Pentagon bloat, etc. thread

[Vrede too]

First, Sen Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) blocks and is still blocking military promotions in a misogynist tantrum. Now,

Alabama lawmakers turn up the heat on Air Force in escalating Space Command fight

Weeks of partisan sniping between states competing to be the permanent home to U.S. Space Command is ratcheting up even further as Alabama lawmakers use their muscle to cement the headquarters’ move to their state.

Senior Alabama Republicans on the House Armed Services and Appropriations committees have attached provisions to Pentagon spending and policy bills this week that freeze funding for construction, and even limit travel funds for top Air Force officials, in a bid to cajole the service into finalizing the move....

Apparently, Alabama didn't learn its lesson the last time it went to war with the Union military.

Not so sure they're at war with the military.
""Huntsville won the competition and they're gonna get the permanent base,” House Armed Services Chair Mike Rogers said of provisions in his defense policy bill. “And we're gonna make sure that anybody who thinks they're going to get authorization or funding to [undo] that is mistaken."'

This is about Colorado using political muscle to overturn the best location decision.

Sounds to me like Colorado is making a practical logistical case for being the best location. Idk if it's a valid one.

I don't take a thing Mike Rogers (R-AL) says at face value, and the Pentagon isn't saying or the article doesn't discuss why the process is slow. Idk what the "competition" parameters were or who ran it, but I agree with O Really: "No states that elect anti-damgummint senators should get discretionary federal money." Fine with me if Biden's USAF rejects the competition's determination for whatever reasons.

Rogers and the RepuQs have the constitutional right and ability to push for Huntsville siting, including through legislation and/or budget mandates. However, I'd say that escalating beyond that to holding other USAF construction and officer travel hostage IS going to war with the military. Only AL can decide if the risks are worth it.

[billy.pilgrim]

First, Sen Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) blocks and is still blocking military promotions in a misogynist tantrum. Now,

Alabama lawmakers turn up the heat on Air Force in escalating Space Command fight

Weeks of partisan sniping between states competing to be the permanent home to U.S. Space Command is ratcheting up even further as Alabama lawmakers use their muscle to cement the headquarters’ move to their state.

Senior Alabama Republicans on the House Armed Services and Appropriations committees have attached provisions to Pentagon spending and policy bills this week that freeze funding for construction, and even limit travel funds for top Air Force officials, in a bid to cajole the service into finalizing the move....

Apparently, Alabama didn't learn its lesson the last time it went to war with the Union military.

Not so sure they're at war with the military.
""Huntsville won the competition and they're gonna get the permanent base,” House Armed Services Chair Mike Rogers said of provisions in his defense policy bill. “And we're gonna make sure that anybody who thinks they're going to get authorization or funding to [undo] that is mistaken."'

This is about Colorado using political muscle to overturn the best location decision.

Sounds to me like Colorado is making a practical logistical case for being the best location. Idk if it's a valid one.

I don't take a thing Mike Rogers (R-AL) says at face value, and the Pentagon isn't saying or the article doesn't discuss why the process is slow. Idk what the "competition" parameters were or who ran it, but I agree with O Really: "No states that elect anti-damgummint senators should get discretionary federal money." Fine with me if Biden's USAF rejects the competition's determination for whatever reasons.

Rogers and the RepuQs have the constitutional right and ability to push for Huntsville siting, including through legislation and/or budget mandates. However, I'd say that escalating beyond that to holding other USAF construction and officer travel hostage IS going to war with the military. Only AL can decide if the risks are worth it.

I would imagine that was considered in the competition. Now it’s all politics to overturn the election, I mean competition.
Just because it's Alabama doesn't mean it's bad.

[Vrede too]

I would imagine that was considered in the competition. Now it’s all politics to overturn the election, I mean competition.
Just because it's Alabama doesn't mean it's bad.

I would imagine that the "competition" was also fraught with politics. Aren't they always?

It would be yet another massive federal transfer of mostly blue state money to a deep red state. That alone makes it bad. I'd have to learn a lot more about the "competition" before agreeing that AL is best.

[billy.pilgrim]

I would imagine that was considered in the competition. Now it’s all politics to overturn the election, I mean competition.
Just because it's Alabama doesn't mean it's bad.

I would imagine that the "competition" was also fraught with politics. Aren't they always?

It would be yet another massive federal transfer of mostly blue state money to a deep red state. That alone makes it bad. I'd have to learn a lot more about the "competition" before agreeing that AL is best.

You didn't seem to need to know more before you supported an alternative to Alabama.

[Vrede too]

I would imagine that the "competition" was also fraught with politics. Aren't they always?

It would be yet another massive federal transfer of mostly blue state money to a deep red state. That alone makes it bad. I'd have to learn a lot more about the "competition" before agreeing that AL is best.

You didn't seem to need to know more before you supported an alternative to Alabama.

True, all else equal I don't think that states "that elect anti-damgummint senators should get discretionary federal money." However, that's admittedly a political stance. I have seen no evidence that the "competition" isn't just as political and have no reason to assume that it's somehow fair and balanced. I sure don't believe Rogers (R-AL) on the matter and am fine with Biden's USAF weighing other factors, if that's even what it's doing.

[Vrede too]

Gang warfare: Army confirms 9 veterans arrested as members of Georgia motorcycle club

... Sixteen members of the Outcast Motorcycle Club this month were indicted in Bryan County, near Savannah, on criminal charges to include domestic terrorism, assault and armed robbery....

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives public information officer Nathan Banks said historically, many members of outlaw motorcycle gangs have former military affiliations.

While many may be wondering why decorated servicemen ever even get involved in a violent biker gang, Jose Ramirez, president of the Georgia Gang Investigators Association, said the groups are selective when picking new members and purposely seek out former military members because of ideology and loyalty.

Ramirez said one of the appeals to prospective members is the structure of the group. The Outcast Motorcycle Gang has a hierarchical structure and uses ranks, similar to the military.

There is also a brotherhood feel inside of the groups, which Ramirez said can be appealing to those who feel lost after serving overseas.

"A lot of motorcycle gangs will recruit individuals that have served in the military because they have engaged in war or conflict overseas," he said. "They don't know how to come back into society and relate to the norms, but what they can relate to is the structure and brotherhood that a motorcycle gang gives. They come back and commit domestic terroristic acts within their own country that they once vowed to protect."

... "They want somebody who's going to be loyal and somebody who can offer skills they learned in the military to the gang," Ramirez said. "They see that there's a benefit and they will gravitate toward [potential new members] who can defend themselves and know how to fight." ...

A look at the nine Army veterans charged with gang-related crimes ...

These are not young gangbangers. 7 served more than 4 years and 4 of those retired after 20 years or more. The military rivals prison for creating criminals and terrorists.

[Vrede too]

U.S. Is Destroying the Last of Its Once-Vast Chemical Weapons Arsenal

... The destruction of the stockpile has taken decades, and the Army says the work is just about finished. The depot near Pueblo destroyed its last weapon in June; the remaining handful at another depot in Kentucky will be destroyed in the next few days. And when they are gone, all of the world’s publicly declared chemical weapons will have been eliminated....

The United States once also had a sprawling germ warfare and biological weapons program; those weapons were destroyed in the 1970s....

Defense Department officials once projected that the job could be done in a few years at a cost of about $1.4 billion. It is now wrapping up decades behind schedule, at a cost close to $42 billion — 2,900% over budget.

But it’s done....

Irene Kornelly, the chair of the citizens’ advisory commission that has overseen the process at Pueblo for 30 years, has kept track as nearly 1 million mustard shells were destroyed. Now 77, she stood leaning on a cane and craned her neck to see the last one be scrapped.

“Honestly, I never thought this day would come,” she said. “The military didn’t know if they could trust the people, and the people didn’t know if they could trust the military.” ...

YAHOO POLL
Is the United States’ destruction of its chemical weapons arsenal a good thing?
Yes 60%, including me
No 29%
Unsure 11%

[GoCubsGo]

Besides holding the military hostage Tommy decides he needs to be a bigger national disgrace.

[Vrede too]

Besides holding the military hostage Tommy decides he needs to be a bigger national disgrace.

https://twitter.com/kaitlancollins/stat ... 7455270912

viewtopic.php?p=186281#p186281

5 months now for the misogynist terrorist who never served:

Tuberville Blockade Over Abortion Policy Threatens Top Military Promotions

Same interview:
Sen. Tommy Tuberville, a former college football coach with no military experience himself, said 'There is nobody more military than me'

[GoCubsGo]

And the wingnuts go wild.

https://libertynewsforum.boards.net/thr ... l-disgrace

[O Really]

Why can't/won't McConnell do something about this idiot. Holding up the military is about as un-Republican as you can get short of voting for tax increases.

[Vrede too]

And the wingnuts go wild.

https://libertynewsforum.boards.net/thr ... l-disgrace

6 pages in 13 hours!

ksuaviator

Tuberville’s own family dislike him. Same with Gosar.

What a dumbass. Hey Tommy (Moron - AL)...

Paleocon
Why did CadesCove grief Greg55_99? He called Tuberville a "cockroach".
Brostradamus x 2

And that's just page 1.

Posted to page 2:

Bazinga.

[GoCubsGo]

Copied to LNF thread.

[O Really]

Well, you could call someone a "White Nationalist" when they aren't - much like using "Nazi" as a general descriptive insult. But if someone is a "White Nationalist" s/he has to be, by the definition contained in the name, racist. And by any definition offered anywhere else. I'm sure there are some well-educated reasonable salt-of-the-earth people in Alabama, and there may be a lot of them as good as billy.p. But it certainly doesn't help the state's reputation for redneck racist ignorance to elect some yahoo to the Senate because he coached Auburn over 10 years ago.

[Vrede too]

(multi-post discussion above)

I would imagine that the "competition" was also fraught with politics. Aren't they always?

It would be yet another massive federal transfer of mostly blue state money to a deep red state. That alone makes it bad. I'd have to learn a lot more about the "competition" before agreeing that AL is best.

You didn't seem to need to know more before you supported an alternative to Alabama.

True, all else equal I don't think that states "that elect anti-damgummint senators should get discretionary federal money." However, that's admittedly a political stance. I have seen no evidence that the "competition" isn't just as political and have no reason to assume that it's somehow fair and balanced. I sure don't believe Rogers (R-AL) on the matter and am fine with Biden's USAF weighing other factors, if that's even what it's doing.

Elections have consequences.

Biden decides to keep Space Command in Colorado, rejecting move to Alabama

President Joe Biden has decided to keep U.S. Space Command headquarters in Colorado, overturning a last-ditch decision by the Trump administration to move it to Alabama. The choice ended months of thorny deliberations, but an Alabama lawmaker vowed to fight on.

U.S. officials told The Associated Press on Monday that Biden was convinced by the head of Space Command, Gen. James Dickinson, who argued that moving his headquarters now would jeopardize military readiness. Dickinson's view, however, was in contrast to Air Force leadership, who studied the issue at length and determined that relocating to Huntsville, Alabama, was the right move....

Biden, said the U.S. officials, believes that keeping the command in Colorado Springs would avoid a disruption in readiness that the move would cause, particularly as the U.S. races to compete with China in space. And they said Biden firmly believes that maintaining stability will help the military be better able to respond in space over the next decade. Those factors, they said, outweighed what the president believed would be any minor benefits of moving to Alabama....

Formally created in August 2019, the command was temporarily based in Colorado, and Air Force and Space Force leaders initially recommended it stay there. In the final days of his presidency Donald Trump decided it should be based in Huntsville.

The change triggered a number of reviews.

Proponents of keeping the command in Colorado have argued that moving it to Huntsville and creating a new headquarters would set back its progress at a time it needs to move quickly to be positioned to match China’s military space rise. And Colorado Springs is also home to the Air Force Academy, which now graduates Space Force guardians, and more than 24 military space missions, including three Space Force bases.

Officials also argued that any new headquarters in Alabama would not be completed until sometime after 2030, forcing a lengthy transition....

In a statement Monday, Kendall said the service will work to quickly implement Biden's decision, adding that keeping the command in Colorado will “avoid any disruption to its operational capability.”

... (Rep) Rogers, meanwhile, vowed that his committee will continue an investigation into the matter, calling it a “deliberate taxpayer-funded manipulation of the selection process.” He added, “It’s clear that far-left politics, not national security, was the driving force behind this decision.” ...

"far-left politics" = no Space Command anywhere.

Maybe maaaybe if Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R) and other racially gerrymandered GQP Alabama lawmakers weren't being such assholes.

[GoCubsGo]

[billy.pilgrim]

Although I think Huntsville's history with rockets and space makes it the better choice, tubby deserves the humiliation of such a huge loss. "Besides Colorado is closer to space than Alabama."

[O Really]

Yo, Tubbyville - Welcome to real world politics, asshole.
Release your hold on all those military promotions and appointments and then come back to talk. Jerk.

[Vrede too]

Although I think Huntsville's history with rockets and space makes it the better choice, tubby deserves the humiliation of such a huge loss. "Besides Colorado is closer to space than Alabama."

Yo, Tubbyville - Welcome to real world politics, asshole.
Release your hold on all those military promotions and appointments and then come back to talk. Jerk.

'Leave us alone': Space Force spouse demands Tuberville end military blockade

I'll bet that many proponents of Alabama siting are cursing Tommy even more than they are Joe. Good.

[GoCubsGo]

The $362 million warship the US Navy just decommissioned wasn't even in service 5 years


This is maddening as well as a cluster fuck. There's no repurposing possible?

The goal of the LCS program was to build a fleet of small, agile surface ships that could cheaply tackle a wide range of missions and operate as both light frigates and near-shore patrol vessels, but the ships have long failed to meet expectations.

The suitability of the LCS to the desired mission sets, their reliability, and their survivability have been called into question, there have been longstanding problems across both classes with the propulsion system, and the ships are almost as expensive to operate as a destroyer.

Facing these problems, the Navy has pushed to divest of these platforms to save money on repairs and upgrades and is looking to new platforms like its upcoming frigate to execute key missions the LCS was unable to handle, such as anti-submarine warfare. The Sioux City is just one of a number of Littoral Combat Ships the Navy seeks to decommission