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The U.S. Is Dropping Bombs Faster Than It Can Make Them
Like about 90% of the news today, this would be terrific satire, if it wasn’t true.
America is dropping so many bombs on ISIS that the country is in danger of running out.“We’re expending munitions faster than we can replenish them,” said Air Force Chief of Staff General Mark Welsh. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter has asked Congress to include funding for 45,000 “smart bombs” in the Defense Department’s 2017 budget. But it could take a while to rebuild the stockpile.
“The U.S. maintains a pretty steady inventory of bombs and missiles,” says one aerospace and defense policy analyst. “But 2.5 years of fighting ISIS and continued bombing in Afghanistan have exceeded weapons-use projections.”
Operation Inherent Resolve, the U.S.’ military intervention against Islamic State, strikes ISIS targets with laser- and GPS-guided bombs, Joint Direct Attack Munition bombs, Joint Standoff Weapons, and air-to-ground missiles, such as the Hellfire. Per unit price tags on these munitions range from around $25,000 to close to $400,000. In the early days of the Syrian campaign the Navy fired multiple Tomahawk cruise missiles, which go for about $1 million a piece.
But bombs away, the overall cost of the fight against Islamic State in dollars is staggering; more than $2.7 billion so far, with the average daily cost around $11 million.
Since the June 2014 start of Inherent Resolve, the U.S. and its coalition partners have flown 9,041 sorties, 5,959 in Iraq and 3,082 in Syria. More are launched every day. The U.S. claims it has killed between 10,000 and 25,000 Islamic State fighters, quite a spread, but still, if accurate (which is doubtful), at best only a couple of bad guys per bombing run.
Not particularly efficient on the face of it, but — as Obama administration officials often emphasize — this is a “long war.”
The CIA estimated Islamic State had perhaps 20,000 to 30,000 fighters under arms in 2014. So somewhere between a third of them and all of them should now be gone. Evidently not, since recent estimates of Islamic State militants remain in that 20,000 to 30,000 range as 2016 began.
Somebody in Washington better do the math on this one.
Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. The views expressed here are solely those of the author(s) in their private capacity.
Bombs Kill 46 Across Afghanistan
…and nobody cares (link to news).
(Except people in Afghanistan of course.
Both candidates are going out of their way not to talk about America’s longest war and the media barely get out of their chairs for a story absent the semi-regular “Green on Blue” pieces that document just how pathetic the situation is after 12 years and so many deaths. Oh, America has another new ambassador to Afghanistan, the seventh since the war started. The US embassy helpfully has a video of his swearing in in Kabul, with a color guard, speeches and everything, so they’re not just sitting around (bet there was cake)!
Not that it is related [OK, it’s related] but while the US remains stuck like an LA crackhead on more and more war, Brazil announced a nearly $66 billion investment package on Wednesday to beef up the nation’s ailing road and rail systems, part of efforts to solve serious transportation bottlenecks and spur a sputtering economy.
Fixing all of the US infrastructure would cost about $1 trillion, a third of the money that has been spent on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan alone. Go ahead, argue the numbers, but the point is valid nonetheless.
That’s all, thanks and sorry to have interrupted.)
Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. The views expressed here are solely those of the author(s) in their private capacity.
Iraq: Now with More Democracy (and Cookies)
What was to be America’s 51st state, still the proud location of the World’s Largest and Most Expensive Embassy without Purpose, Iraq took some more baby steps toward democracy.Today’s democratic acts included a series of explosions and shootings that killed 44 people and injured more than 200 in Baghdad. The bombings were all coordinated/timed and took in both Sunni and Shia neighborhoods. 2012 is well-placed to outperform 2011 in civilian deaths.
Luckily the World’s Largest and Most Expensive Embassy without Purpose wasn’t just shuffling papers as these terrible acts unfolded across Iraq. After what was no doubt hours of consultations, the Embassy released a statement saying it “strongly condemns” what it called terrorist attacks. The US Embassy also continues its planning for a concert in honor of Black History Month, as well as a reception and art exhibit featuring five Iraqi artists who took part in programs sponsored by the U.S. government. According to the Embassy, “The event not only created opportunities for people-to-people interactions but also celebrated our shared values, including freedom of expression. Such interactions are crucial to forging the strong bonds of friendship and mutual respect that we seek.”
So, it is apparent that the $5 billion a year it costs to operate the World’s Largest and Most Expensive Embassy without Purpose in Baghdad is not going to waste. At least they aren’t burning Korans. Pass the cookies, please.
Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. The views expressed here are solely those of the author(s) in their private capacity.
The World According to America: Bombs Go Here
At least in my part of the Facebook, people have been posting all sorts of photos with clever captions, some funny and some quite serious, in lieu of whatever we’re supposed to be putting on Facebook.
This one seemed applicable to the themes of my blog. Enjoy and if we’re friends on Facebook, we “like” it. Click anywhere on the map to enlarge it.
Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved. The views expressed here are solely those of the author(s) in their private capacity.
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