Is It Too Late To Become An Arms Dealer?

If you've been considering a new career, being an arms dealer doesn't mean you can't be an aspiring musician and have a kickin' MySpace page. 25-year old David Packouz, a Miami Beach massage therapist, was vice president of AEY, Inc., a company which last year won the $300 million contract to supply the Afghanistan army with small arms and ammo. The company's 22-year old CEO, Efraim Diveroli, was 18 years old when he started doing business with the US Army in 2004, working hard and growing his business. His search for managerial excellence was somewhat flawed, however, and is further threatened by upcoming congressional hearings in which Packouz has agreed to testify in exchange for immunity.

Young Efraim's father Michael regrets that he didn't grow up to become "a nice Jewish doctor or lawyer," explaining that "as father of a boy genius, he can be hard to control." Indeed. The crafty little RPG hawker has fled the country, and his lawyer, Hy Shapiro, declines comment. From Efraim's MySpace page:

"I definately have the desire to be very successful in my business and this does take up alot of my time. I'm one of those guys who needs to be entertained and having lots of fun all the time so if your also an undiagnosed case of ADD look me up."

Scarface and Heat are listed as favorite movies, along with something called Gofather. Which would be consistent with the restraining order a former girlfriend had sought against him. As a budding entrepreneur on the go, he probably didn't realize it was illegal to buy 50-year old loose Chinese ammunition, which is what the Army got all fussy about early this year. By sheer coincidence, the Army also granted defense contracts to the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints folks recently famous for marrying/impregnating young girls at their Texas compound, even giving a $1 million loan so they could start making aircraft wheel and brake components.

Nothing to be upset about, folks, move along and remain calm. It's only the apocalypse. We'll get through it ok. Let's take our cue from David Packouz, who has moved on and is doing fine:

"How it will affect me only time will tell. My goal has always been to make a living from my music. I should complete my album within a month or two. There will be a song on there about my former scumbag partner (called 'Hog in the Rat Race')—I'm in the process of recording it now. Hope you enjoy the music!"

(I had missed this story, until The River Blog unearthed video of a call for hearings in Congress. Pardon me, but gotta run now. Have to Google for a handbook on how to apply for defense department contracts.)