Since TCAP’s blog kicked off in late spring, we’ve torn through over 200 stories, from corporate clown shows to scandals that’d make your blood boil. This isn’t a final bow – it’s a pause to recap the wildest, most shocking, and darkest moments of our journey so far on our quest to expose Cummins’ rotten ecosystem. We’re talking sex tapes, forced labour, war profiteering, data breaches, and more, with Cummins and their mates – Claas, Komatsu, Corebridge, EVE, XCMG, Siemens, PACCAR, Navistar, Baird, and others – scrambling to dodge the heat. We’ve grouped our biggest hits into the lighter bits (where we got a laugh), the shocking scandals (that left us stunned), and the horrific human toll (where lives are at stake). It’s a cocktail of the snarky, it’s pride in exposing the truth, and it’s respect for the heavy stuff. Here’s the TCAP story so far.
The Lighter Side: Corporate Goofs and PR Flops
Let’s start with the stuff that had us chuckling, even if it’s through gritted teeth. Cummins’ sudden blogging spree, exposed in “Cummins’ Sudden Blogging Habit,” was like watching a corporate intern try to TikTok their way out of a $1.675 billion emissions fine. Spoiler: it flopped harder than a bad X post, but points for effort. “The Offensive PR Offensive” caught Cummins spewing glossy press releases about “sustainability” and “inclusion” that read like a cringey stand-up routine. We ripped into “Illusion of Inclusion” and “Cummins Confidential : The Fat Cat and the Factory Floor” calling out Jennifer Rumsey’s diversity sermons while workers got shafted. Buzzwords don’t polish a turd—cute try, though. Our “Open Letter to Apple” poked at their potential Cummins ties. They ghosted us, but rattling cages is always fun. And “Cummins Hydrogen Hustle – A Last-Ditch Swagger in a Sinking Ship” laid bare their green tech hype as a desperate flex to distract from the diesel mess. These exposes were fun to write, showing how Cummins’ PR machine sputters when the bluff is called.
The Shocking Scandals: Sex Tapes, Bribery, and Corporate Shenanigans
Now for the jaw-droppers that had us double-checking our notes. Our dive into Chongqing Machinery & Electric, Cummins’ Chinese joint venture partner, uncovered the sex tape scandal in “A Good Old-Fashioned Chinese Soap Opera.” Execs caught on tape, mixed with embezzlement and kickbacks – it’s the kind of drama that’d make Hollywood jealous, but it screams governance rot in Cummins’ backyard.
Siemens got nailed in “Shady Siemens and Sleazy Cummins” for mob-style bribery, shady disappearances reminiscent of Goodfellas, and coughing up $1.6 billion in fines for $1.4 billion in bribes across Greece, Argentina, and more. These guys weren’t bending rules; they were running a corruption circus.
Tom Linebarger’s “bombshell” in “The Day Tom Linebarger Confessed to Cummins’ Defeat Devices” where he “admitted” rigging 960,000 engines for that $1.675 billion fine (at least the quotes read that way!) – no jail time, of course, because cash talks louder than justice. Jennifer Rumsey’s power grab in “Rumsey Refuses to Relinquish Power” showed a CEO clinging to the throne like it’s Game of Thrones. And “Navistar – Cummins’ Not-So-Gold-Star Customer” exposed emissions cheating and defective trucks, tied to Cummins engines. The audacity is staggering.
The Horrific Human Toll: Exploitation, War, and Broken Lives
This is where it gets heavy. EVE Energy exposés, “Batteries Built on Blood, Bullshit, and Broken Promises” (Parts 1 and 2), revealed allegations of forced labour in Xinjiang – Uyghurs and Tibetans trapped in state-run work programs powering Cummins’ Accelera “green” batteries. Not just supply chains – it’s lives crushed.
In Russia, “No Claas – Greedy Bastards Thriving in Russia’s Bloodbath” and “From the Ashes of a Fuck-Up – The Real Deal on Komatsu” exposed Cummins’ customers profiting while Ukraine burns. Claas’ Krasnodar factory and Komatsu’s Moscow ops, tied to Cummins engines, dodged full withdrawal despite Russia’s war laws (Federal Law No.31-FZ). Blood money, no question.
Komatsu’s 2020 Australia harassment scandal, ignoring an apprentice 11 times, and their 2017 $375,000 fine for a worker’s death hit like a punch to the gut. “Corebridge Financial – Exposing the Greed, Glitches, and Gutless Behaviour” uncovered a 798,000-victim data breach from a 2023 MOVEit hack. “A Mental Health Pattern” revealed Cummins’ workers battling burnout and bullying, swept under the rug. “The Veteran They Fired” broke us – a loyal worker tossed like scrap. And “Digging Through the Dirt – Exposing XCMG’s Global Grind” (Parts 1 and 2) linked Cummins’ customer to PLA ties and sanctions risks, adding geopolitical rot to the pile. These stories carry weight; we’re proud to expose them, but the human cost keeps us grounded.
The Fight Goes On
From sex tapes to forced labour, war profiteering to data breaches, TCAP’s peeled back the curtain on Cummins’ rotten ecosystem. We’ve called out PACCAR’s defective trucks, Bosch and ZF’s emissions cover-ups, Baird’s ERISA violations, and shareholders like Vanguard and BlackRock bankrolling it all with pension cash. Every exposé is a step toward accountability, not just headlines. Cummins and their mates can’t hide forever – not when me and Oscar, still with the bit between our teeth (despite him going grey), are shining a light on their mess. The TCAP story’s far from over – stay tuned – because this blog & dog aren’t for quitting.
Lee Thompson – Founder, The Cummins Accountability Project