Let the Players Play.....

When art imitates life.....One of our favourite shows, Arrested Development, has had one of its plot lines come true....or, more likely, the writers have used the sitcom as a vehicle to tell the American public what is really going on in Iraq.

In the sitcom, George Bluth is a construction mogul who allegedly embezzles money through a dodgy re-building Iraq scheme, winds up in jail and the mayhem of the dysfunctional family ensues. The show is clever, funny and stars my childhood pin-up sweetheart, Jason Bateman.
Well, currently in New Jersey, a court case is taking place where Phillip H. Bloom is being tried for nicking a whole heap of cash from funds for the reconstruction of Iraq. It's just uncanny how the plot of Arrested Development is the same...

This was reported by Al Jazeera:

"These defendants actually took bricks of stolen cash ... and smuggled them out of Iraq and back to the United States for their own personal use," he said.

The 25-count indictment, filed in US district court in New Jersey, follows an investigation into $8.6 million worth of Iraq contracts awarded to construction mogul Philip H Bloom.

Bloom, an American citizen who ran construction and services companies in Iraq, has admitted to laundering at least $2 million and is awaiting sentencing.

The money was stolen from reconstruction money managed by the US-led Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, which is now defunct.

There are currently 80 cases being investigated for stolen funds. I'm sure this is just the edge of the sand bar. It's sad and distressing that this type of thing is going on but I'm not surprised.