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So, Bob Gates, still the Secretary of Defense for about another month, has been talking a lot about fruit of late:
When it comes to our military modernization accounts, the proverbial ‘low-hanging fruit’ — those weapons and other programs considered most questionable — have not only been plucked, they have been stomped on and crushed.
Gates has been vocally working the fields, trampling out his vintage whine, to let it be known that he has cut and cut, and he is done cutting. . . well, at least when it comes to military hardware.
“Understanding” the need to further trim the Pentagon budget, however, Gates does say there is a field that is now quite ripe for harvest. . . and stomping. . . and this would be so-called personnel costs—military pay, pensions, and health care.
To reiterate: big, expensive, new weapons systems–forbidden fruit. The people that pilot those weapons and fight our wars—crush ‘em.
Because when the government bestows its largess on a defense contractor, it is so much easier to harvest the return, be it in the form of campaign contributions or future pay for revolving-door jobs. When federal dollars are spread out over hundreds of thousands of service members, it might help a greater number of people, but it doesn’t help the guys who run the orchard—at least not as obviously or nearly as much.
And Sec. Gates–who does have his future to think about, after all–wants to make sure his successors (or at least his future employers) understand. No more defense contractors need get tossed into the terrible winepress of budget austerity–there are plenty of fighting folks, ready for trampling.
. . . .
Oh, one more thing. . .
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10 Comments
(excerpt from “Air Force defends ‘luxury’ travel capsules,” MSNBC, July 18, 2008)
Yeah allowing the justification of those out-sourced, big hardware contracts means the money spent is focused on the 1%ers already using prison labor to build much of the systems. How about the bringing the work back in-house to US civil service government workers (still with their unions intact and receiving their pensions and benefits) for any hardware systems that can pass muster?
That nails it. Well done sir.
Just wanted to repeat that paragraph.
Talk about your luxury sky boxes! OMG! They can watch the games in the most elite, ultimate sky box evah!
Gates already has his job lined up. It’s probably with Blackwater/XE or one of those type outfits. In fact, he probably has invested a great deal of money in those businesses.
Oh hell, why don’t we just go ahead and privatize the entire military! Especially now that congress have given Obama the okay for eternal war and renewed the Ultimate spy program.
Heck, our government is just one big orgy den. Instead of doing what is in the best interst of the country we are matching up the Johns and Ho’s. Here it is folks, the world’s biggest Pimp:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo5zH0Il8B0&feature=player_embedded
Excellent (and infuriating) post for this Memorial Day weekend. Thank you.
US DUPE$: Just(ly) Come HOME!
Not too surprising that this war criminal, Iran/Contra Gates, is adept at preparing for his lucrative future in the defense industry. His government disservice has been a boon for the haves, and a detriment to the USA.
I have never understood why Gates has ever been considered anything but a sock puppet for his corporate masters, and Obama’s support of him is inexcuseable.
The man is completely incompetent. Consider some of his greatest failures while he was either Head of the NSA, National Security Advisor, Sec. of Defense and Director or Deputy Director of Intelligence of the CIA.
During his tenure the US intelligence community missed India’s development and Testing of Nuclear Weapons, Iran- Contra, The Invasion of Kuwait, The fall of the Berlin wall, The Seizure of an US intelligence aircraft by the Chinese, the Rise of the Taliban, the training of Osama Bin laden by US military/intelligence agencies just to mention the highlights.
Lets not forget that as the Soviet Empire was slowly collapseing because of internal problems he was making regular trips to the hill to pimp the idea of how strong and the failing Soviet empire was to scare the congress critters for addled ronnie rayguns and poppa’s bush bankrupting of the US to pay off political donees among the defense contractors.
Remember also that literally as the Iraqi tanks were rolling into Kuwait city that he was testifying in support of poppa bush’s bill to export dual use technology to that administrations good friend Saddam Hussien.
It becomes obvious that this man waas willing to sacrifice the country to promote narrow partisan objectives and who mastered the talent of having a blind eye to anything his masters told him to ignore.
Has anyone ever told you that you have the most annoying habit of making way too much sense? Shame! :)
Stop. Making. Sense!
“Stop trying to confuse me with the facts.”
–Ronald Reagan, Presidential press conference, I don’t remember the year, but I do remember seeing him say that on LIVE television.