Terrorist Attack in Norway

[roshinaya]

The Norwegian suspect has already admitted to the bombing and the shooting. And besides it's not uncommon for terrorists organizations to take credit for these sort of things even when they aren't behind it. Gets their name out there.

 

[bubbleheadchief]

So Big Pete, with all of the self righteousness (or liberal correctness) you spew all of the time, I'm curious about how all of the secret projects you claim to have worked on have helped this be a better place to live ? I know its a secret and you can't talk about it. But as an example the intelligence that Colin Powell talked about before G.W. went in to Iraq. The intelligence that people you might know were responsible for passing on to these masterminds(purple) that decided to send our troops into" Harms Way " and cost this country BILLIONS of dollars not to mention the loss of human life on both sides. That is one example, but with the reputation this country has gotten from all of our various meddling in other countries business that we usually end up looking foolish over, I question the the whole process. How can it not be given a big FAIL?



Now I know this is where you like to come back with the Bush bashing. Bash away I did'nt vote for GW or his dad. I'll just say this. From the years of your life that you have served this country (being paid quite nicely for it) you stand up for BHO with a very mighty conviction. I know he did not cause the economic turmoil that this country is going through. after two and a half years of his policies things are getting worse not better. Storefonts and stripmalls sit empty, more and more businesses are going under like I've never before seen. He is running this country into the ground and you seem to be blind to that due to the fact that he is a democrat. Party should'nt matter when performance is an EPIC FAIL!!!



Back on topic, I was driving when I first heard about the terrorist act that could have been Muslim extremists as reported by a liberal leaning radio station I was listening to.

What the **** did I miss????? I never got paid quite nicely while I was in, as a matter of fact I got about 1/3 of what my civilian counterparts got, which in my book equals shit. Also never heard of any of my civilian counterparts going to work then coming home 6 to 9 months later.

 

[BigPete]

He's brought it up constantly for a long time.

I've brought it up to validate experiences I had while in the army and afterwards. They are not opinions. People with opinions have tried to claim that it was the intel community's fault that Bush/Cheney chose to invade Iraq. BULLSHIT and it has been written in dozens of books now. Additionally I know from personal experiences that they were pushing the intel community to find reasons to invade. That is when I bring it up. It is not to wag my dick in anyone's face. I would rather support and explain my 'opinions' than drop a bomb and run back home like some posters on here that happen to be AF vets.

As for getting paid well because I am now a government IT contractor...all IT people with lots of experience and a broad skill set make good money. I make a little more because of the clearance. While anyone can request a clearance for various reasons they still cost about 70 grand to obtain. That's another reason pay is better for those with them, than those without. We are a valued commodity.

 

[BigPete]

What the **** did I miss????? I never got paid quite nicely while I was in, as a matter of fact I got about 1/3 of what my civilian counterparts got, which in my book equals shit. Also never heard of any of my civilian counterparts going to work then coming home 6 to 9 months later.

You don't know any contractors that deployed for a year? I know dozens personally.

 

[BigPete]

So the latest on Breivik from his manifesto is that he wanted to punish people that are allowing muslims to emmigrate to indigenous european lands. Has he never read a history book? We are ALL decendants of people that were once immigrants. The people of europe, north america, asia, even large parts of Africa and the middle east 'the cradle of civilization'.



Gotta love those right wing history revisionists.

 

[cids_revenge]

Fact #2: Fox eludes that it might be Islamic extremists.

Elude:

1: to avoid adroitly : evade <the mice eluded the traps> <managed to elude capture>

2: to escape the perception, understanding, or grasp of <subtlety simply eludes them>

3: defy 4 <it eludes explanation>



Allude:

1: to make indirect reference <comments alluding to an earlier discussion>; broadly : refer





You're welcome

 

[Spunky Porkstacker]

I know he does. SP didnt mention where he was referring to Petes time in the military or as a civilian. I dont consider being a civilian contractor as "serving". So I can only assume he was referring to when Pete was in the Army.

I was not referring to his time in the army. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe he has mentioned on several occaisions he is in the 6 figure range. Never, ASS- U-ME

 

[TSD]

I was not referring to his time in the army. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe he has mentioned on several occaisions he is in the 6 figure range. Never, ASS- U-ME

My company has contracts with the military. If I got staffed on one, I would hardly consider myself serving my country. i.e. when I was in St.Louis we had one at Scott AFB. When you are a civilian, going to Iraq or Afghanistan is a choice.

 

[BigPete]

I was not referring to his time in the army. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe he has mentioned on several occaisions he is in the 6 figure range. Never, ASS- U-ME

TSD has been in my house. He isn't assuming anything. He may have misunderstood who/what you were talking about...but he knows what he is talking about regarding me and the subject of IT contracting for the government.



For the record, I certainly don't live high on the hog and make just a bit more than government employees of a similar level.

 

[bri]

TSD has been in my house. He isn't assuming anything. He may have misunderstood who/what you were talking about...but he knows what he is talking about regarding me and the subject of IT contracting for the government.



For the record, I certainly don't live high on the hog and make just a bit more than government employees of a similar level.

I know you probably can't tell what you do or you will be violating something, but I just keep getting these flashes in my mind of you trying to creatively get information out of people.

 

[BigPete]

Hahaha. I manage an IT service team. They do CSI type stuff on complicated IT problems.

I used to be an intelligence anaylst specializing in satellite imagery. I was not a human intel or 'counter intelligence anaylst', but many friends were.

 

[bubbleheadchief]

You don't know any contractors that deployed for a year? I know dozens personally.

The way I interpret what Spunky wrote in the statement Pete, the implication was that the military are well paid. We arent, as you well know.

Yes, contractors going "over there" are all voluntary, and they are usually very well compensated, but when they hire on with these companies, they know they are hring on to go over there. And yes Pete, as a matter of fact I do know many officers and enlisted that got out specifically to go work as a contractor over there. One in particular, a LT (nuclear trained engineer), went from making the pittance an LT is paid to making about 200k (when he was 1st negotiating for the position, they asked what he wanted, he said in the neighborhood of about 140K, they told him to rethink because they intially thought he would ask a min of 180K), so yes, depending on the field and the company/contractor, you can become well compensated for your skill set. Do not forget however, that the contracotrs you and I are talking about are everything from truck drivers and teachers all the way to "intel specialists."

Simply put, most of us that have held TS or TS/SCI or handled SI information, can't or shouldn't (because there are those that have to act the big shot) talk about any of the things that are discussed in here, even if we know "the truth" about something, because simply put, we took an oath saying we won't divulge it, and civilians just DO NOT need to know (and 99% of the time we'll get told we're lying anyway because "I saw on the news that they said blah, blah, blah"). There are also certain stigmas that go along with having access to this information, even after we are out and retired, up to and including limited foreign travel amongst others.

One thing I do disagree with you about Pete, not anyone can request a clearance. The way you make it sound, Joe Schmo can go in and request a TS clearance. You and I both know it has to be written into the contract as a requirement for the person to have it to hold the position, before it can be requested for.

 

[bri]

Why doesn't the government just use it's own military personnel for all of that? Why do they contract out? It seems like a major expense they could cut back on, especially since most of those people seem to be ex military to begin with.

 

[BigPete]

I am not the person that said any Joe Schmo could get one. But if you think about it, any kid off the street can go to a recruiter and ask to be in an intel job. I did. I got qualifying marks on my ASFAB and they shipped me off to basic training and started the backround investigation process almost immediately.

For the record, I have never and will never discuss anything that has not been unclassifed. All my points about the Iraq invasion are well published now.

 

[sth]

Why doesn't the government just use it's own military personnel for all of that? Why do they contract out? It seems like a major expense they could cut back on, especially since most of those people seem to be ex military to begin with.

I've never felt comfortable with all these contractors. I don't like the idea of companies that profit off war as much as these guys do. It gives people incentives to push for wars.

 

[bri]

Hahaha. I manage an IT service team. They do CSI type stuff on complicated IT problems.

I used to be an intelligence anaylst specializing in satellite imagery. I was not a human intel or 'counter intelligence anaylst', but many friends were.

Oh Come on. I can't be the only person on here that thought Pete's specialty could have been torture techniques.

 

[BigPete]

Why doesn't the government just use it's own military personnel for all of that? Why do they contract out? It seems like a major expense they could cut back on, especially since most of those people seem to be ex military to begin with.

The initial thought is that it is cheaper to have a contractor do the job. That could probably be debated but only the Senate Armed Services committee would know for sure.

They also realized that government wages were not enough to attract top talent. There are employees all throughout the government that are dirtbags but it is next to impossible to fire these people. Its easier to wait until they retire and replace that vacancy with a contractor.

 

[BigPete]

I've never felt comfortable with all these contractors. I don't like the idea of companies that profit off war as much as these guys do. It gives people incentives to push for wars.

Theoretically. We have a glut of senior management making really obscene salaries in my company. But your point speaks more to the Cheney-Haliburton scenarios of the world.

 

[Spunky Porkstacker]

The way I interpret what Spunky wrote in the statement Pete, the implication was that the military are well paid. We arent, as you well know.

Yes, contractors going "over there" are all voluntary, and they are usually very well compensated, but when they hire on with these companies, they know they are hring on to go over there. And yes Pete, as a matter of fact I do know many officers and enlisted that got out specifically to go work as a contractor over there. One in particular, a LT (nuclear trained engineer), went from making the pittance an LT is paid to making about 200k (when he was 1st negotiating for the position, they asked what he wanted, he said in the neighborhood of about 140K, they told him to rethink because they intially thought he would ask a min of 180K), so yes, depending on the field and the company/contractor, you can become well compensated for your skill set. Do not forget however, that the contracotrs you and I are talking about are everything from truck drivers and teachers all the way to "intel specialists."

Simply put, most of us that have held TS or TS/SCI or handled SI information, can't or shouldn't (because there are those that have to act the big shot) talk about any of the things that are discussed in here, even if we know "the truth" about something, because simply put, we took an oath saying we won't divulge it, and civilians just DO NOT need to know (and 99% of the time we'll get told we're lying anyway because "I saw on the news that they said blah, blah, blah"). There are also certain stigmas that go along with having access to this information, even after we are out and retired, up to and including limited foreign travel amongst others.

One thing I do disagree with you about Pete, not anyone can request a clearance. The way you make it sound, Joe Schmo can go in and request a TS clearance. You and I both know it has to be written into the contract as a requirement for the person to have it to hold the position, before it can be requested for.

Let me just say that you have misinterpreted what I said. My brother was a recruitor in the army for about 10 years. Enlisted men are not well paid. I was speaking of what Pete has said he currently does and has mentioned a 6 figure income. I don't consider making 6 figures living high on the hog but it is comfortable.



I will add that I have the utmost respect and graditude to all men and women who have served in the armed forces. I have many uncles who served in WW2 including my dad who lied about his age and joined the navy when he was 17 and fought in the South Pacific.

 

[winos5]

The way I interpret what Spunky wrote in the statement Pete, the implication was that the military are well paid. We arent, as you well know.

Yes, contractors going "over there" are all voluntary, and they are usually very well compensated, but when they hire on with these companies, they know they are hring on to go over there. And yes Pete, as a matter of fact I do know many officers and enlisted that got out specifically to go work as a contractor over there. One in particular, a LT (nuclear trained engineer), went from making the pittance an LT is paid to making about 200k (when he was 1st negotiating for the position, they asked what he wanted, he said in the neighborhood of about 140K, they told him to rethink because they intially thought he would ask a min of 180K), so yes, depending on the field and the company/contractor, you can become well compensated for your skill set. Do not forget however, that the contracotrs you and I are talking about are everything from truck drivers and teachers all the way to "intel specialists."

Simply put, most of us that have held TS or TS/SCI or handled SI information, can't or shouldn't (because there are those that have to act the big shot) talk about any of the things that are discussed in here, even if we know "the truth" about something, because simply put, we took an oath saying we won't divulge it, and civilians just DO NOT need to know (and 99% of the time we'll get told we're lying anyway because "I saw on the news that they said blah, blah, blah"). There are also certain stigmas that go along with having access to this information, even after we are out and retired, up to and including limited foreign travel amongst others.

One thing I do disagree with you about Pete, not anyone can request a clearance. The way you make it sound, Joe Schmo can go in and request a TS clearance. You and I both know it has to be written into the contract as a requirement for the person to have it to hold the position, before it can be requested for.

For me it was a required part of my PCS orders for the Duty Station I was sent to, and a particular area of the base we occassionally had to go too.