The United States Navy Continues Down The Path Of Ever More Expensive Toys

[unhappycamper]

unhappycamper note: Since the Pentagon has ‘requested’ that I only post one paragraph from articles on Army Times, and Airforce Times, I’ve decided to give ya’ll an unhappycamper summary of the article and a link to the OP. To keep in that same (new) tradition, I will also do the same for for articles on Navy Times, Marine Corps Times, stripes.com and military.com.

To read the article in the military's own words, you will need to click the link.

I didn't realize that the Pentagon/MIC could restrict my First Amendment rights as well as morph the Copyright Act of 1976, 17 U.S.C. § 107 with zero, zip, nada Congressional approval. It sure is beginning to smell like fascism.[br />
unhappycamper summary of this article: These ships were originally defined the the United States Navy Deepwater program and were supposed to cost around $200 each. LCS 1, aka the USS Freedom, cost $584 million dollars delivered. LCS 2, aka the USS Independence, cost $704 million dollars delivered. Why are we still building these things?




Keenly aware of pressure from Congress and industrial supporters for a contract announcement, Chen’s statement says that the Navy “is proceeding with the LCS source selection diligently, thoroughly, and consistently with its source-selection plan and applicable law and regulations. The Navy is taking the time necessary to carefully review and analyze the competing proposals.” And he can’t say much more about it. Indeed, Chen wrote, the service’s “duty to protect the integrity of the source-selection process, as well as the confidentiality of the information submitted by the offerors, significantly limits our ability to provide additional details about the ongoing competitive procurement at this time.

http://www.dodbuzz.com/2010/08/23/austal-lockmar-nose-to-nose-for-lcs/



unhappycamper comment: I guess a 352% overage on costs is not an issue. Color me surprised.

[Fumesucker]

1. K&R, thanks for posting..

[Gman]

2. Why? Jobs, for one?

It's not completely a bad thing.

[Fumesucker]

4. Jobs building military hardware have the lowest multiplication factor of all manufacturing jobs..

I have a family member who makes an excellent living from a military hardware job, but that doesn't mean I can't see that it's largely a huge waste of taxpayer money.

[Fumesucker]

3. Another paragraph..

Keenly aware of pressure from Congress and industrial supporters for a contract announcement, Chen’s statement says that the Navy “is proceeding with the LCS source selection diligently, thoroughly, and consistently with its source-selection plan and applicable law and regulations. The Navy is taking the time necessary to carefully review and analyze the competing proposals.” And he can’t say much more about it. Indeed, Chen wrote, the service’s “duty to protect the integrity of the source-selection process, as well as the confidentiality of the information submitted by the offerors, significantly limits our ability to provide additional details about the ongoing competitive procurement at this time.

[NYC_SKP]

5. If they'd send one after the Nisshin Maru or show up in Taiji at the Cove...

...I might be able to support building one or two of these.

[depakid]

6. In the coming decades, that will likely be required

to prevent the collapse of fisheries all around the globe.

[Burma Jones]

7. If they didn't, the Advertising Salespeople for WTOP Radio here in DC

would have a much harder time making quota.......