THE PEACOCK REPORT (TPR)

Pennsylvania Society 2007: Got Hookers?

Despite occasional criticism of the annual Pennsylvania Society bash -- a century old event in which Pa. politicos and their industry sponsors escape for some fun at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City -- media reportage often fails to stray beyond the "There's so much do in New York City" line of "analyses." As a former house detective -- or "hotel dick" -- of the Helmsley Palace, I can indeed attest to that fact; but as I once observed, some of these Keystone State officials and power brokers likely will target a particular source of fun that is intentionally absent from the itinerary: hookers.

Want to learn more about your tax dollars at work? Check out this excerpt from my memoir Hotel Dick: Harlots, Starlets, Thieves & Sleaze.

Iraqi Time in a Bottle

In addition to depleted uranium shells and civil war, the Iraqi people can add one other legacy that the U.S. government ultimately will leave behind: more than a billion plastic bottles. According to a procurement document that The Peacock Report has located, the U.S. Army is coordinating the delivery of 348,000,000 to 492,000,000 liters of bottled water for distribution in 2008 within the Iraqi "theater of operations," where the Multinational Forces-Iraq will consume the products via half- and one-liter plastic containers, the document says.

NASA Creates Unit to Hasten Dawning of Nukes on Moon

The eventual deployment of nuclear reactors on the Moon blasted a baby step closer to reality today, with NASA embarking upon the creation of a new unit tasked with bringing such a nuclear capability to fruition. The Technology Demonstration Unit (TDU) for Fission Surface Power (FSP) on Nov. 14 began searching for potential contractors capable of helping the new entity to initially develop and test a "simulated nucelar heat source," according to a presolicitation notice that The Peacock Report (TPR) located via a routine search of the FedBizOpps database. The TDU is "planned as a 5 or 6-year activity with concept definition and risk reduction that could lead to the start of a potential flight development program in the future," the document says:

FSP systems provide a potential option to support future human exploration missions on the Moon and Mars. FSP is a current technology project under the Exploration Technology Development Program (ETDP) sponsored by the NASA Exploration Systems Mission Directorate.

TPR broke the story early last year that the Bush Administration envisions building nuclear facilities and robotic spacecraft-manufacturing plants on the Moon as a critical step in eventually sending humans to Mars (see TPR, 03/23/2006; New Details of U.S. Moon-Base Project Reveal Nuclear Intentions).

U.S. To Spend More Than Half-Billion on New Embassies

The U.S. State Dept. plans to spend upwards of $636 million on its latest round of new embassies worldwide, according to a procurement document that The Peacock Report has obtained. The document, dated Nov. 8, reveals that State yesterday began seeking to "prequalify" construction firms capable of designing and building embassies in Baku, Azerbaijan; Belgrade, Serbia; Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE); Monrovia, Liberia; Bucharest, Romania; and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The cost of the individual embassy projects range from $75-$120 million. State will issue a formal Request for Proposals (RFP) at an unspecified date following the Dec. 18 deadline for the submission of letters of interest by potential contractors.