Category Archives: News and Events

Yale, Georgetown, USC, and other universities were hit by operation Varsity Blue, the largest college-cheating scandal in history. Mastermind Rick Singer funneled money to the universities in exchange for their admission of the children of the wealthy. However, when Singer … Continue reading →

Oh, that College Board! Oh, those test scores! Oh, those colleges and universities! They are gaming the system. The College Board rakes in the dough by charging students to take PSAT, SAT, and AP tests. Then the College Board sells … Continue reading →

Two weeks before the collapse of the Vale SA dam in Brazil that killed 270 people, Vale’s then-CEO, CFO, and other executives received the following anonymous e-mail: “We are facing great challenges ahead, our operations are lacking the minimum level … Continue reading →

This is one for the books, as it were. Mattel understated its losses in the third and fourth quarters of 2017 by $109 million. The mistake in losses resulted from an error in calculating an allowance for its tax valuation. … Continue reading →

The SEC is investigating AIG sales practices (in its Valic division) with schools districts. Part of the investigation includes looking into whether money Valic gives to schools for certain expenses even as it offers plans, advice, and products to those … Continue reading →

Boeing employee e-mail to the head of the Boeing 737 MAX program during the plane’s production. The employee added that, “Our work force is exhausted. Fatigued employees make mistakes.” At the time of the design of the 737 MAX airplane, … Continue reading →

Former California Representative Katie Hill gave her last speech on the House floor on Thursday. Ms. Hill said, “I am leaving now because of a double standard. I’m leaving, but we have men who have been credibly accused of intentional … Continue reading →

The Barometer is no fan of Mark Zuckerberg, his hoodies, or his company, Facebook. However, it is a commentary on the intellectual level of members of congress when the man who became a billionaire through a marketing scheme planted within … Continue reading →

Two young London bankers who share an apartment, Darina Windsor and Benjamin Taylor, also shared inside information that they had on companies, such as Merck, Amgen, and Celgene, with middlemen from 2012 to 2018. The middlemen then passed along that … Continue reading →

In instant messages from 2016 between Mark Forkner, then Boeing’s chief technical pilot for the Boeing 737 MAX, and Patrik Gustavsson, the two discuss the problems with the plane’s MCAS system (the flight-control system). Mr. Forkner had some problems in … Continue reading →

Former Vice President and presidential candidate Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, has said some interesting things over the past few weeks as he sought to explain his involvement with businesses in Ukraine and China. The opportunities came during the Obama administration … Continue reading →

Whilst the Office of Inspector General (OIG) was reviewing the conduct of James Comey in the FBI’s handling of the Hillary Clinton e-mail investigation during the 2016 election, the OIG ran across some additional e-mails that implicated another FBI official … Continue reading →

Presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren has been spinning a yarn about her days as a teacher for special ed students. She said she was 22, visibly pregnant, and the principal did what Senator Warren said all principals did at that time: … Continue reading →

The NBA gets the Barometer’s Annual Duplicity Award. Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey tweeted the following on Friday, October 4: “Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong.” The Chinese consulate in Houston was offended, the owner of the Houston … Continue reading →