Military facing $100 billion in equipment repairs

[RamboLiberal]

Source: USA Today

The Pentagon faces a more than $100 billion bill to repair and replace worn out or destroyed equipment, vehicles and weapons, officials and members of Congress say, but paying for it may endanger plans to boost the size of the military.

The military is scrambling to re-equip because the Pentagon failed to plan for the long and expensive war in Iraq, said Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., who chairs the House panel that oversees military spending.

That failure, Murtha said, makes the Pentagon's plan to add 92,000 new soldiers and Marines unrealistic. Although new troops would help reduce repeated, lengthy deployments, there are other more pressing demands, Murtha said.

"It's going to come from personnel cuts," Murtha said. "That's where it's going to come from. They know it."



Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/news/military/2008-06-25-Military-repairs_N.htm

---

Heckuva job breaking the military Bushie!

[babylonsister]

1. FUBARed. Totally. nt

[gristy]

2. Is that kind of work outsourced to contractors at this point?

Are there no mechanics in the army any more? :(

[Wwagsthedog]

3. Tip of the proverbial iceberg. nt

[Purveyor]

4. And 40 out of 90 kids that showed up for free lunches because that was their only

source of a meal had to be turned away due to the lack of funding...

Shortages, Inflation Hit California Food Banks as Hungry Kids Start Summer Recess

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=3364153

Indeed the Rev. Wright had it correct... "GOD DAMN AMERICA"!!!

[DallasNE]

5. An Unintended Consequence

Of the Surge. Plain and simple.

And the people that brought us this mess are heroes?

Once again military planning proves to be an oxymoron. Thanks David Patraeus. It got you 2 quick promotions but is left the military in dire straits.

[dysfunctional press]

6. sand is a bitch on machinery, if that gives you any idea...

luckily- a lot of the equipment being used in iraq belongs to the various states' national guard units- and as such isn't really the DoD's concern.

[Kolesar]

7. Has everybody heard the stories about China launching hacker attack against US companies?

State sponsored industrial warfare

[pokercat999]

8. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED !!!!! nt

[Solly Mack]

9. from start to eventual finish...nothing but criminal

[Bigmack]

10. You gotta wonder if there is any sense...

in bringing that stuff back from Iraq at all. Considering shipping and all, would it be more expensive to just start all over? Besides, those up-armored Humvees may not be that useful to a peacetime military... or a military in another war.

Anybody thinking at all about just not having such a large military equipped with the most expensive hardware? Maybe repairing the US infrastructure instead? Maybe having health care for everybody? At some point, will people realize that we simply cannot afford this bloated military? Naaaah!