Hey, that 3/4 million in the briefcase, can we have some of that?
December 15, 2003 4:11 PM Subscribe
Halliburton Gets $222 Million Worth of New Business in Iraq Not a bad haul, considering their tough week.
Unbelievable. This is good money that could have gone to the French!
ahem.
posted by tirade at 4:38 PM on December 15, 2003
ahem.
posted by tirade at 4:38 PM on December 15, 2003
Ignatius,
MidasMulligan (on MeTa) wants you to link to a right-wing source as well
try to dig up some lunatic who argues that Halliburton is not getting enough money from the Pentagon as it is, so you'll make him happy
;)
posted by matteo at 4:46 PM on December 15, 2003
MidasMulligan (on MeTa) wants you to link to a right-wing source as well
try to dig up some lunatic who argues that Halliburton is not getting enough money from the Pentagon as it is, so you'll make him happy
;)
posted by matteo at 4:46 PM on December 15, 2003
Actually, homunculus's link was balanced and interesting. Thanks for the good read.
posted by elwoodwiles at 5:00 PM on December 15, 2003
posted by elwoodwiles at 5:00 PM on December 15, 2003
OK, I tried, and I went to Halliburton itself, but I'm sorry - they just don't do that great a job at defending themselves. That article is their press release responding to the overcharging scandal. Their refutation is: "It is not fact that KBR has overcharged. KBR has acted in full accordance with its fiduciary and contractual responsibilities under the contract." No specifics, no addressing how the confusion might've arisen, just - I didn't do it! Thanks for respecting the intelligence of the American people Halliburton, we salute you.
posted by badstone at 5:02 PM on December 15, 2003
posted by badstone at 5:02 PM on December 15, 2003
Meanwhile, "The United States Supreme Court said today that it would hear arguments from the Bush administration about why it should not be required to turn over information about Vice President Dick Cheney's energy task force."
posted by homunculus at 5:30 PM on December 15, 2003
posted by homunculus at 5:30 PM on December 15, 2003
Halliburton is doing what any responsible public company is supposed to do: maximize profit (and shareholder's value).
If it is situated as a monopoly, it not only has the ability to, but it also has an obligation to charge for its services at a price point where the profit is maximized, otherwise the management would not be fulfilling their fudiciary duties to the owners.
So the blame lies not on Halliburton's business practice, but the people who put them in a monopolistic situation in the first place.
posted by VeGiTo at 5:43 PM on December 15, 2003
If it is situated as a monopoly, it not only has the ability to, but it also has an obligation to charge for its services at a price point where the profit is maximized, otherwise the management would not be fulfilling their fudiciary duties to the owners.
So the blame lies not on Halliburton's business practice, but the people who put them in a monopolistic situation in the first place.
posted by VeGiTo at 5:43 PM on December 15, 2003
Seth is gonna kick your ass
I tried to point out to Seth that *ALL* presidental terms have various levels of back-room payoffs and, perhaps, just perhaps it is the preception of payola not "Bush Bashing to Bash Bush". But MetaTalk isn't taking new members.
As far as I am concerned...any payola is good to be exposed in government. I'll file Seth under "Likes fraud in government" file.
posted by rough ashlar at 6:03 PM on December 15, 2003
I tried to point out to Seth that *ALL* presidental terms have various levels of back-room payoffs and, perhaps, just perhaps it is the preception of payola not "Bush Bashing to Bash Bush". But MetaTalk isn't taking new members.
As far as I am concerned...any payola is good to be exposed in government. I'll file Seth under "Likes fraud in government" file.
posted by rough ashlar at 6:03 PM on December 15, 2003
I don't know if this qualifies as a "best of the web", but the Halliburton story is certainly something..... I just have a hard time attaching the word "best" to it because there isn't much that's good about it at all. I guess I could call it "Among the most appalling of unprosecuted American political payola scandals".
The "best" seems to imply pleasant stuff so - by definition - a US presidential administration which is stooping ever lower in it's blurring of the private sector/government line could hardly be called the "best" of anything.
Still, I'd call I'd call this noteworthy. It's just not pleasant.
Pleasant. Mmmm....Puppies and kittens, anyone?
posted by troutfishing at 6:39 PM on December 15, 2003
The "best" seems to imply pleasant stuff so - by definition - a US presidential administration which is stooping ever lower in it's blurring of the private sector/government line could hardly be called the "best" of anything.
Still, I'd call I'd call this noteworthy. It's just not pleasant.
Pleasant. Mmmm....Puppies and kittens, anyone?
posted by troutfishing at 6:39 PM on December 15, 2003
not to make Seth mad or anything, but: Meet Moose
posted by amberglow at 8:29 PM on December 15, 2003
posted by amberglow at 8:29 PM on December 15, 2003
MidasMulligan (on MeTa) wants you to link to a right-wing source as well
try to dig up some lunatic who argues that Halliburton is not getting enough money from the Pentagon as it is, so you'll make him happy ;)
~ROFL~
The endless, pitiful attempt to mold Metafilter into Fox TV continues -- the tactics of those who don't seem to pack the gear to just refute critics of stupidity and greed.
Hey MidasMulligan: find your own links in support of your craven buddies at Halliburton and Enron and Rape America and American Workers Inc. (although it sure looks as if you just can't do it). While you're at it, why don't you go into your well-known spin mode about how Halliburton's business dealings with yet another wonderful country is really what's best for America.
posted by fold_and_mutilate at 9:32 AM on December 16, 2003
try to dig up some lunatic who argues that Halliburton is not getting enough money from the Pentagon as it is, so you'll make him happy ;)
~ROFL~
The endless, pitiful attempt to mold Metafilter into Fox TV continues -- the tactics of those who don't seem to pack the gear to just refute critics of stupidity and greed.
Hey MidasMulligan: find your own links in support of your craven buddies at Halliburton and Enron and Rape America and American Workers Inc. (although it sure looks as if you just can't do it). While you're at it, why don't you go into your well-known spin mode about how Halliburton's business dealings with yet another wonderful country is really what's best for America.
posted by fold_and_mutilate at 9:32 AM on December 16, 2003
Halliburton is the future. Like it or not, the government has come to the conclusion that subcontracting much of what the military does makes sense.
A ratio of 15 non-combat soldiers to 1 combat soldier is just unsustainable. A huge corporation, however, with flexible subsidiaries, can pick up lots of the slack.
They may have a point. But right now there are too *few* companies capable of doing the jobs. Once others have moved into the field, it will become more practical.
And, the bottom line is that there are too few soldiers to *both* engage in combat operations *and* nation build. Since the government is unwilling to reduce the number of missions, it must come up with viable work-arounds.
I hesitate to compare Halliburton with the East Indian Company, but there are some notable similarities.
posted by kablam at 3:34 PM on December 16, 2003
A ratio of 15 non-combat soldiers to 1 combat soldier is just unsustainable. A huge corporation, however, with flexible subsidiaries, can pick up lots of the slack.
They may have a point. But right now there are too *few* companies capable of doing the jobs. Once others have moved into the field, it will become more practical.
And, the bottom line is that there are too few soldiers to *both* engage in combat operations *and* nation build. Since the government is unwilling to reduce the number of missions, it must come up with viable work-arounds.
I hesitate to compare Halliburton with the East Indian Company, but there are some notable similarities.
posted by kablam at 3:34 PM on December 16, 2003
They may have a point. But right now there are too *few* companies capable of doing the jobs. Once others have moved into the field, it will become more practical.
And this is why such anticompetitive practices as no-bid contracts and restriction of opportunity based on the political bent of your native country's current government (come on, how many French defense contractors were against the war?) are not only unfair but dangerous.
posted by Ignatius J. Reilly at 4:45 PM on December 16, 2003
And this is why such anticompetitive practices as no-bid contracts and restriction of opportunity based on the political bent of your native country's current government (come on, how many French defense contractors were against the war?) are not only unfair but dangerous.
posted by Ignatius J. Reilly at 4:45 PM on December 16, 2003
Unfortunately, the *only* two companies on the planet equipped enough were US and French. Bugger the French.
War is and will remain a nationalistic affair. When the US goes to war, it will not do so under foreign (or UN) command, or with any foreign assets that could screw it up.
Even in Gulf War I, the French assets were sent to cover an empty chunk of desert nowhere near the action. The French are only interested in the interests of the French, and too dumb to imagine the long term consequences of their greed and arrogance.
Your argument comes into play with some odd notion of the superiority of "multinational" nation building. The UN has proven itself incompetent to do this in other places, and this is to the advantage of the US exactly how? This would even be worse for the Iraqis, given past experience.
Let me guess, so we will be loved and honored and embraced as good little members of the international community, willing to reduce ourselves down to a mediocre existence just so we can get along with others.
Sounds like the democratic party platform for remaining out of power for the next few decades.
posted by kablam at 6:19 PM on December 16, 2003
War is and will remain a nationalistic affair. When the US goes to war, it will not do so under foreign (or UN) command, or with any foreign assets that could screw it up.
Even in Gulf War I, the French assets were sent to cover an empty chunk of desert nowhere near the action. The French are only interested in the interests of the French, and too dumb to imagine the long term consequences of their greed and arrogance.
Your argument comes into play with some odd notion of the superiority of "multinational" nation building. The UN has proven itself incompetent to do this in other places, and this is to the advantage of the US exactly how? This would even be worse for the Iraqis, given past experience.
Let me guess, so we will be loved and honored and embraced as good little members of the international community, willing to reduce ourselves down to a mediocre existence just so we can get along with others.
Sounds like the democratic party platform for remaining out of power for the next few decades.
posted by kablam at 6:19 PM on December 16, 2003
If war must always be a nationalistic affair, how can we give contracts to a company like Halliburton, which has stolen from our nation? And aided our enemies, such as Iran?
It has fuck-all to do with nationalism, and everything to do with cronyism.
posted by Ignatius J. Reilly at 6:40 PM on December 16, 2003
It has fuck-all to do with nationalism, and everything to do with cronyism.
posted by Ignatius J. Reilly at 6:40 PM on December 16, 2003
The French are only interested in the interests of the French, and too dumb to imagine the long term consequences of their greed and arrogance.
Oh, the irony!
posted by bifter at 1:47 AM on December 17, 2003
Oh, the irony!
posted by bifter at 1:47 AM on December 17, 2003
Halliburton's contract to bring oil into Iraq now over--yippee!
posted by amberglow at 5:22 AM on December 31, 2003
posted by amberglow at 5:22 AM on December 31, 2003
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posted by badstone at 4:36 PM on December 15, 2003