Farewell. The Flying Pig Has Left The Building.

Steve Hynd, August 16, 2012

After four years on the Typepad site, eight years total blogging, Newshoggers is closing it's doors today. We've been coasting the last year or so, with many of us moving on to bigger projects (Hey, Eric!) or simply running out of blogging enthusiasm, and it's time to give the old flying pig a rest.

We've done okay over those eight years, although never being quite PC enough to gain wider acceptance from the partisan "party right or wrong" crowds. We like to think we moved political conversations a little, on the ever-present wish to rush to war with Iran, on the need for a real Left that isn't licking corporatist Dem boots every cycle, on America's foreign misadventures in Afghanistan and Iraq. We like to think we made a small difference while writing under that flying pig banner. We did pretty good for a bunch with no ties to big-party apparatuses or think tanks.

Those eight years of blogging will still exist. Because we're ending this typepad account, we've been archiving the typepad blog here. And the original blogger archive is still here. There will still be new content from the old 'hoggers crew too. Ron writes for The Moderate Voice, I post at The Agonist and Eric Martin's lucid foreign policy thoughts can be read at Democracy Arsenal.

I'd like to thank all our regular commenters, readers and the other bloggers who regularly linked to our posts over the years to agree or disagree. You all made writing for 'hoggers an amazingly fun and stimulating experience.

Thank you very much.

Note: This is an archive copy of Newshoggers. Most of the pictures are gone but the words are all here. There may be some occasional new content, John may do some posts and Ron will cross post some of his contributions to The Moderate Voice so check back.


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Tuesday, June 10, 2008

"The largest war profiteering in history"

By Cernig



A Bush administration gagging order is preventing investigations of the extent of corruption and war profiteering in Iraq.

A BBC investigation estimates that around $23bn (�11.75bn) may have been lost, stolen or just not properly accounted for in Iraq.



For the first time, the extent to which some private contractors have profited from the conflict and rebuilding has been researched by the BBC's Panorama using US and Iraqi government sources.



A US gagging order is preventing discussion of the allegations.



The order applies to 70 court cases against some of the top US companies.



While George Bush remains in the White House, it is unlikely the gagging orders will be lifted.



To date, no major US contractor faces trial for fraud or mismanagement in Iraq.



The president's Democrat opponents are keeping up the pressure over war profiteering in Iraq.



Henry Waxman who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said: "The money that's gone into waste, fraud and abuse under these contracts is just so outrageous, its egregious.



"It may well turn out to be the largest war profiteering in history."

I'll say this plain - I find it difficult to believe that senior administration and military figures have not themselves been enriched by some of these missing biliions. Are we really to believe that corruption, graft and bribery - some of which involved missing weaponry which was likely sold on the black market and used to kill US soldiers - was widespread up to the level of Lt. Colonel or Republican congresscritter, but no further? Maybe after the Bush Years we'll get to find out.



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1 comment:

  1. kgusJune 10, 2008 at 8:32 PM

    It's certainly possible that the profits might stop at mid-level -- but the cover-up always goes higher.

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