Cliques

Vanity Fair article. SAIC (Science Applications International Corporation. The McLean, Virginia, offices of Science Applications International Corporation, a "stealth company" with 9,000 government contracts, many of which involve secret intelligence work.

"SAIC maintains its headquarters in San Diego, but its center of gravity is in Washington, D.C. With a workforce of 44,000, it is the size of a full-fledged government agency—in fact, it is larger than the departments of Labor, Energy, and Housing and Urban Development combined. Its anonymous glass-and-steel Washington office—a gleaming corporate box like any other—lies in northern Virginia, not far from the headquarters of the C.I.A., whose byways it knows quite well. (More than half of SAIC's employees have security clearances.)"

By the way, that 44,000 workforce is worldwide, not solely USA.

Business Week wrote a similar article on SAIC 2 years ago. One would almost think the elite are rubbing the noses of the masses in the mud of big business welfare and little sheople will not and cannot do anything about it, nanner nanner whatcha gonna do about it, gloat gloat. Keep funding dictatorship cliques.

Kenneth C. Dahlberg, current CEO of SAIC is a lifelong corporate war machine hog, having worked at General Dynamics and Raytheon. Ken began his career at Hughes Aircraft, that's the late Howard Hughes, Texas oilman, movie producer, aviator and lunatic … and past recipient of wealthyfare war contracts for unusable creations such as the infamous Spruce Goose. A government contract PIF to Howie who never quite made a viable version of the wooden Spruce built of birch plywood. Perhaps an airbus ahead of its time.

Dahlberg was also a member of CREEP, the committee to reelect the "I am not a crook president", Nixon. He is also a former WWII fighter ace and medal winner. Many of SAIC employees are ex-military, intel, etc. In fact, I believe my MI son looked into employment at SAIC.

Not mentioned in Vanity, but SAIC is the largest "employee owned" company in the country, note the mod squad fotos of employees (one white, one black, one female).

Not likely many, if any, of these affluent employees are protesting current government policy. Of course SAIC employees have security clearance – industrial espionage you know. And nothing makes a little person feel so elite as passing a security clearance check – even if you never handle anything more important than a mop after offices hours or write nerdy wordy stalling-for-time reports on why the project is overdue and over budget.

SAIC and ilk are creating cutting edge science and technology for government oppression (aka national security) and that is serious business. Wouldn't want others stealing technology before we can sell it to them.

SAIC's mission …. "services and products to all branches of the U.S. military, agencies of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), the intelligence community, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other U.S. Government civil agencies, as well as to customers in selected commercial markets. Our customers seek our domain expertise to solve complex technical challenges requiring innovative solutions for mission-critical functions in such areas as national security, intelligence and homeland defense. Increasing demand for our services and products is driven by priorities including the ongoing global war on terror and the transformation of the U.S. military."

Imagine the number of "spruce gooses" in SAICs bag of government contracts.

One of SAIC's biggest contracts is for a "Pentagon program called Future Combat Systems, which is described as "a complex plan to turn the U.S. Army into a lighter, more lethal, more mobile force" and also as "the most difficult integration program ever undertaken by the U.S. Department of Defense." The contract runs into the billions of dollars. The man who helped craft this program at the Pentagon was Lieutenant General Daniel R. Zanini. Zanini recently retired from the army, and he now has a new job. Can you guess where it might be?"

(Senior Vice President, Daniel R. Zanini is SAIC’s Program Manager for the Future Combat Systems (FCS) program. FCS is a major Army transformation initiative in the System Development and Demonstration Phase and is valued at $21.2B. Prior to his current assignment, Zanini retired from the US Army as a Lieutenant General on 1 January 2003, after more than 37 years of service. Immediately prior to retirement, he commanded the Eighth U.S. Army in Korea with concurrent duties as Chief of Staff, United Nations Command.)

But dear readers, think of the ripple effect SAIC-like corporations have on the economy. Sure, not everyone can make 6, 7, and 8 figure salaries but those who do have homes and offices that need cleaning, they need clerks at the boutique, waiters at the country club, janitors, nannies, mechanics, chauffeurs, gardeners, etc. Where would they make their fortunes if peace came? Huh? Just tell me where. Where?

Well, actually they likely will do well in peacetime too as government will need high tech solutions, need that future "lighter, more lethal, mobile force" - to protect us from the enemies within ... who will be identified on a need to know basis. And whatcha gonna do about it.