what's doing

The Washington Post reports in BearingPoint To Consult on Iraqi Economy on the new BearingPoint contract:

The U.S. Agency for International Development confirmed yesterday that BearingPoint Inc., a consulting firm based in McLean, won a one-year contract worth as much as $79.6 million to help rebuild Iraq's economy.

[...]

BearingPoint already has received $9 million from USAID to begin work and will request more as it determines the number, complexity and urgency of its tasks.

Ok. Just when did they get the $9 million? One week is a mighty fast turn around on a check request of that size...

The Guardian reports an interesting snippet by Maj. Gen. David Petreaus, commander of the 101st Airborne Division, in an AP article U.S. Hopes Deaths Won't Spur Iraq Crisis:

Petreaus [...] cited his division's successes in Mosul - rebuilding water treatment facilities and the university, relaunching sports programs, restoring and expanding Internet service. He said his division directly employs 5,000 people and has spent at least $7 million on reconstruction projects.

We at bpost can't help but wonder where the $7 million came from, who it went to, and what exactly it paid for. Are the "5,000 people" mostly Iraqis, Americans, Bechtelians or some equal combination of all three? The only thing clear from the article is that the new 480-person security personnel in Mosul is comprised of Arabs and Kurds.

In addition, he said, the 101st has created four 120-man security units that can be used as a model for the civil militia now being planned in Baghdad. The often-quarrelsome Arabs and Kurds who make up the security forces designed their own logo for the units: two fists clasped together in partnership.