Billions Lost By Feds

New York Post ^ | May 28, 2002 | By John Crudele

[Beau Schott]

May 28, 2002 -- WASHINGTON complains about deceptive corporate accounting. But the government last year misplaced an incredible $17.3 billion because of shoddy bookkeeping, or worse.

Let me put that into numbers so you can fully appreciate the amount. It's $17,300,000,000 - the price of a few dozen urban renewal projects, a nice size fleet of warships or about half the tax cut that everyone made such a fuss about last summer.

[fightu4it]

There was a time in this Country's history when people who handled public funds were required to make a bond.

The practice should be reinstated at all levels of the Federal Government.

[pkpjamestown]

Bump!

[kylaka]

It is still required though not enforced. Next time you get a nasty letter from the IRS challenge the agents credentials. Chances are they will not have the required indemnification, and chances are they will not have record of having taken a valid oath of office.

[dixie sass]

rotfl

[AEMILIUS PAULUS]

The money is not lost, misplaced,forgotten,omitted, neglected or whatever.

[Elkiejg]

This makes me furious!! It's past time that citizens took action. We need a grassroots movement that we will pay NO TAXES until 'OUR' money is found and the books are balanced. What can they do ---- put millions of us in jail???

[lgjhn]

What can they do ---- put millions of us in jail???

Yep!!! Exactly what they would "attempt" to do, especially now that they have most of us totally disarmed....Now you know "the rest of the story"...but one thing about it, once they have the "producers" no longer producing, the "have-not welfare types" will come for them regardless...There are over a quarter million ganstas in LA alone....should be interesting....Atlas Shrugged comes to life!!

[Registered]

A "we don't have the resources to address illegal immigration" bump.

[MissAmericanPie]

There should be a law that what ever agency is short must stay closed until the short fall is made up in salaries and operation expense. That should shut down 100% of the government. Needs a Freepin!!!

[Zack Nguyen]

Thanks for recalling that article. The government is simply a mess.

Frankly, what we need is a President who says, "I will not tolerate financial mismanagemnt of the people's money", and begins breaking arms, like for instance shutting down programs that cannot account for the money given them. A few programs get zeroed out, a few thousand people are out of work, and the rest would begin to shape up.

[stylin19a]

This is a big deal ? Jesse's been using that kind of accounting for Operation PUSH for years.

[FormerLurker]

Thanks for the link Freedomm. It appears that your link wasn't as UNFRPC as mine, as your post is still there and mine has "been removed my the moderator"..

That's when you know you've hit a serious nerve. :)

[FormerLurker]

Ssshhhh... You can't mention the facts here on FR or your post will get "moderated". If you check, the post you replied to has been censored.

[Major Matt Mason]

Well, I just sent a nasty letter to my Rep, which I'm sure will be ignored. I wonder if this $17.3 billion includes the rampant credit card fraud that is most likely taking place in all government agencies? I know of at least 2 or 3 agencies that have already been nailed, but I find it hard to believe that they are the only ones. Most in the U.S. Government couldn't give a rats behind about those outside the beltway, anyway, so these types of disclosures aren't really that surprising.

[GuideRight]

Main problem is that we taxpayers give our hard earned taxes a dollar at at time.

[DennisR]

To these guys, $17.3 billion in pork is just a small can of Spam.

[FormerLurker]

I meant to type, "removed by the moderator"..

[DennisR]

An NRST will also breath gargantuan breaths of life into the black market. The solution is a 10% flat rate tax on income, everyone pays, no deductions for anything. That is the only way government will not be able to tweak things in its favor.

[DennisR]

The problem is that when a politician looks at a number such as $3,400,000,000,000, his/her brain activity stops after seeing the first two numbers: a three and a four. They then think to themselves, "Wow...three is a pretty small number, and so is a four. So I do not see any problem here." These people are politicians, not mathematicians. So they have absolutely no idea how much money they are wasting. And the money they extort from us now is never, ever enough.