Posted on 07/12/2007 8:11:54 AM PDT by freespirited
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Undercover investigators, working for a fake firm, obtained a license to buy enough radioactive material to build a "dirty bomb," amid little scrutiny from federal regulators, according to a government report obtained on Wednesday.
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued the license to the dummy company in just 28 days with only a cursory review, the Government Accountability Office said in a report to be released on Thursday.
The GAO, which set up the sting, said the NRC approved the license after a couple of faxes and phones calls and then mailed it to the phoney company's headquarters -- a drop box at a United Parcel Service location.
"From the date of application to the issuance of the license, the entire process lasted 28 days," the GAO said. "GAO investigators essentially obtained a valid materials license from the NRC without ever leaving their desks."
The NRC oversees the U.S. nuclear industry and nuclear material safety issues.
The GAO report said its undercover agents made counterfeit copies of the license, changed the wording to remove restrictions on how much they were allowed to buy and then ordered enough radiological materials to build a dirty bomb.
The GAO, a nonpartisan investigative arm of Congress, said its investigators did not take possession of the radiological materials.
U.S. officials have warned that militant groups, including al Qaeda, could use conventional explosives and material from sources as common as hospital X-ray departments to build so-called dirty bombs that could spread radioactive waste across urban centers.
The GAO sting was requested by a Senate panel that has been exploring post-Sept. 11 security gaps in the U.S. government's regulation of radioactive material.
The senior Republican on the panel, Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, said the panel found the NRC was issuing licenses for "dangerous" level materials before visiting facilities making the applications.
"The NRC's first visit to the facilities could be up to one year after the license was issued. That's like handing out a gun license and waiting a year to do the background check," Coleman said in a statement.
The GAO recommended the NRC improve its process for examining license applications for radioactive materials and explore ways to prevent the counterfeiting of licenses.
See how government operates? This is like someone putting a note in a suggestion box. In the private sector, heads would roll.
Again? There appears to be an epidemic of this.
Homeland Security has achieved Oxymoron status.
How about shooting a few of these screwups in the public square?
That might motivate the surviving government fatasses to work a little harder.
If this is so easy to do, how come we haven’t actually built a nuclear plant to alleviate our energy needs in 30 years?
UNFRICK’NBELIEVABLE!......
The government is really looking out for us...What a crock of crap!
Really??
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1864807/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1864550/posts
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1864363/posts
ruh roh
This is exhibit # 9018342353 about why we shouldn’t allow government to handle our health care system, or any other process that can be handled by the private sector.
Exactly...They can’t find their own A@$ with both hands...
LOL and some people think that owning a semi-auto Kalashnikov type rifle is the worst thing in the US...
I think we need government control more than anything else...
Unfortunately the search feature doesnt detect duplicates that have entirely different titles.
Try this:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/search?m=all;o=time;s=license
then tell me that one again....
When I search I use the full title. I find that is usually a better approach than searching a single word.
If a duplicate post bothers you that much, I am sorry but I just don’t know what to tell ya.
Pointless to try to help people do better sometimnes...
(and the freepathons get longer every quarter)
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