I spent the 2018 summer interning for Openthebooks.com, the world’s largest private repository of government spending in the world. And it was eye-opening.

I’ve never witnessed such utter waste and corruption in spending other people’s money, even at fraternity trips to Vegas or businesses “expensing” trips and meals.

At the end of every fiscal year, the government spends billions of dollars in a matter of days due to “Use it or Lose It” budgeting, for fear that department’s budget will be cut if they don’t spend every dollar. The government spent $50 billion in contract spending in the last seven days of the previous fiscal year.

Want to know how your hard-earned tax dollars were spent? In one month the U.S government spent $6.2 million on gym equipment, and they didn’t skimp on the brand: the State Department specified in a contract that they needed the jump rope brand endorsed by Crossfit star Rich Froning.

Other examples include:

  1. In 2018 the Pentagon spent $32,000 for 25 cups of coffee, coming out to about $1,280 per cup of coffee.
  2. From 2004-2017 20 government agencies spent $1.2 trillion in mistakes in improper payments.
  3. The State Department bought $79,000 of alcohol in six days in Sept. 2017 for their embassies.
  4. In 2015 the National Science Foundation spent $1 million to answer the study, “Where does it hurt the most to be stung by a bee?”.
  5. From 2006-2017 non-military agencies spent $2.2 billion on guns, ammunition, and military-grade weapons.
  6. In 2015 the federal government spent $5 million on “hipster parties.”
  7. The Army spent $6,600 on fidget-spinners and $35,000 on one arcade machine.

Even rappers have realized how frivolously the government spends taxpayers money.

In “Brackets”, J-Cole says that he wants to know where his tax money goes, and better yet, he wants to choose which programs he funds because he knows as of now, congressmen dictate money to money-hungry companies and people.

And he pretty much nailed it.

The “Harvesting U.S Farm Subsidies” report demonstrated the corruption in a program meant to help struggling farmers. Instead, residents in America’s five most-populated cities (where there are no farms) received nearly $17 million in farm subsidies over three years. 389 people received over $1 million lump-sum quantities.

One of my personal projects was auditing high school and college spending in Texas. If you want an easy six-figure salary, go teach in state-run Texas high school. I found P.E. teachers making $232,000, a music teacher making $340,000, and a librarian netting $127,000 per year.

10 superintendents cleared far over $300,000 per year, not counting luxury benefits such as a $1.2 million loan interest-free, and renting a 400,000 house for just $1,000 per year. And that doesn’t count costly half-million-dollar severance packages and pensions when the teacher finally leaves.

In short, I learned a crash course lesson in one of Milton Friedman’s quotes.

“Then, I can spend somebody else’s money on myself. And if I spend somebody else’s money on myself, then I’m sure going to have a good lunch! Finally, I can spend somebody else’s money on somebody else. And if I spend somebody else’s money on somebody else, I’m not concerned about how much it is, and I’m not concerned about what I get. And that’s government. And that’s close to 40% of our national income.”