Fedlog: There's a scam artist born every minute and TSA pat downs

[The Straight Story]

Fedlog: There's a scam artist born every minute
By Tom Shoop
[e-mail]

Welcome to our blog for government. Check back often--and chime in with your own tidbits.


Thursday, Dec. 23
3:11 p.m. ET
There's a Scam Artist Born Every Minute. Yeesh. The Nigerian scam apparently wasn't enough for the con artists who troll the Internet and roam the nation's phone systems. Now they're telling people they're from the "Government Grant Association" or the "Federal Government Grant Information Center," and if you only fork over $250, you'll get an $8,000 grant from Uncle Sam. Please tell me that no one who works for the government has actually gotten suckered by this.

10:39 a.m. ET
Pat-Downs Toned Down. TSA has apparently decided that molesting female passengers isn't such a great idea. The agency's not giving in to critics who say it should quit conducting assume-the-position pat-down searches of some travelers, but TSA officials have issued a new edict: No touching between the breasts.


Wednesday, Dec. 22
2:09 p.m. ET
With Friends Like These... Latest sign of trouble for Donald Rumsfeld: Newt Gingrich has come to his defense.


1:28 p.m. ET
Contractor Bailout. I get the sneaking feeling this is a leading indicator: The LA Times reports that Contrack International Inc. has become the first holder of a major Iraq reconstruction contract to bail out of the country, citing out-of-control security costs. The Pentagon was quick to treat the company like a bad boyfriend. "It's not a terrible loss," said Amy Burns, spokeswoman for DoD's Iraq Project and Contracting Office. "It actually may be good that we're both moving on."

More Fedlog here:
http://www.govexec.com/fedlog/index.htm