Major THEFT happening at Reliant/Astrodome.

[Spurfect]

Hey all.. I have been working for the Red Cross at the Reliant Center for the past few days. Right now, we are in the process of distributing debit cards and checks to the Katrina evacuees. This is NOT the same as the $2,000.00 FEMA cards. The Red Cross cards work like this: $360 for family of one, $665 for famly of two, $965 for family of three, $1,265 for family of four and $1,565 for family of 5 and up.

Now here is the thing - the MOST we give is $1,565.00. This is how it works: evacuees meet with a caseworker and gives them all their information (head of household, pre-disaster address, names/ages/gender of all members of the family, etc.) The case worker fills out the form, and then gives all the forms to the Data Entry people (me). We data entry people enter all the info into the system, once we put the amount of people in the family, it automatically puts the amount according to the number of people. once we assign the money amount, we click "load" which then activates the card.

UNFORTUNATELY, not ONLY are the evacuees trying to cheat the system by giving false information and/or using their family members more than once to get more money, but today I found out that people working WITH us are theives as well.

Today us data entry people got seperated into groups. One group was still doing data entry for cards (well, they're checks now actually) that still have not been entered into the system. The other group was put to do trouble-shooting and investigation. I chose to do the investigating because it really pisses me off that people are actually trying to commit fraud right under our noses and take money from the Red Cross that does not belong to them. Since day one I have taken my job really serious and I have made sure everyone got the amount of money they were SUPPOSED to receive.

I found sooo much crookedness today, it's unbelieveable. I caught a couple of evacuees using their names or their kids names more than once. or they will change little things like their age. Or they'll be the "head of household" in one family, and be just a member in another. in other words, everytime we input a family into the system, the computer assigns a "case number" to them. each case gets their money whether it be in card or check form. I would find different case numbers for one person. In other words, some people got more than one check/card. I mean WTF?

THEN, the real killer.. I was investigating one family of four that had received $7,525.00!!! The ONLY way they can get money in their cards is from a DATA ENTRY person. I looked into this more and found out that someone originally put the correct amount of $1,265.00 on 9/8/05.. then another someone WITHIN us kept going back to that one case, on different days, and re-loaded it with more money ($1,565.00 four times). Then, the evacuee, coincidentley, cashed out the money right afterwards. When we checked her card, she had used everything but $130.00 so my supervisor immediately de-activated it.

I found another one for $4,695.. again, someone from data entry went back on different days and loaded more money into the card. When we checked the balance that person had $370 left, again we de-activated it right away. I found another one for $4,695, one for $5,060 and one for $9,390. Obviously we have some crooked people working amongst us that is stealing from the Red Cross.

not only that, the laptops we work on? five were stolen.

it just makes me so angry and sad at the same time that this shit is going on. at a time like this, when people like the ones in red cross that are helping them in so many ways AND then giving them money - and people are trying to steal from them and take advantage of them. REALLY pisses me off. too bad most of these people have already gotten away with the money.

sorry this is so long but I just had to rant.. people really suck sometimes. Yes I feel bad, I feel compassionate, and I sympathize with these hurricane victims (or else I would not have been going over there so much to help) but THIS really gets to me. :cuss :cuss :cuss

[Horry For 3!]

That is messed up.

[Spurfect]

That is messed up.

I know. I forgot to mention.. YES Red Cross has been very disorganized, YES Red Cross was NOT READY for this. Definiately. They took this on too fast without really working out a secure system. because of this, it has been very easy for this theivery to be happening. unfortunately Red Cross just reacted without being ready. It still pisses me off though that people would take advantage of that.

I have made a few suggestions already, like.. once one of us loads a card, we CANNOT re-load it ourselves. Only someone higher up can, and with a special password. Also, we should always be on the SAME laptop and have something to identify who does what. hopefully they will do something like that soon.

[boutons]

These people sound very skilled at fraud. Is Houston's Enron hiring? Kenny Boy is a real talent magnet.

[Hook Dem]

Give the money back Boutons. You know you don't deserve it.

[Jelly]

Wow. That's terrible. Did you see the guy on Fox the other day who was complaining that he only got $700 from his red cross card, but hadn't gotten his $2000 card from FEMA yet. He was an ungrateful jerk and started talking about the Astrodome being a slave ship and how no one was helping them. This guy even said the $2000 when he gets it wont be enough, he felt entitled to $20,000. When I think of all the people, like you, that are volunteering their time working their asses off in order to help these people and all the Americans that are donating in record numbers (so far almost $800 million), this horrible, ungrateful attitude just pisses me off to no end.

Don't feel bad for venting.

[T Park]

^^^ I saw that.

Thats what made me change my mind on donating more.

If thats how those people are acting?? Fuck em.

[Jelly]

^^^ I saw that.

Thats what made me change my mind on donating more.

If thats how those people are acting?? Fuck em.

I think people should still donate. I've got to believe there are more good people than bad. I just hope my money goes to someone who appreciates it.

[Spurfect]

Wow. That's terrible. Did you see the guy on Fox the other day who was complaining that he only got $700 from his red cross card, but hadn't gotten his $2000 card from FEMA yet. He was an ungrateful jerk and started talking about the Astrodome being a slave ship and how no one was helping them. This guy even said the $2000 when he gets it wont be enough, he felt entitled to $20,000. When I think of all the people, like you, that are volunteering their time working their asses off in order to help these people and all the Americans that are donating in record numbers (so far almost $800 million), this horrible, ungrateful attitude just pisses me off to no end.

Don't feel bad for venting.

ugh, you see, that really ticks me off too. I'm pretty sure he got the $665 amount for two people. Why can't he just be happy that the Red Cross is giving them ANY money? I mean you have to consider how MANY families Red Cross is giving too.. that is ALOT of money right there.

Now about him trashing the Astrodome and saying it is a "slave ship", wow that makes me angry. These people are treated like ROYALTY there, seriously. I know this because I SEE it one a daily bases, in fact, in my beginning days of volunteering where I was working directly with the people, *I* was one of the ones treated them like royalty. Whatever they want, we are right there to wait on them hand and foot. they get all the food they want. seriously we are so good to them.. hundreds of good hearted volunteers come every single day to serve them. And he trashes that?? Wow. Some people don't deserve a damn thing.

[tw05baller]

What you are doing is great you are so awesome for volunteering!

[NZHayden]

omg how can ppl be like that if i was a refugee i would just be thankful for having a bed to sleep in at night

[Clandestino]

if caught lying ONE time they should be arrested and be forced to forfeit all their future relief money.

[Spurfect]

What you are doing is great you are so awesome for volunteering!

thank you.. right now, i just feel kinda disappointed, in the way people are behaving. When i first started everyone was so good. as soon as we started to give the money away, things have become so chaotic. I have been going for the past twelve days straight, it is becoming very frustrating for me. I do understand that maybe the evacuees are getting tired of everything, and maybe they are lashing out because of that, but we are only doing our best. I wish people would just remain peaceful, but I guess money at desperate times can bring the worst out of people

[boutons]

the data entry clerk(s) are probably getting a kickback.

But this is nickel and dime shit. Here's where the real Katrina thieving is happening:


A Major Test for FEMA And Its Contracting Crew

By Griff Witte and Charles R. Babcock

The Federal Emergency Management Agency will receive most of the $62 billion Congress has approved for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, setting up a major test of the agency's ability to distribute the cash and monitor the private contractors who will do much of the work.

FEMA's track record in managing much smaller amounts of money has raised concerns. It made millions of dollars in questionable payments to South Florida residents after Hurricane Frances last year, investigators found, in part because the agency's contractors had hired inspectors who lacked training or oversight. A recent audit by the Homeland Security Department's inspector general questioned whether FEMA's acquisition workforce was qualified.

The agency has already begun awarding hundreds of millions of dollars in no-bid Katrina contracts under loosened government rules designed to get relief and rebuilding efforts underway quickly. As the money begins to flow, some fear the agency could become overwhelmed. "They've never spent anything even remotely on this scale. So the real question is going to be what kind of controls are in place," said Bill Jenkins, who monitors FEMA for the Government Accountability Office. "There are going to be fraudsters coming out of the woodwork."

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), chair of the Senate's Homeland Security Committee, said through an aide yesterday that she is considering creating a special inspector general to oversee and audit Katrina-related spending.

The last time the government spent a massive amount of money under emergency conditions, for the war in Iraq, it set off a frenzy among contractors jockeying for work. Investigators with the special inspector general's office set up to oversee Iraq spending later found numerous cases of questionable costs.

Contractors are already lining up for Katrina money. Yesterday, the Army Corps of Engineers said that, on FEMA's behalf, it would award $1.5 billion in contracts for debris removal this week. Also yesterday, Blackwater USA, known for its work supporting military operations in Iraq, said it would provide 164 armed guards to help provide security at FEMA sites in Louisiana.

Last week FEMA gave out hundreds of millions of dollars worth of contracts to engineering and construction firms to build an estimated 300,000 temporary housing units. Those contracts were awarded without competition under rules that allow agencies to bypass normal procedures during an emergency. Several went to companies that have been major financial supporters of the Bush administration. One firm, Shaw Group Inc., of Baton Rouge, is on the client list of lobbyist and former FEMA director Joe M. Allbaugh, though he has said he does not get involved with contracts.

Shaw also was picked last week by the corps for a $100 million contract, with one of its first tasks to pump floodwater out of New Orleans. The agency contacted two other companies to generate competition for the work, a corps contracting official said yesterday, but only Shaw responded.

At FEMA, outsourcing to the private sector is nothing new. The agency has long made contractors a central part of its emergency plans on the thinking that it is not a good use of tax dollars to maintain a large staff for sporadic work. When disaster strikes, the agency, with help from the Corps of Engineers, has contracts that can be activated to bring in food, water and manpower.

But FEMA insiders and some who have worked with the agency say it has grown increasingly reliant on contractors in recent years not just for help in responding to disasters, but for planning and policymaking as well. It is a trend that has been augmented, they say, by the departure of FEMA's top civil servants and the arrival of political appointees with little disaster management experience.

"Some of the best and the brightest high-level technocrats are at the contracting firms," said Claire B. Rubin, a researcher at George Washington University who has studied disasters for decades. "They used to work for FEMA. And now FEMA needs them back."

Last spring, the Homeland Security Department's inspector general's office audited the FEMA staff that manages its contracts and found it "impossible to determine whether the acquisition personnel met training, education, and experience requirements." As a result, the auditors concluded, "FEMA may be at risk that its acquisition workforce is not qualified."

At the time of the audit, 51 full-time acquisition workers were managing hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts. Homeland Security Department spokesman Russ Knocke said yesterday that contracting officials are ramping up to handle the extra work and that the department's IG office has received additional funding to closely monitor Katrina contracts.

A FEMA spokesman said the agency "has extensive experience in acquiring the products and services required in disaster response and recovery operations." He said FEMA has already obligated about $9 billion for Katrina relief efforts.

Some of the agency's approximately 2,500 full-time employees think the reliance on contractors is driving away the agency's best talent. Last year, Pleasant Mann, then-president of the union representing FEMA headquarters workers, wrote a letter to congressional leaders warning that the nation was becoming more vulnerable. "The ability of FEMA to manage emergencies and disasters is being seriously eroded," he wrote. "Our professional staff are being systematically replaced by politically connected novices and contractors who have now 'burrowed in' to civil service jobs."

FEMA insiders said a no-bid Rand Corp. contract to help the Homeland Security Department develop the definitive plan for how the nation would respond to an emergency illustrates just how pervasive the contractors' role has become. The National Response Plan was mandated by the White House after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Rather than turn to FEMA employees to craft the new document, according to those familiar with the process, the agency tapped Rand for the work. But the contractor's first draft was rejected by state and local emergency responders who thought Rand had not incorporated lessons from previous disasters.

"There were a lot of things not considered. And I think that was from the fact that the contractor was not a practitioner [of emergency response]," said Dewayne West, president of the International Association of Emergency Managers, a group of local first responders. "So they kind of said, 'We're going to can this one. Let's start over.' "

Bruce Don, a Rand senior researcher who worked on the project, called the experience "frustrating" and said government officials were resistant to change.

Rand's role was subsequently reduced, and government officials wrote the final document. It became the basis for the government's efforts to manage Katrina.

Whether the lackluster response to Katrina was because of the plan or in spite of it will undoubtedly be the subject of numerous reviews, government officials said. So, too, will the issue of contractor performance.

Thousands of people went for days without adequate food and water at the Superdome, at the New Orleans convention center and on rooftops throughout the flooded region, according to news reports, though it is unclear who was to blame.

On the Friday before Katrina hit, Lipsey Mountain Spring Water, FEMA's bottled water supplier, got a call from the Army Corps of Engineers and began shipping truckloads to the region, according to President Joe Lipsey III. The contract calls for the Norcross, Ga., company to get water to sites within 24 hours, and Lipsey said he has developed a nationwide network of 170 suppliers.

The first trucks headed toward Pensacola, Fla., he said. But when the storm turned west, the corps directed Lipsey's deliveries to three federal installations in Mississippi and one in Louisiana. From those staging areas, he said, corps officials direct where it is delivered. So far Lipsey's network has delivered the equivalent of 198 million half-liter bottles of water, compared with 140 million in the nine-week period last year when four hurricanes hit Florida, he said.

Lipsey, a Louisiana native, said despite the criticism, the agency and the corps "are doing an incredible job," especially given the flooding and breaks in the bridge and highway system.

Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (D-Conn.), the ranking minority member on the Senate committee overseeing FEMA, said last night that he has discussed with Collins the idea of a special IG to monitor Katrina spending. "Congress has to be very aggressive in making sure that in our haste to help we aren't wasting an enormous amount of public money, or worse, having it used in a way that's corrupt," he said.

Staff writer Renae Merle contributed to this report.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/emailafriend?contentId=AR2005091202039&sent=no&referrer=emailarticle

===================

cool racket, huh? The Repugs, having gutted FEMA and parachuted in their politicized hacks, can now repay and demand further loyalty of Repug campaign donors with $Bs in Katrina contracts, which now have had the wage floor removed by shrub, so the contractors can make more profits by under-paying their staff compared to prevailing wages in the area.

[Jelly]

thank you.. right now, i just feel kinda disappointed, in the way people are behaving. When i first started everyone was so good. as soon as we started to give the money away, things have become so chaotic. I have been going for the past twelve days straight, it is becoming very frustrating for me. I do understand that maybe the evacuees are getting tired of everything, and maybe they are lashing out because of that, but we are only doing our best. I wish people would just remain peaceful, but I guess money at desperate times can bring the worst out of people

Maybe the media is just giving too much attention to the complainers, but there was another "dissatisfied customer" on NPR the other day. She was saying that in the beginning everyone at the Astrodome was so nice, but the atmosphere had changed and that the workers were getting uppity. She said something about how they are planning on "throwing all of us out" within six days and the attitude among the workers is now "get along little doggies" (her words exactly)

[Jelly]

:rolleyes take it to the political forum Boutons.

[Spurfect]

Maybe the media is just giving too much attention to the complainers, but there was another "dissatisfied customer" on NPR the other day. She was saying that in the beginning everyone at the Astrodome was so nice, but the atmosphere had changed and that the workers were getting uppity. She said something about how they are planning on "throwing all of us out" within six days and the attitude among the workers is now "get along little doggies" (her words exactly)

ok..think about it. Most everyone there are volunteers. Do you think that volunteers would even be going over there if they didn't want to be there? They are not getting any money out of it. Why would they go and have that kind of attitude? It doesn't make sense. Yes, they're supposed to be out within a week, but that is not OUR decision. again like I said, we're doing the best we can

[Mr. Ash]

Now about him trashing the Astrodome and saying it is a "slave ship", wow that makes me angry.
The big difference - we would be delighted if you were to escape. Now git.

[tw05baller]

its so wrong they steal like that

[ZStomp]

That's sucks but not surprised.

[Kori Ellis]

THEN, the real killer.. I was investigating one family of four that had received $7,525.00!!! The ONLY way they can get money in their cards is from a DATA ENTRY person. I looked into this more and found out that someone originally put the correct amount of $1,265.00 on 9/8/05.. then another someone WITHIN us kept going back to that one case, on different days, and re-loaded it with more money ($1,565.00 four times). Then, the evacuee, coincidentley, cashed out the money right afterwards. When we checked her card, she had used everything but $130.00 so my supervisor immediately de-activated it.

I found another one for $4,695.. again, someone from data entry went back on different days and loaded more money into the card. When we checked the balance that person had $370 left, again we de-activated it right away. I found another one for $4,695, one for $5,060 and one for $9,390. Obviously we have some crooked people working amongst us that is stealing from the Red Cross.

Can they track which data entry person did it? Is it the same person over and over?

[Willinsa]

Not too be rude but many of those people are lowlife poor people trying to buck a system they think has been wrong to them for years.

[Spurfect]

Can they track which data entry person did it? Is it the same person over and over?

No. There are alot of us and we're at the Reliant Center AND St. Agnes church (if you've been following the news you probably know about St. Agnes church and how we are set up there too. I worked there on Saturday and it was complete chaos, 14 hour day for me). Anyway there are ALOT of data entry people and we are never really at the same laptop. We just sit wherever.

[Trainwreck2100]

Return to normalcy.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Wow. That's terrible. Did you see the guy on Fox the other day who was complaining that he only got $700 from his red cross card, but hadn't gotten his $2000 card from FEMA yet. He was an ungrateful jerk and started talking about the Astrodome being a slave ship and how no one was helping them. This guy even said the $2000 when he gets it wont be enough, he felt entitled to $20,000. When I think of all the people, like you, that are volunteering their time working their asses off in order to help these people and all the Americans that are donating in record numbers (so far almost $800 million), this horrible, ungrateful attitude just pisses me off to no end.

There's a lot of people who point to Louisiana as an example of what would happen if the Democrats got their way - a welfare state. And it's scary as hell.

They're having different problems in Dallas. When I went last Monday with a bunch of folks from work to volunteer cooking dinner at a local shelter, about half the cars of the volunteers got broken into while we were all inside.

Down at Reunion Arena in downtown they were having the same problems (been on the road all week so haven't heard more about it) with people breaking into the vehicles while volunteers were inside helping.

The police caught 4 people up there breaking into the vehicles and all were evacuees from NO.

[SpursWoman]

:rolleyes take it to the political forum Boutons.


Why bother? He shits on pretty much every thread in there, too. :shootme

[maxpower]

That's sucks but not surprised.
:tu

Total agreement.

I know why Carnival CruiseLines took so long to make their decision.(Probably waited while they overinsured their ships)

They'll be lucky if the ships don't end up at the bottom of the ocean.

The entitlement and ungratefulness I have seen makes me sick.

[boutons]

SW, here's some more political shit in The Club. OPEN WIDE

"if the Democrats got their way - a welfare state"

The Repugs DO HAVE their way - a corporate welfare state.

[SpursWoman]

You know, people would probably listen to what you had to say and take you a little more seriously if you weren't so fucking bitter and offensive. I have no problem listening to opposing points of view and have a very open mind...shit, I even read most of what Dan posts..but you're just flat out ridiculous.

So GFY. :)

[JoeChalupa]

I'm still donating and fraud happens after all disasters.

[SpursWoman]

I'm still donating and fraud happens after all disasters.


It's discouraging, though, that people feel justified taking other peoples kindness and generosity for granted. There are people struggling all over the country that could use the help, too, who don't feel so entitled and would be a lot more appreciative.

[spurster]

[hating the victims]
They were stupid for not getting out of NO, they looted it afterwords, and now they're stealing from the Red Cross. No need to mention skin color.
[/hating the victims]

[Extra Stout]

Maybe the media is just giving too much attention to the complainers, but there was another "dissatisfied customer" on NPR the other day. She was saying that in the beginning everyone at the Astrodome was so nice, but the atmosphere had changed and that the workers were getting uppity. She said something about how they are planning on "throwing all of us out" within six days and the attitude among the workers is now "get along little doggies" (her words exactly)There once were 27,000 people in shelters. Now there are like 4,000. Most of the people who left either had family or had enough initiative to do something with themselves. Perhaps getting out of New Orleans will give those folks some new opportunities they otherwise never would have had.

The ones who are left either have no place to go, or are the lowlifes who spend their whole lives demanding a handout and taking no responsibility for themselves or anybody else.


They're having different problems in Dallas. When I went last Monday with a bunch of folks from work to volunteer cooking dinner at a local shelter, about half the cars of the volunteers got broken into while we were all inside.I wonder why crime is so much more of a problem in Dallas. Did Dallas get a disproportionate number of the New Orleans thugs? Was there some calming influence in Houston that Dallas doesn't have?


There's a lot of people who point to Louisiana as an example of what would happen if the Democrats got their way - a welfare state. And it's scary as hell.:lmao Louisiana? A welfare state? That would imply the government actually does something. All that happens in Louisiana is that the tax money goes straight into politicians' pockets. Louisiana is an example of how the most powerful country in the world can have a third-world entity in its midst.

[SpursWoman]

[hating the victims]
They were stupid for not getting out of NO, they looted it afterwords, and now they're stealing from the Red Cross. No need to mention skin color.
[/hating the victims]



Who said anything about hating the *victims*? Those who are stealing and cheating don't really sound like victims to me, because I'd be willing to bet that's not the first time many of them have cheated a system that was implimented to help them. Such stand-up individuals that deserve our help and generosity. :rolleyes

[JoeChalupa]

It's discouraging, though, that people feel justified taking other peoples kindness and generosity for granted. There are people struggling all over the country that could use the help, too, who don't feel so entitled and would be a lot more appreciative.

I agree. I guess some can live with a guilty conscience.

[Hook Dem]

Who said anything about hating the *victims*? Those who are stealing and cheating don't really sound like victims to me, because I'd be willing to bet that's not the first time many of them have cheated a system that was implimented to help them. Such stand-up individuals that deserve our help and generosity. :rolleyes
Thanks SW for telling it like it is!!!!

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

Sadly I can't say I'm surprised. Louisiana's government has long had a reputation for being bloated and corruptable. As a result I would guess that many of the people who are defrauding the system are old hands at it by now. When I read the title of this thread I thought it was going to be an article detailing how crime has spiked sharply in the areas immediately surrounding the shelters. Couple that with the mini-riot that broke out at the Houston high school yesterday, too. I wasn't surprised that Houston opened up its arms for the evacuees, but I had some serious doubts about how well the city could really handle a sustained influx of these victims and it's starting to look like things are nearing a breaking point.

[j-6]

There's a lot of people who point to Louisiana as an example of what would happen if the Democrats got their way - a welfare state. And it's scary as hell.

They're having different problems in Dallas. When I went last Monday with a bunch of folks from work to volunteer cooking dinner at a local shelter, about half the cars of the volunteers got broken into while we were all inside.

Down at Reunion Arena in downtown they were having the same problems (been on the road all week so haven't heard more about it) with people breaking into the vehicles while volunteers were inside helping.

The police caught 4 people up there breaking into the vehicles and all were evacuees from NO.

The GF couldn't get employees to work their Katrina fundraiser at the Dallas Convention Center this morning because last week at the job fair three of them got their vehicles broken into. She even offered to let them take the station vehicles today rahter than their own and nobody signed up.

I've heard that a lot of the Red Cross volunteers up here have been taking DART and the TRE because of all vehicle break-ins. I'm pretty surprised that none of this has made the news yet.

One more thing. I watched the UT game with a friend of mine that installs auto glass on Saturday, and he said he made $3000 last week...more than he made during the hailstorm last year.

It's sickening.