The NRO is a Pentagon agency that designs
and purchases America's military satellites.

It's existence wasn't even acknowledged until
after the break up of the Soviet Union.

It still won't say how many satellites it has,
who built them, how much they cost, what their
targets are, or even what their names are.

This agency also built a $1 billion
(it might have been $2 billion, but no one is really sure)
office building for it's workers.

The building is bigger than the Pentagon.
The NRO paid for it w/ $$$$ that was hidden from Congress.

They used a private defense contractor
to keep the whole deal quiet.

The members of the Senate committee that is supposed
to have oversight of the NRO acted outraged.

If they were, it's only because the overpriced/sized
building wasn't put in their state.

The Senators on the committee all had a long history
of wasting our $$$ on needless wasteful building projects.

The NRO building is one of the most awesome wastes in U.S. history,
contributing greatly to the area's urban sprawl problem.

Define Irony

Urban sprawl makes us use more gas for transport.

This means people like Saddam Hussien have $$$$ for weapons,
and people like Clinton, Reagan and Bush have an excuse
for building the $20 billion/yr. satellite system including the NRO.

Even worse it's photos are often used for
the destruction of the Kurds.

Of course none of this is mentioned at it's web site.

Update: May 1998

India conducted a nuclear detonation, the NRO did not notice
the preparations it and the U.S. had no advanced warning.

$20 billion per yr. for nothing!