Big Dig Company in Big Trouble

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Rich Tate

Supreme [H]ardness
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Jun 9, 2005
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While not exactly tech related, Massachusetts officials have requested a payment that could be as high as $1 billion dollars from the company responsible for dodgy workmanship on the Big Dig project. If the firm opts to pay the amount, they will avoid prosecution in the matter.

State and federal officials are demanding that Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff pay as much as $1 billion to settle claims for shoddy work on the Big Dig, in exchange for a guarantee that the consortium will not face criminal charges in last year's tunnel collapse that killed Milena Del Valle, according to four sources with knowledge of the negotiations.
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Anyone else notice this amounts to "Give us money and the fact that you killed someone goes away"?
 
Nemesis999 said:
Anyone else notice this amounts to "Give us money and the fact that you killed someone goes away"?
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My feelings exactly.When it comes to public safety,companies shouldn't be allowed to buy their way out of shoddy work and negligence that costs innocent people their lives.
 
Nemesis999 said:
Anyone else notice this amounts to "Give us money and the fact that you killed someone goes away"?
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michael.pa2 said:
My feelings exactly.When it comes to public safety,companies shouldn't be allowed to buy their way out of shoddy work and negligence that costs innocent people their lives.
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I have to agree with these guys. I say instead of just paying $1b, the company should rework the project again and again until it is finally acceptable. If they go bankrupt...too bad, they should have done the job right to begin with.
 
InorganicMatter said:
I have to agree with these guys. I say instead of just paying $1b, the company should rework the project again and again until it is finally acceptable. If they go bankrupt...too bad, they should have done the job right to begin with.
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How about the fact that the money will go to the STATE, not the family?
 
CyberDeus-RagDoll said:
How about the fact that the money will go to the STATE, not the family?
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I was only speaking of the state being scammed, I am also completely for the families being reimbursed. This company owes both, the families and the state, and they should have to pay both.
 
This is kind of ridiculous. I highly doubt that the $1B will go to fixing the problems with the Big Dig project. I live near Boston and go through there fairly regularly. I can count on one hand the number of times the tunnel HASN'T had at least one lane closed due to flooding or debris or etc. I'm also well aware of other instances in Mass where a chunk of change was supposedly earmarked for one purpose; but, instead was frittered away by pet projects.

While the fallout from the death resulting from the substandard work was widely publicized (for a couple weeks anyway), similar issues with the entire project remain. At least back then it was an election year and Romney was trying to look strong for his Presidential bid, and everybody else went up in arms to show their support for the contender. Otherwise, I strongly doubt anything would have been done to fix that tunnel properly outside of replacing the fallen tiles. The whole handling of this issue felt more like a giant publicity stunt than an elected official actually doing his job.

Apparently, two wrongs (greed and grandstanding) can make a right, given the right circumstances.
 
Aquila76 said:
This is kind of ridiculous. I highly doubt that the $1B will go to fixing the problems with the Big Dig project. I live near Boston and go through there fairly regularly. I can count on one hand the number of times the tunnel HASN'T had at least one lane closed due to flooding or debris or etc..
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I drive through daily and all lanes are open 99% of the time. Yes, during winter months there have been a few lane closeing incidents but not for a long duration. Construction work is limited to nights and occasionally weekends. The project has done wonders for city traffic. The only traffic problems now stem from interchanges north and south of the city.


Otherwise great post!!
 
Instead, how about $10 billion, and we jail top exceutives for negligent homicide?

Personally I'd rather everyone VP and up get summary execution, and the company be dissolved and assetts sold off for whatever $$. Proper punishment to send a message is Corporate death penalty. :eek: :D :p

After all, if a corporation has "speech" etc like a "person" then it should be subject to the same punishments as a "person". :mad:
 
Nemesis999 said:
Anyone else notice this amounts to "Give us money and the fact that you killed someone goes away"?
Click to expand...

Money makes a lot of things go away. Sadly, negligence and failure to realize that the wrong "glue" was being used, should result in more than just a fine.


I couldn't believe how they "glued" on several ton panels with some epoxy, thinking it's going to be a permanent solution. I also don't understand howcome the panels have to weigh several tons each and has to be made from solid concrete....

If anyone should be getting that 1B, it should be that family.... afterall, it was the city's fault for picking a craptastic inspector and a horrible bidder for the contract.
 
Yeah, and another victim of the ridiculous paranioa over "asbestos".

Suspending thos huge CEMENT panels in the air over the road... WTF... why? Oh, for fireproofing.

Instead of simply using lightweight asbestos panels for the purpose. Oh, but asbestos causes cancer... booogey booogey booogey. :eek: :p :D

Actually BLACK asbestos causes cancer IF you breath it in. WHITE asbestos does NOT cause cancer even if you breath it in. Though breathing in alot of ANYTHING but air can cause problems. So by all means the miners should have complete breathing protection.

But bring back WHITE asbestos, as the people in Kansas say.... Gawd put it here for a reason.

Yeah, to be the perfect fire proof material for human use.

Now back onthe cement:

Wouldn't YOU as a sensible person build a truss system mounted at the SIDEWALLs of the tunnel, upon which to BOLT the panels into, rather than drill a hole, spuge some glue in, and stick a bolt in to hold up a 2 ton cement panel?
 
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