this post was submitted on 22 Mar 2024
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605
Boeing whistleblower John Barnett was spied on, harassed by managers, lawsuit claims (www.foxbusiness.com)
submitted 7 months ago by floofloof@lemmy.ca to c/news@lemmy.world
40 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

cross-posted from: https://kbin.social/m/news/t/910625

Boeing whistleblower John Barnett alleged in a lawsuit prior to his death in South Carolina that he was "harassed" and "humiliated" for speaking out at work.

all 41 comments
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[–] girlfreddy@lemmy.ca 135 points 7 months ago (3 children)

It stated that Barnett "continually objected to Boeing creating and maintaining a program not approved by the FAA that allowed mechanics to inspect and approve their own work, known as the Multi-function Process Performer."

Boeing should be dismantled and everyone involved in the harassment campaign against Barnett should be charged.

But that'll never happen 'cause it's too big to fail.

[–] umbrella@lemmy.ml 12 points 7 months ago

But that'll never happen 'cause it's too big to fail.

capitalism at its finest, who would have tought.

[–] FordBeeblebrox@lemmy.world 12 points 7 months ago

Them inspecting their own product was a funny punchline for John Oliver, very much not funny in the real world.

Agreed, Boeing should be dismantled and the people charged.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 10 points 7 months ago (2 children)

I don't understand why "too big to fail" is also "too big to be broken up." We broke up what was once literally the only company you could use if you wanted to use a telephone and it seems to have worked out.

[–] neptune@dmv.social 9 points 7 months ago (1 children)

What was once a politically reasonable and feasible course of action is now communism. Fox News now thinks for 30% of the country.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 6 points 7 months ago (1 children)

And you know the craziest part? The plan to break up the Bell monopoly was created under Ford's DOJ and implemented under Reagan.

So even they were in favor of breaking up "too big to fail" companies.

[–] neptune@dmv.social 5 points 7 months ago

Reagan is a RINO! Everyone knows that.

[–] jkrtn@lemmy.ml 4 points 7 months ago

If the government is giving any money to these assholes it should be from buying all their stock at fire sale prices using money from fines paid by the CEOs and board of directors.

[–] Gork@lemm.ee 111 points 7 months ago (6 children)

Boeing's hit job must have been well planned.

The killer would have had to kill him in his car, wrap his hands around the gun to establish fingerprint marks. A company like Boeing that's part of the Military-Industrial Complex wouldn't have an issue finding a highly trained contract killer.

Bribes at the local authority level (maybe higher too) to have them rule it a suicide with no further investigation needed. No need for further pesky questions.

Now all I'm waiting on is for the judge to toss out his incomplete testimony since it isn't complete.

Then just wait a few weeks until the media focuses on other things.

Then the execs can have martinis while stock number go up.

[–] Ultraviolet@lemmy.world 57 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) (2 children)

They don't need to do that, they could have just called him on a burner phone and threatened to kill his family if he didn't kill himself. Forensically indistinguishable from suicide, but absolutely murder by coercion.

[–] brbposting@sh.itjust.works 19 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Didn’t have to have been Boeing. Must be plenty of investors.

Fucking disgusting we’ll never know*, RIP heroic whistleblower who lost everything.

(*I acknowledge there’s a non-zero chance it was suicide)

[–] olicvb@lemmy.ca 10 points 7 months ago (2 children)

Has it ever happened to check the previous call logs of a suicide victim? Of course Boeing can bribe the telcom to keep shut / delete the info. But i'm curious wether it's ever been done.

[–] MashedPotatoJeff@lemmy.world 6 points 7 months ago

Michelle Carter was convicted of manslaughter for encouraging her boyfriend to commit suicide by text

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world 1 points 7 months ago

Of course it's been done.

[–] ysjet@lemmy.world 53 points 7 months ago

Regardless of if they actually hired a hitman, it's very clear that Boeing harassed and psychologically attacked this man to the point of him ending up dead.

Whether they actually hired a man to pull that trigger or convinced him to pull it himself, legally his murder would be on their hands and they damn well need charged for it.

[–] Nom@lemm.ee 9 points 7 months ago (1 children)

As it happened with Khashoggi and the same with Daphne and the list will always keep going on & on while we imagine hearing the clink of more glasses after.

[–] Linkerbaan@lemmy.world 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Jeffery Epstein...

[–] Nom@lemm.ee 6 points 7 months ago

I didn't want to mention him as he wasn't a heroic whistle blower but a criminal with a testimonial, but yes I agree even he wasn't spared by his fellow posh.

[–] Lifecoach5000@lemmy.world 6 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Why did they wait so long to off him then?

[–] tryptaminev@feddit.de 12 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Being willing to kill someone as a "last option" and wanting to kill everyone who poses the slightest threat are not the same motivations.

Also thinking about it, how many people at a company the size of Boeing become a threat by being bothered with criminal practices violating safety and other law and ethic standards? How many do we not hear about because the "normal" coercion tactics work?

Having half your engineering department wind up dead because they raised concerns about issues with the production could backfire much more to begin with, but also it would make every engineer look for a different employer quickly. So trying to destroy someones reputation first, ousting him, creating a "him vs. us" mentality is preferential. It also makes it easier for the company to move on after killing him, if the need arises.

So both from a emotionally crippled, but not fully devoid point of view and from an completely psychopathic cold blooded strategy point of view it makes sense to not pull the trigger on everyone right away.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 3 points 7 months ago

I can't think of a bigger chilling effect on employees than making it clear to them that if you speak out, you'll be dead.

[–] SkybreakerEngineer@lemmy.world 5 points 7 months ago (1 children)

I'm pretty sure there are rules that govern how to handle a witness dying in the middle of testimony

[–] alekwithak@lemmy.world 16 points 7 months ago

"Look the other way or you're next"

[–] gapbetweenus@feddit.de 2 points 7 months ago

If people won't hold corporations accountable no one will.

[–] zcd@lemmy.ca 45 points 7 months ago (1 children)

And murdered

[–] Empricorn@feddit.nl 32 points 7 months ago

Yeah, maybe it's just me, but that seems like the bigger deal.

[–] nick@midwest.social 35 points 7 months ago (1 children)

“Self inflicted”

[–] stoly@lemmy.world 12 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Just like the whistleblower who outed the government for selling crack in LA to fund overthrowing governments around the world.

[–] nkat2112@sh.itjust.works 13 points 7 months ago (3 children)

True. Suicide by not one, but two bullets if you can believe that.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_Webb

[–] somethingchameleon@lemmy.ca 5 points 7 months ago

Weird how these guys always kill themselves instead of going out in a blaze of glory.

[–] stoly@lemmy.world 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

I’m afraid I didn’t read the article you posted but seem to remember that it was also in the back of the head.

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world 3 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

No, supposedly the side of his head. First wasn't fatal, second was.

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world 0 points 7 months ago (1 children)

The first went through his cheek and would have been non-fatal.

Then his wife said she believed it was a suicide, he had been suicidal for a while.

[–] tryptaminev@feddit.de 8 points 7 months ago

Which i would also say, if three men showed up at my door to inform me about the very unfortunate suicide of my husband and that they really strongly hope, that i am not also suicidal like him...

[–] AshMan85@lemmy.world 25 points 7 months ago

They forgot assassinated.

[–] anarchy79@lemmy.world 21 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) (2 children)

Why put a hit on a guy when you can just harass him until he kills himself?

Than again neither scenario reflects super well on Beoing. It's like it's run by Mr. Burns...

[–] floofloof@lemmy.ca 21 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

Given that he was nearing the end of his testimony and people who knew him said he was not depressed, there's still a good chance it was a hit.

[–] anarchy79@lemmy.world 10 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Also see: Aaron Schwartz

[–] wildbus8979@sh.itjust.works 1 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

"fun" fact, Aaron was prosecuted by the same prosecutor as the Tsarnaev brother.

[–] rocky1138@sh.itjust.works 2 points 7 months ago

Don't post Fox