Where are the Whistleblowers????

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The Federal Government has a Whisleblower law where the whistleblower can collect up to 30% of the recovered mispent funds from a company that is fraudently misleading the Government. There are a lot of government contractors doing business with Government agencies such as the DOE, NASA, DOD, to name just a few. If any these contractors are lying about their Y2K remediation schedule compliance than any knowledgable insider can initiate a whistleblower lawsuit. The award could be quite appealing. For instance, if a contractor spent say 100 million for Y2K remediation and lied about thier remediation status, a whistleblower could get 30% or 30 million plus penalties (3 times damages) = 90 million.

The thing that bothers me is that to date no one has initiated such a lawsuit. On the other hand, if someone has, it could be under seal, for up to a year while the Justice Department investigation takes place.

-- Watcher5 (anon@anon.com), July 09, 1999

Answers

There are a zillion risks that one has to take to be a whistleblower on ANYTHING, with the end of one's career almost a given. As far as the monetary compensation, there are a lot of questions that would be helpful to be answered maybe by someone who knows. Like, I assume that the award would be given upon a successful conclusion of the lawsuit -- that could take years and years. Maybe the suit would be settled out of court -- how would that affect the whistleblower's reward? Etc., etc.

Gary North has repeatedly pointed out that the punishment for lying is almost nil, if in fact everyone is found to be lying (safety in numbers). And the decisions on such things are made at high enough levels that worker bees who might otherwise be whistleblowers may not really be privy.

You brought up a good point, don't get me wrong. But it really is tough to connect a lack of VISIBLE whistleblowing with Y2K success honesty (including for the reason that you pointed out, things sometimes get hushed by court decree).

-- King of Spain (madrid@aol.com), July 09, 1999.

Does this Whistle Blower Law only apply to Y2K remediation contracts?

-- Interested (andwondering@whislteblowerlaw.com), July 09, 1999.

Dear King of Spain:

A friend of mine iniatied a whisleblower lawsuit against Fluor Danial, the remediation contractor at the Fernald Environmental Remediation project for 90 million dollars. He was a Project Control Engineer and was by no means a member of top management. He left Fluor Danial and went to work for another environmental remediation contractor. The lawsuit had a zero impact on his career. The lawsuit went on for 4 years. Fluor setteled for 8.4 million dollars. My friend got 2 million, he is retired and now lives in Florida. I asked if he would do it all over again, he said: "Yes, in a heartbeat!"

Interested: Here are some details re a whistleblower lawsuit. First off, the legal term for a whistleblower lawsuit is an action under the False Claims Act. It is covered under Act 31, U.S.C. Sections 3729 and 3733. Qui tam, (in latin means for the king) allows persons and entities with evidense of fraud against federal programs or contracts to sue the wrongdoer on behalf of the US government.

Actions which are considerd violations of the False Claims act are : 1, Knowingly presenting or causeing to be presented a false claim for payment. 2. knowingly using a false record or statement to get a claim paid bt the federal government. 3. Conspiring with others to do one or two above.

The false claims act was initiated during the civil war by President Lincoln to reduce fraud against the federal government. One civil war contractor was selling the government cannon balls filled with saw dust.

I am not a lawyer but I would think if government agenticies or contractors were playing games with schedule dates then that would constitute a false claim.

-- Watcher5 (anon@anon.com), July 09, 1999.


Whistleblowers?

WHat whistleblowers?

They all blew it years ago. They quit their engineering jobs and went into real estate and the stock market where nobody cares, and you can have your dignity and still earn a living.

You actually think IEEE, ACM, ISCET, SPLE, and all thos other acrynym .org's actually mean anything?

Do you actually think management wants to know?

All the REAL whistleblowing happened years ago. Now these guys (if they're still employed) are collecting their paychecks and buying rice and beans. Or they quit their old jobs (I did) for something they could live with (at double my old salary and half the hours.)

Engineers are not listened to. (nor are the preachers, the teachers or the scientists... politicians and business leaders do what they feel they need to do...

They administrate. They lead. And they do it in "the conventional way" regardless of all the talk of "new paradigms" and other buzzword malarkey. Not one in 1000 has the guts of a winston churchill or george washinton, or geronimo. Those are one in a million.

-- hunchback (Quasimodo@belltower.com), July 09, 1999.


Hunchback:

Your answer is dumbfounding. It absolutely does not address the issue. You say the whistleblowers blew the whistle and quit thier jobs years ago. Jesus Christ, who did they blow the whistle to, people like you? You seem to be long on opinion but short on expertise, or maybe I mis-judged you, are you a False Claims expert, if so I apologize, but how about giving concrete examples on these whistleblowers you jusst cited!

-- Watcher5 (anon@anon.com), July 09, 1999.



Wait, what was that Latin stuff again, something about "for the king"????

-- King of Spain (madrid@aol.com), July 09, 1999.

Apparently you haven't read the post by Franklin Frith....below! There are others and there will be more.

-- Will continue (farming@home.com), July 10, 1999.

See what happened to whistleblower Whitacre --

Saturday July 10, 1999 01:53 AM Three Executives Get Prison Sentences in ADM Price Fixing Case

CHICAGO (AP) -- Three senior executives of food-processing giant Archer Daniels Midland Co. have been sentenced to multiyear prison terms in a price-fixing case prosecutors called one of the largest antitrust conspiracies ever brought to court.

Michael Andreas, 51, whose father Dwayne Andreas built ADM into a global agribusiness, was sentenced Friday to two years in prison along with 60-year-old Terrance Wilson, the retired head of ADM's corn division.

They also were fined $350,000 by U.S. District Judge Blanche Manning for conspiring with competitors in Japan and Korea to fix the $600 million world market in lysine, a feed additive that promotes growth in hogs and poultry. They were convicted in September.

Mark Whitacre, 49, former head of ADM's bioproducts division, was sentenced to 30 months - 20 of that to be served on top of a nine-year sentence he is currently serving for swindling ADM out of $9 million.

Whitacre, who wore a wire as an undercover FBI informant at ADM but later fell out with the government, heard his sentence from a federal prison camp in Edgefield, S.C. He waived his right to be in court.

``Life in prison is actually better than life at ADM,'' the Ohio-born biochemist told the court. He bitterly denounced not only the company but the FBI, saying, ``I risked my life and my career'' to help them.

As part of his sentence, Manning directed Whitacre to seek mental health treatment once he is released from prison. His attorney, Bill Walker, says that he has bipolar disease and is on medication.

Andreas apologized to the court but stopped short of admitting any wrongdoing. Andreas' and Wilson's attorneys said they would appeal.

``I love this country, your honor, and I thought I knew its rules,'' Andreas told Manning before he was sentenced. ``I did not want to commit a crime, and I did not think that I had committed a crime.''

Prosecutors said the sentences should serve as a deterrent to any would-be price fixers.

``It's not the longest sentence ever imposed but it's a long sentence under the antitrust guidelines,'' said Justice Department lawyer James Griffin.

ADM, based in Decatur, deep in central Illinois' corn and soybean country, has paid a $100 million fine and settled three antitrust lawsuits for an additional $90 million.

Andreas and Wilson are to report to prison in September.

By MIKE ROBINSON, Associated Press Writer

-- OutingsR (us@here.yar), July 10, 1999.


And how about Linda Tripp, anybody want to be in her shoes. How about you Watcher5 would you have the GUTS??

Ray

-- Ray (ray@totacc.com), July 10, 1999.


W5 -- If you really wanted to know where all the whistleblowers are, you should have put the word into a search engine. You would have found this site almost immediately. You think a prospective Y2K whistleblower didn't first check out his or her prospects???

http://www.whistleblower.org/www/wbnews.htm

WHISTLEBLOWERS IN THE NEWS

Joe Carson Wins Another One! May 5, '99 - Hanford Pipefitters Terminated Again, File New Complaints February 25, 1999 - Judge Awards "Unprecedented Victory" to Nuclear Whistleblower

December 15, 1998 - Hanford Groups Charge DOE "Hiding the Ball" on Public Comment

New Production Mission Proposed for Hanford Reactor! October 29, 1998 - Chemical Weapons Incinerator Whistleblower Steve Jones Wins EG&G Appeal

October 27, 1998 - DOE Proposes New Production Mission at Hanford Reactor

October 26, 1998 - Hanford Radiation "Spreads" October 7, 1998 - U.S. Labor Dept. Finds Wackenhut Retaliating Against Security Whistleblower July 9, '98 - U.S. Labor Dept. Finds Lawrence Livermore National Lab Retaliates Against Whistleblower

July 1, '98 - DOE's "Milquetoast Regulation" on Whistleblower Protection Derided by U.S. Court

Protections a "Hollow Promise" That Cannot Be Enforced

July 1, '98 - Special Counsel Grants GAP Client a Stay for First Time ! June 16, '98 - JUDGE GRANTS TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER IN FIRST TEST OF DOE WHISTLEBLOWER LAW May 7, '98 - Alaska Whistleblower Fired Again

Pipeline Contractor Refuses to Honor Settlement Agreement

April 13, '98 - Energy Department Scientist Wins Appeal in Whistleblower Complaint

DOE's Environmental Studies Lack Integrity

March 27, '98 - GAP, Employees and Citizens Rally Around Joe Carson at Oak Ridge Facility -

Litigation Filed Challenging his Forced Transfer to D.C. as Reprisal and in Violation of Free Speech Rights Feb. 12, '98 - Court Upholds Decision in Nuclear Courier Case

MSPB Orders Reinstatement of Jim Bailey Feb. 10, '98 - DOE Review Rips Hanford Tank Management, Vindicates Whistleblowers and GAP

Jan. 17, '98 - GAP Petitions Energy Department to Improve Handling of Employee Concerns Dec. 15, '97 - Press Release: ENERGY DEPARTMENT REVIEW CONFIRMS NUCLEAR COURIER ALLEGATIONS

Opportunities for Unmonitored Radiological Exposures Documented, Employees Unwilling to Raise Safety Concerns Dec. 3, '97 - Press Release: GAP Responds to Government's Admission that Hanford Tanks are Polluting the Groundwater November 25, '97 - Labor Department Orders Punitive Damages in Hanford Case Casey Ruud Prevails in Latest Decision November 25, '97 - GAP Calls for Permanent Anti-Gag Statute and Increased Whistleblower Protection

New Cases Emphasize Need for Reform

November 4, '97 - Another Hanford Contractor Found Guilty of Whistleblower Discrimination

"Slam Dunk" Decision Finds Harassment, Layoffs Following Safety Complaints by Hanford Pipefitters

October 7, '97 - Groundwater Scientist Fired from Hanford for Whistleblowing, says U.S. Department of Labor

Geologist Challenged Bad Science on Tank Leaks, Reinstatement Ordered

New York Times Article on Hanford Groundwater Contamination October 11, '97 - Army Contractor Ordered to Rehire Whistleblower OR Pay Million Dollar Damages!!

Salt Lake Trib Editorial Aug. 13, '97 - Judge Orders Nuclear Courier Reinstated

Concerns About Trucks Carrying Nukes Exposing Public to Radiation - Courier's Daughter Born with Rare Brain Tumors

May 30, 1997 - Hostile Work Environment on Trial at Texas Nuclear Bomb Factory - Gov't Fails to Act

NPR Story on Pantex - 9/25/97

Texas Observer Article - 9/12/97

-- OutingsR (us@here.yar), July 10, 1999.



The point is, Watcher5, to become a whistleblower involves a lot of potential risks, in spite of potential monetary rewards. Not everyone would be willing to take those risks.

-- King of Spain (madrid@al.com), July 10, 1999.

Ray: YES!

K of S and Outing R:

I agree being a whistleblower is not easy, I"m certain the average person is not up to the challenges. My concern is the absolute lack of anyone blowing the whistle at this late stage of the game re Y2K. K of S, I did do a search on whistleblowers, that's how I can up with the false claims info. But I did'nt find any Y2K whistleblowers hense the question: Where are the Whistleblowers?

Does this lack of data on Y2K whistleblowers make me a polly, not hardly!

-- Watcher5 (Anon@anon.com), July 11, 1999.


Watcher5, I think that is admirable, unfortunately MANY who could have stepped up to the plate DID NOT, whether out of fear, loyalty or disinterest. If they had the outcome would have been much different.

Ray

-- Ray (ray@totacc.com), July 11, 1999.


Watcher5:

I suspect (I don't know) that the problem is one of definition. If you're selling cannon balls stuffed with sawdust, this is clearly defined fraud. But often, such clear definitions are not available.

Just look at what passes for analysis on this forum. Some apparently unequivocal material will be posted, and it gets interpreted to death by sincere people. It gets accused of being spin, or self-reporting, or motivated by greedy profiteers. If it goes against the prevailing grain, it must meet impossible standards of proof. And much of what we read is also predictions, which cannot now be proved right or wrong (and even eventual disposition is subject to interpretation).

Most of the time, the actual state of remediation within an organization is not known to anyone. You simply can't count the bugs you haven't found yet (might be zero), nor can you accurately estimate the potential impacts of errors you might have introduced during remediation (might also be zero, for all you know).

To win a case as whistleblower, you must provide concrete, undeniable proof that what was told the government is clearly and unambiguously contrary to fact. And y2k is anything but clear and unambiguous. Almost every term commonly bandied about in the y2k arena is hazy as all hell -- what does 'compliant' mean? What does 'ready' mean? What is a 'critical system'? What constitutes a 'test'? What does 'on schedule' mean? This list goes on and on.

I'd never dream of sacrificing my career by diving into this maelstrom as a whistleblower. I'd most likely end up fined or jailed for 'illegal posession of proprietary information' than have any hope of bringing management to justice.

-- Flint (flintc@mindspring.com), July 11, 1999.


No, Flint, ... wait ... yes, Flint, that is a great analysis. I can't believe it. First time that I have ever agreed with ANYTHING that you have said!

So, heck, now I'M worried. Where are the whistleblowers?...

-- King of Spain (madrid@aol.com), July 11, 1999.


Flint: You said: Most of the time, the actual state of remediation within an organization is not known to anyone. You simply can't count the bugs you haven't found yet (might be zero), nor can you accurately estimate the potential impacts of errors you might have introduced during remediation (might also be zero, for all you know).

Flint, my post was in referece to the lack of whistleblowers that are sueing Government contractors under the False claims act. I am not talking about commercial software contractors. I have many years of project management experience and I can assure you Government contractors have very detail criteria for meeting schedule compliance. When schedule progress is given to a government rep by a contractor it is in the form of a detailed report and usually a senior member of management signs off on the report as being accurate. If a contractor lied about their progress I'm sure they could be held liable, if the justice department wanted to press the issue.

To win a case as whistleblower, you must provide concrete, undeniable proof that what was told the government is clearly and unambiguously contrary to fact. And y2k is anything but clear and unambiguous. Almost every term commonly bandied about in the y2k arena is hazy as all hell -- what does 'compliant' mean? What does 'ready' mean? What is a 'critical system'? What constitutes a 'test'? What does 'on schedule' mean? This list goes on and on.

Again, the above logic may hold up for commercial software companies, but Government Contractors have very detailed definitions of what means what to avoid confusion.

The whole point that I'm trying to make with this post is the situation may not be as bad as many think. I'm trying to do this in a rational manner.

-- Watcher5 (anon@anon.com), July 11, 1999.


Watcher5:

I have no experience in that area, and I'll take your word for it. My world is much more negotiable, it seems. When we find that we can't meet contractual obligations for whatever reason, we all sit down together, make the fact situation clear to everyone, and search for the best direction to go from here. Obviously, there are going to be costs. We need to determine two things: the form those costs will take (reduction in project scope or killing the project altogether, additional time, more money and people, etc.) and how the costs should be split among interested parties.

These sessions tend to happen surprisingly often on a large project, because we can see when timelines aren't being met or interim budgets are being exceeded. There is typically no need for me to do an end- run around the process (become a whistleblower), because it isn't anyone's intention to commit fraud. Some projects just turn out to be bigger than anticipated. Everyone is kept informed all the time, and there are no surprises.

I don't know if this kind of communication happens with government contracts for y2k remediation. Perhaps there's no effort made to misrepresent progress among those involved in these projects, although there does seem to be an effort to keep things fluid enough from a PR standpoint to inhibit public detection of troubled projects. But this would seem to happen within government somewhere above the whistleblower level.

-- Flint (flintc@mindspring.com), July 11, 1999.


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