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According a report from the Justice Department's Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration inappropriately paid an Amtrak employee more than $850,000 over 20 years to provide information on passengers who may be smuggling drugs:
The OIG also released a separate report saying the DEA arranged to pay a government airport screener to act as a confidential source. The screener, however, never provided information of any value to the DEA.
But the OIG's problem with these arrangements wasn't that transportation officials were reporting people's actions to the DEA. Instead, OIG said it made no sense for the DEA to pay these people for information, as they are already required by law to offer it up for free.
"The OIG determined that over a period of 20 years, the DEA paid the Amtrak employee $854,460 as of January 2014 for information that was available at no cost to the government in violation of federal regulations relating to the use of government property, thereby wasting substantial government funds," the OIG wrote.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Aichon on Monday January 11 2016, @09:39PM
While I agree with you that, generally speaking, the public is under no obligation to proactively report the things it sees to the government, Amtrak employees may be in a unique position, legally speaking, since the company is wholly-owned by the United States government. As the owner of the company, the government may have established rules for Amtrak employees that require them to proactively turn over such information. Or maybe as the owner of the company, the government is simply entitled to that information for free for the simple reason that the information was garnered while the employee was on the job at a place where the government is paying the wages.
I don't know. IANAL. All I know is that it adds a unique wrinkle.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Monday January 11 2016, @09:56PM
Good points - although I'm not sure I agree with them. An employer does deserve some considerations that "gubbermint" does not. But, I don't report every fellow employee I see goldbricking when he gets the chance.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 2) by Aichon on Monday January 11 2016, @10:12PM
I'm not sure I agree with my points either. ;)
Like I said, they're just a wrinkle that needs considering. Plus, I'm with you in not wanting to be proactive in reporting others, but at the same time, I recognize that I have a responsibility to be truthful to my boss if they ask me about something in particular.
(Score: 2) by jdavidb on Monday January 11 2016, @10:57PM
While I agree with you that, generally speaking, the public is under no obligation to proactively report the things it sees to the government, Amtrak employees may be in a unique position, legally speaking, since the company is wholly-owned by the United States government
I'm all for the rights of owners of companies to do what they want with what is their own, but the government only "owns" anything by virtue of having stolen it. They have powers that make them able to do things that are unfair for ordinary owners.
ⓋⒶ☮✝🕊 Secession is the right of all sentient beings
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Aichon on Monday January 11 2016, @11:21PM
You may want to review the history of Amtrak. The rail lines Amtrak operates were voluntarily sold or leased to them by private corporations, not "stolen" via imminent domain, asset seizure/forfeiture, or any other sort of transfer that might typically be characterized as state-sponsored theft. The government "owns" Amtrak in a very literal sense: they hold 100% of the stock in the private company. It's a weird case that's, as far as I know, relatively unique in American history.
(Score: 4, Informative) by Arik on Tuesday January 12 2016, @01:01AM
And what did they buy or lease them *with* hmm? Where did they get that money?
Oh but it's deeper than that as well. Those "private companies" built their businesses on special privileges granted to them by the government many years previously, including land grants and various sorts of subsidies.
So the taxpayers have paid for these lines, not once, but many times. The taxpayers pay for the lines, the 'private' companies make profit from them for years, then as the lines became unprofitable, they were *sold* back to the government, which means the taxpayers paid for them yet again. But we still don't get to ride for free now do we?
This is what we call a mixed economy. Privatize the profits, socialize the losses.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 12 2016, @08:32AM
Taxation is not theft, you dipshit.
(Score: 2) by jdavidb on Tuesday January 12 2016, @03:37AM
The government "owns" Amtrak in a very literal sense: they hold 100% of the stock in the private company.
Paid for with money they took that didn't belong to them.
ⓋⒶ☮✝🕊 Secession is the right of all sentient beings
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 12 2016, @02:52AM
s/the government/Yahweh/ and sit back and watch the fireworks, JDB. The lack of self-awareness here is not surprising, but it's infuriating.
(Score: 2) by jdavidb on Tuesday January 12 2016, @03:38AM
ⓋⒶ☮✝🕊 Secession is the right of all sentient beings
(Score: 2) by jdavidb on Tuesday January 12 2016, @03:39AM
The lack of self-awareness here is not surprising, but it's infuriating.
Seriously, there are great procedures to help to learn to feel better and not feel so bad about what other people do. You don't need any religious mumbo-jumbo at all. You can see an atheist and learn anger management and feel great! You don't even need to use a GSR meter, although they are relatively inexpensive.
ⓋⒶ☮✝🕊 Secession is the right of all sentient beings