't get me wrong. It's just that the slide scale for being #1 has changed. I still believe our country should be respected rather than feared, and it's an embarrassment that something as honorable as the American flag has to be produced in another country. I consider myself a patriot because I've seen an America that I was proud of. Now, like most other Americans, I just point the finger at those in charge and say "blame them".

I actually setup the contracts for all the things the government buys. Believe me if someone bought a TV as "training equipment" and its in his house then he could get in deep shit if caught.

It does happen. To believe that it doesnt, you'd have to believe also than nobody cheats on their taxes, drives faster than the posted speed limit or sells drugs. Deep shit doesnt mean much to some people. This guy probably assumes, like many others, that in the grand scope of things, this is a petty thing. The more people think like he does, the more TVs and whatever else are being bilked from the government. Logically, we can't assume that he's the only one.