• Swedish spy agency spends $800,000 on James Bond-themed party
    28 replies, posted
[url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-19392257[/url] [quote=BBC News][B]Agent 007's expense account was not an issue when he had to save the world, but Sweden's would-be James Bonds are not in the same league.[/B] Government accountants are concerned about a lavish James Bond-themed party thrown for Sweden's spy agency, Sapo. Sweden's Dagens Nyheter (DN) news website says the party for 1,000 Sapo staff in June last year featured casino tables, a gala dinner and big band. But questions are being asked about the bill: 5.3m kronor (£508,000; $804,000). The head of Britain's domestic intelligence service MI5, Jonathan Evans, was among the guests at the bash, DN reports. Famous celebrities and comedians entertained the partygoers. Such expenditure was controversial because in recent years Sapo, Sweden's police intelligence agency, has been through a big reorganisation involving budget cuts. Sapo General Anders Thornberg admitted the organisation had made a mistake with a VAT (sales tax) claim after the event, DN reported. Sapo claimed 974,000 kronor in VAT refunds, exceeding the allowance. Sapo should also have invited competitive bids for the event, under Sweden's public spending rules, but that was not done.[/quote]
Not going to lie, sounds like a pretty fucking sweet party.
[quote]Agent 007's expense account was not an issue when he had to save the world[/quote] it would be if the taxpayers knew about it
[QUOTE=KaIibos;37434170]it would be if the taxpayers knew about it[/QUOTE] I need a 200 thousand dollar car with machine guns instead of lights.
To be honest, considering it was for at least 1000 people the price is not all that suprising.
And that it is a james bond themed party I would be happy to pay for it
It seems strange for a spy agency to have a spy themed party. It's like a fire station having a fire fighter themed party. Think outside the box. Like a 007 themed party but everyone dressed up as villains.
Except there aren't any really badass fire fighter characters.
[QUOTE=Omali;37437178]It seems strange for a spy agency to have a spy themed party. It's like a fire station having a fire fighter themed party. Think outside the box. Like a 007 themed party but everyone dressed up as villains.[/QUOTE] something tells me that the life of a spy isn't anything like being james bond
[QUOTE=wraithcat;37436844]To be honest, considering it was for at least 1000 people the price is not all that suprising.[/QUOTE] Well they spent $800 on every person
[QUOTE=DoctorSalt;37437232]Except there aren't any really badass fire fighter characters.[/QUOTE] Everyday heroes.
[QUOTE=Sleepy Head;37437366]something tells me that the life of a spy isn't anything like being james bond[/QUOTE] It would probably be more like Burn Notice or Alpha Protocol.
A spy party Doesn't announcing that defeat the purpose of it being for spies? :v:
[QUOTE=Derp Y. Mail;37438821]A spy party Doesn't announcing that defeat the purpose of it being for spies? :v:[/QUOTE] It's a major spy-out.
[QUOTE=MuTAnT;37434113]Not going to lie, sounds like a pretty fucking sweet party.[/QUOTE] Except for the fact that they just wasted a shitton of taxpayer money
Well yay. Now, what is this, the 5'th such scandal in a month ?
[QUOTE=Omali;37437178]It seems strange for a spy agency to have a spy themed party. It's like a fire station having a fire fighter themed party. Think outside the box. Like a 007 themed party but everyone dressed up as villains.[/QUOTE] It is nothing like James Bond. I remember an American CIA agent after the cold war talking about his experience. He said the most exciting day of his career was when in west Germany a friend in the CIA told him they were meeting with a possible informant. They went into east Germany, no one came, then left.
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdIEt_ibmvE[/media]
[QUOTE=ThePinkPanzer;37439217]It is nothing like James Bond. I remember an American CIA agent after the cold war talking about his experience. He said the most exciting day of his career was when in west Germany a friend in the CIA told him they were meeting with a possible informant. They went into east Germany, no one came, then left.[/QUOTE] I read a story where a CIA agent in Russia went grocery shopping right when the people surveilling him were supposed to be changing shifts, so when he got to the store, one of them came up and dropped everything he normally bought into his cart.
I bet the truth is they're pissed as it was a [i]Roger Moore[/i] James Bond party
[QUOTE=DoctorSalt;37437232]Except there aren't any really badass fire fighter characters.[/QUOTE] [img]http://kf-wiki.com/images/8/88/Samuel_Avalon_BIO.png[/img]
[QUOTE=Konigstiger96;37439958]I bet the truth is they're pissed as it was a [i]Roger Moore[/i] James Bond party[/QUOTE] He needs a stunt double to dance for him
[QUOTE=ThePinkPanzer;37439217]It is nothing like James Bond. I remember an American CIA agent after the cold war talking about his experience. He said the most exciting day of his career was when in west Germany a friend in the CIA told him they were meeting with a possible informant. They went into east Germany, no one came, then left.[/QUOTE] How exciting a life with the agency is depends on the exact job. My dad was a field officer (about as close as it gets to a 007-style 'agent' in real life) from the early 80s through to the late 90s, and had to deal with everything from [URL="http://www.sakartvelo.com/Files/terror.html"]terrorist attacks on friendly governments[/URL] to [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_United_States_embassy_bombings"]our former embassy getting bombed by Al-Qaeda[/URL] to really, really tense public dinners with known undercover Russian FSB agents and informants being executed for talking to him. I have a great amount of respect for anyone in an intelligence agency. Their work gets so dramatized and exaggerated by the media that it's hard to comprehend exactly how stressful, difficult, and downright dangerous it really is. Several guys my dad met early in his career never made it to retirement. Let the Swedes have their party.
[QUOTE=catbarf;37442252]How exciting a life with the agency is depends on the exact job. My dad was a field officer (about as close as it gets to a 007-style 'agent' in real life) from the early 80s through to the late 90s, and had to deal with everything from [URL="http://www.sakartvelo.com/Files/terror.html"]terrorist attacks on friendly governments[/URL] to [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_United_States_embassy_bombings"]our former embassy getting bombed by Al-Qaeda[/URL] to really, really tense public dinners with known undercover Russian FSB agents and informants being executed for talking to him. I have a great amount of respect for anyone in an intelligence agency. Their work gets so dramatized and exaggerated by the media that it's hard to comprehend exactly how stressful, difficult, and downright dangerous it really is. Several guys my dad met early in his career never made it to retirement. Let the Swedes have their party.[/QUOTE] I read the autobiography of a DSS agent, and it was a pretty interesting read (Fred Burton, the guy behind STRATFOR, the company with the leaks :P), and what he described was pretty exciting, though definitely not boat chase on the Thames exciting. however most likely these people were analysts and such, I don't think they would recall the field officers for a "party"
What a wonderful party. Pity I wasn't invited.
[QUOTE=DoctorSalt;37437232]Except there aren't any really badass fire fighter characters.[/QUOTE] uuh fire?
I hope someone got the message that it was a Splinter Cell party instead and they are hiding out in the air vents and snapping necks
This seems like something that would happen in Archer.
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