Northrop Grumman - selling death, and UK ID/IT services
Northrop Grumman [NOC] want to help George Bush conquer the world - land, air, sea and space. They also want to sell the UK government IT services utilising "capabilities originated in the Department of Defense and the intelligence community". They seem to be achieving their goals (see below). As Blair once more attempts to push his unpleasant, unbritish ID card legislation through ('papers please!') parliament, you've got to ask yourself - do we want these people's hands on our data? It may be a safer option to just sell your own ID on the street to the highest bidder - and at least make some money.
No other arms manufacturer boasts as many insider connections as Northrop Grumman (see Right Web connections) - one of the top Defense Department contractors - which manufactures the B-2 bomber and the Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle, and serves as a subcontractor on various jet fighter (the Joint Strike Fighter and the F-18), satellite system, nuclear submarine, and aircraft carrier programs.
February 15, 2005 - Ronald D. Sugar Chairman, CEO and President Northrop Grumman Corporation - Speaking at the National Press Club in Washington
"The ultimate goal is to deter bad behavior on the part of those who would harm us... It can help influence the decisions of our potential adversaries and shape them in the right direction. - Let me give you three examples:
First, on offense, a more potent long-range precision-strike capability. Such a system could be based on a future combination of unmanned bombers and hypersonic suborbital vehicles. A second deterrent, this one on defense, will come from a layered missile-defense system with a high probability of stopping ballistic missiles. Key to this layered system would be the deployment of the boost-phase kinetic energy interceptor. Such a system will greatly reduce the incentive for rogue nations to invest in such a destabilizing ballistic missile technology in the first place. And third, a combined offense and defense approach, which would be an employment of both interceptors and offensive missiles, supported by space-based and ground-based sensors enabling us to rapidly counter-strike in the event of an attack. Such a system would make deterrence even more robust and complete.
A weakened U.S. presence around the globe invites adventurism and aggression. It excites the fevered dreams of despots and alters the calculus of power to the detriment of peace. We have seen time and again over the last century that credible American power is the necessary pre-condition for international stability. To be credible, that power must be global in reach. And it must provide superiority in all domains - on land, in the air, in space and on the seas.
......Space, it is often said, is the ultimate high ground. If we don't control it, if we don't defend it, we will be challenged there."
Tuesday, April 26, 2005 - JAMES R. O'NEILL - Corporate Vice President and President - Northrop Grumman Information Technology:
"Our key programs today are e-911 systems. We run it in 25 states, four provinces in Canada and two countries in Europe. In addition, we recently won the U.K. IDENT system, which is an identification system; if you will, a national identity card for the United Kingdom as well as Scotland and Wales. In Texas, managed IT services - we are very large in the state of Texas. [..no thats your cars stupid]
..Our international business is growing dramatically. We've won lots of contracts, especially in the United Kingdom over the last year. Our latest is IDENT, which will afford us the opportunity, as the IDENT owner, to bid these other four programs. The National Police Intelligence capability - and these are all U.K.; e-Borders - so we believe by having the IDENT system, it positions us well to bid these international large IT infrastructure, bringing out what Northrop Grumman does best. A lot of our heritage and programs that we have today, much of the capabilities originated in the Department of Defense and the intelligence community so we're bringing the best of the capabilities in these particular regions to state and local, and in this case, to foreign countries." [DB emphasis]
read The CEO is crazy in full
read Their snout in our IT trough in full
Bush links
No other arms manufacturer boasts as many insider connections as Northrop Grumman (see Right Web connections) - one of the top Defense Department contractors - which manufactures the B-2 bomber and the Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle, and serves as a subcontractor on various jet fighter (the Joint Strike Fighter and the F-18), satellite system, nuclear submarine, and aircraft carrier programs.
The CEO is crazy
February 15, 2005 - Ronald D. Sugar Chairman, CEO and President Northrop Grumman Corporation - Speaking at the National Press Club in Washington
"The ultimate goal is to deter bad behavior on the part of those who would harm us... It can help influence the decisions of our potential adversaries and shape them in the right direction. - Let me give you three examples:
First, on offense, a more potent long-range precision-strike capability. Such a system could be based on a future combination of unmanned bombers and hypersonic suborbital vehicles. A second deterrent, this one on defense, will come from a layered missile-defense system with a high probability of stopping ballistic missiles. Key to this layered system would be the deployment of the boost-phase kinetic energy interceptor. Such a system will greatly reduce the incentive for rogue nations to invest in such a destabilizing ballistic missile technology in the first place. And third, a combined offense and defense approach, which would be an employment of both interceptors and offensive missiles, supported by space-based and ground-based sensors enabling us to rapidly counter-strike in the event of an attack. Such a system would make deterrence even more robust and complete.
A weakened U.S. presence around the globe invites adventurism and aggression. It excites the fevered dreams of despots and alters the calculus of power to the detriment of peace. We have seen time and again over the last century that credible American power is the necessary pre-condition for international stability. To be credible, that power must be global in reach. And it must provide superiority in all domains - on land, in the air, in space and on the seas.
......Space, it is often said, is the ultimate high ground. If we don't control it, if we don't defend it, we will be challenged there."
Their snout in our 'IT' trough
Tuesday, April 26, 2005 - JAMES R. O'NEILL - Corporate Vice President and President - Northrop Grumman Information Technology:
"Our key programs today are e-911 systems. We run it in 25 states, four provinces in Canada and two countries in Europe. In addition, we recently won the U.K. IDENT system, which is an identification system; if you will, a national identity card for the United Kingdom as well as Scotland and Wales. In Texas, managed IT services - we are very large in the state of Texas. [..no thats your cars stupid]
..Our international business is growing dramatically. We've won lots of contracts, especially in the United Kingdom over the last year. Our latest is IDENT, which will afford us the opportunity, as the IDENT owner, to bid these other four programs. The National Police Intelligence capability - and these are all U.K.; e-Borders - so we believe by having the IDENT system, it positions us well to bid these international large IT infrastructure, bringing out what Northrop Grumman does best. A lot of our heritage and programs that we have today, much of the capabilities originated in the Department of Defense and the intelligence community so we're bringing the best of the capabilities in these particular regions to state and local, and in this case, to foreign countries." [DB emphasis]
Outsource to China
Ethically, there is obviously no problem with the government doing IT business, using taxpayers money, with companies like Northrop. OK then - we may just as well outsource the thing to China. They have kept their citizens tracked and checked and scanned and approved/disapproved for longer than anyone else. Their programmers could write the code cheaper than the annual expense account of one Northrup sales exec. I think I read somewhere that China executes around 5000 of its citizens a year (sorry China if I am off a little on the numbers) which, whilst plainly excessive, does not of itself exclude the option of getting a quote in. Because it will be no worse than doing business with the madmen at NOC.
read The CEO is crazy in full
read Their snout in our IT trough in full
posted by exoplanet at 4:24 PM
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