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The Mystery Surrounding TSA Systems Radiation Detectors
From Middle Earth Journal’s Jazz Shaw:
We’ve been doing a bit of background research here at MEJ, and a story that started out looking like yet another case of taxpayer dollars being shuffled into the hands of questionable private contractors has taken a few turns which have made the plot thicken. The first issue was this story stuck back on page 4 in the wapo about a $475M no-bid contract being improperly awarded to “a little-known company” in Alaska for the maintenance of x-ray and nuclear radiation monitoring equipment at border checkpoints for the Department of Homeland Security. This tale takes a few turns…. but please bear with me. It gets interesting.
Read the entire post to find out the intriguing details…
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3 Responses to “The Mystery Surrounding TSA Systems Radiation Detectors”
A few comments.
1. I am amazed at how many people who want to be policy wonks have such little knowledge of how the government actually works. Program managers are required to give 10% or more of their contracts to small, disadvantaged or minority contractors (8A). However, native Americans and Inuit contractors get first crack at government contracts. The small contractors receive a bonus payment for what a Fortune 500 would receive.
2. Many 8a contractors are just pass through organizations who take the 8a premium and then contract the work in larger, established firms. Every hazardous waste company that deals directly with the federal government is an 8A but all they do is contract with other companies to do the work. On a side note, virtually every company mowing grass or putting up dry wall for the feds is an 8A.
3. The TSA systems mentioned in the article has been around since at least the 1980′s as a DOE/DoD contractor. They make the detectors for places like Los Alamos to detect radioactive material leaving the front gate. They also make instruments for dealing with nuclear weapon (Broken Arrow) events
4. L-3 makes vehicle x-ray systems (as do As&E, Smith Detection, and Rapidscan). They are a competitor to SAIC (who also makes portal radiation detectors after they purchase the Canadian Company Exploraranium). L-3, SAIC, and CSC are all the high tech equivalent of Amway. They are really a bunch of small companies who pay part of their income to the “upchain” owners.
5. There is no gimmick that can overcome the physics involved with radiation detection. No detector is perfect. At least with radiation there is a chance of detection at a distance. With chemical weapons like Sarin or VX, detection is much harder unless their is a release. No only does shielding limit the detectable gammas but their is also a background level that limits detection and there are many legitimate sources that also are detected.
I want to save the government a ton of money, whats my share for trimming the pork?
I give you the “Popeil Pocket Fisherman/Dosimeter” at :
We don’t need no stinkin TSA company, give em all badges.
So sorry:
http://www.stanforddosimetry.com/SIRAD/walletdosimeter.html