Fraud? In the E-Rate Boondoggle? No.

Surprise, surprise. The absurd, wholly unnecessary E-Rate program -- a subsidy for public schools to get on the Internet -- has spawned a multi-million dollar fraud in New York.

One ISP operator faces 60 years if convicted on all charges stemming from an alleged $9 million fraud in the federal program.

And it is a certainty that the program is filled with fraud. Think about it. E-Rate exists because schools claim ineptitude and helplessness in the face of getting online and hooking a few PCs to a network. How, then, are they going to know what is fair market value for those services?

They can't, don't, and are paying who knows what for simple set-ups.