Government Excess

[gman042]

THE NIGHT WATCHMAN

Once upon a time the government had a vast scrap yard in the middle of a desert.

Congress said, "Someone may steal from it at night." So they created a night watchman position and hired a person for the job. Then Congress said, "How does the watchman do his job without instruction?" So they created a planning department and hired two people, one person to write the instruction
s, and one person to do time studies. Then Congress said, "How will we know the night watchman is doing the tasks correctly?"

So they created a Quality Control department and hired two people. One was to do the studies and one was to write the reports. Then Congress said, "How are these people going to get paid?" So they created two positions: a time keeper and a payroll officer then hired two people. Then Congress said, "Who will be accountable for all of these people?" So they created an administrative section and hired three people, an Administrative Officer, Assistant Administrative Officer, and a Legal Secretary.

Then Congress said, "We have had this command in operation for one year and we are $918,000 over budget, we must cut back." So they laid off the night watchman.

NOW slowly, let it sink in.

...Does anybody remember the reason given for the establishment of the DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY during the Carter administration?

Anybody?

Anything?

No? Didn't think so!

Bottom line is, we've spent several hundred billion dollars in support of an agency....the reason for which not one person who reads this can remember!

Ready?? It was very simple... and at the time, everybody thought it very appropriate. The Department of Energy was instituted on 8/04/1977, TO LESSEN OUR DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN OIL.

Hey, pretty efficient, huh???

AND NOW IT'S 2012 -- 35 YEARS LATER -- AND THE BUDGET FOR THIS "NECESSARY" DEPARTMENT IS AT $24.2 BILLION A YEAR. IT HAS 16,000 FEDERAL EMPLOYEES AND APPROXIMATELY 100,000 CONTRACT EMPLOYEES; AND LOOK AT THE JOB IT HAS DONE!

(THIS IS WHERE YOU SLAP YOUR FOREHEAD AND SAY, "WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?")

34 years ago 30% of our oil consumption was foreign imports. Today 70% of our oil consumption is foreign imports.

Ah, yes -- good old Federal bureaucracy.

NOW, WE HAVE TURNED OVER THE BANKING SYSTEM, HEALTH CARE, AND THE AUTO INDUSTRY TO THE SAME GOVERNMENT?

It is time to trim the fat out of government. The deficit would be a thing of the past.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

The amount of waste and redundancy in the government is mind-boggling. When I was in the military one of the first things I was told was "if it don't move, paint it". It was nothing for us to paint the same piece of equipment or building twice a year. Budget time was even more eye-opening. Our fiscal year ran from 1 Oct-30 Sep and when it came down to the last few weeks we were told to spend whatever money we had left as we would not get it back the following year. I can also recall being handed the keys to a govt vehicle and told to ride around the base because if we didn't have enough miles on the vehicle we would lose it. And that was from my perspective as an enlisted man--I can only imagine the fraud/waste/abuse at the upper echelons.

Eliminate all of the fraud/waste/abuse and we would run an annual surplus.

 

[Babagounj]

What Budget ?
Our Senate hasn't passed a budget in over 4 years.
So officially this gov't is running on nothing.

 

[Lue C Fur]

The amount of waste and redundancy in the government is mind-boggling. When I was in the military one of the first things I was told was "if it don't move, paint it". It was nothing for us to paint the same piece of equipment or building twice a year. Budget time was even more eye-opening. Our fiscal year ran from 1 Oct-30 Sep and when it came down to the last few weeks we were told to spend whatever money we had left as we would not get it back the following year. I can also recall being handed the keys to a govt vehicle and told to ride around the base because if we didn't have enough miles on the vehicle we would lose it. And that was from my perspective as an enlisted man--I can only imagine the fraud/waste/abuse at the upper echelons.

Eliminate all of the fraud/waste/abuse and we would run an annual surplus.

I remember the same kinda crap. We painted aircraft chalks...just because we had the paint. I saw CE painting fences...in the friggin rain. And i remember the same crap in October too..."use it or you will lose it" was the motto. We would spend 50 grand to try and get 10 grand. I wonder if its better, worse, or the same now.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

I remember the same kinda crap. We painted aircraft chalks...just because we had the paint. I saw CE painting fences...in the friggin rain. And i remember the same crap in October too..."use it or you will lose it" was the motto. We would spend 50 grand to try and get 10 grand. I wonder if its better, worse, or the same now.

I painted more than my fair share of chocks.

The one change that I know has taken place is the military has had to relax their physical fitness standards due to the X-Box playin' Generation Me recruits.

 

[wkmac]

THE NIGHT WATCHMAN

Once upon a time the government had a vast scrap yard in the middle of a desert.

Congress said, "Someone may steal from it at night." So they created a night watchman position and hired a person for the job. Then Congress said, "How does the watchman do his job without instruction?" So they created a planning department and hired two people, one person to write the instruction
s, and one person to do time studies. Then Congress said, "How will we know the night watchman is doing the tasks correctly?"

So they created a Quality Control department and hired two people. One was to do the studies and one was to write the reports. Then Congress said, "How are these people going to get paid?" So they created two positions: a time keeper and a payroll officer then hired two people. Then Congress said, "Who will be accountable for all of these people?" So they created an administrative section and hired three people, an Administrative Officer, Assistant Administrative Officer, and a Legal Secretary.

Then Congress said, "We have had this command in operation for one year and we are $918,000 over budget, we must cut back." So they laid off the night watchman.

NOW slowly, let it sink in.

...Does anybody remember the reason given for the establishment of the DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY during the Carter administration?

Anybody?

Anything?

No? Didn't think so!

Bottom line is, we've spent several hundred billion dollars in support of an agency....the reason for which not one person who reads this can remember!

Ready?? It was very simple... and at the time, everybody thought it very appropriate. The Department of Energy was instituted on 8/04/1977, TO LESSEN OUR DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN OIL.

Hey, pretty efficient, huh???

AND NOW IT'S 2012 -- 35 YEARS LATER -- AND THE BUDGET FOR THIS "NECESSARY" DEPARTMENT IS AT $24.2 BILLION A YEAR. IT HAS 16,000 FEDERAL EMPLOYEES AND APPROXIMATELY 100,000 CONTRACT EMPLOYEES; AND LOOK AT THE JOB IT HAS DONE!

(THIS IS WHERE YOU SLAP YOUR FOREHEAD AND SAY, "WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?")

34 years ago 30% of our oil consumption was foreign imports. Today 70% of our oil consumption is foreign imports.

Ah, yes -- good old Federal bureaucracy.

NOW, WE HAVE TURNED OVER THE BANKING SYSTEM, HEALTH CARE, AND THE AUTO INDUSTRY TO THE SAME GOVERNMENT?

It is time to trim the fat out of government. The deficit would be a thing of the past.

It's open to debate just how much of these industries we ever had so to speak.

As to the Federal Reserve

For Healthcare, there's the Flexner Report but there's the overview approach too.

Flexner Report - YouTube

And even the Auto came as a result of market manipulation and the gov't interventionist hand.

Taken for a Ride (Full Length Documentary) - YouTube

 

[moreluck]