Blue Angels, Thunderbirds Grounded

[G8trGr8t]

Then you pass the sequester bill and complain that they aren't meaningful

you still refusing to admit that the sequester was borne in the WH and sold by the administration? really..serious detachment from reality.

the % cut could be relatively painless but the administration wants it to be as painful to the most number of people as possible so that any further discussion of cuts meets opposition from the masses. it doesn't surprise me that you are unwilling to acknowledge that either though

meanwhile my brother with a hs diploma who retired after 30 years in USCG and got first dibs on a 6 figure civil service job just flew out to San Dieago for his 4th training session so far this year. He has spent over 5 weeks of this year to date in training programs being paid for by the military through their civil service program. He is pulling down over $150k combined from the taxpayer plus tricare with a hs diploma and he never set foot out of the country or faced anything more dangerous than driving in DC traffic.

[wgbgator]

Yeah, I don't get the how cutting an airshow is "painful" in anyway. It really serves no defense purpose. If money is tight, this is one of the first things anyone with a brain would cut.

[G8trGr8t]

the communities that count on those shows for tourism dollars might disagree with you, as would the families and kids that want to see them.

maybe they could close some of the 250 navy golf courses, or keep some of those millions headed to Egypt, or .....

[brainstorm]

Originally Posted by wgbgator

Yeah, I don't get the how cutting an airshow is "painful" in anyway. It really serves no defense purpose. If money is tight, this is one of the first things anyone with a brain would cut.

What about waste? Maybe we have none but just maybe we do.

[Dreamliner]

Originally Posted by brainstorm

Again, we're talking about a slight decrease in the increase in spending...playing politics...

... and Americans don't even want that. Yikes!

[The_Graygator]

Originally Posted by brainstorm

A friend in the coast guard, who joined in large part to earn money for college, just posted a message on FB that the CG has cut off their tuition assistance due to the "budget cuts".

The Obama Admin is making some serious political hay out of this. They can pick and choose what to cut. Instead of making good decisions they seem bent to cut programs that make no sense and then act like they had no other choice. Bad, bad republicans.

I never liked Obama but like him even less now.

He didn't get his way with the sequester, so like the neighborhood brat with the only ball, he took his and went home from the sandlot game because he couldn't make the rules.

[PITBOSS]

Originally Posted by fredsanford

This thread is typical of what is wrong with America. "Please cut everything that I have no stake in, but don't touch what I do."

Potd.

As soon as specifics are given - lots of complaining. And all cuts will have examples of real areas it will hurt.

[The_Graygator]

The problem is, the only reason we're even discussing this sequester and budget cuts is BECAUSE Obama meddled in what everyone does, i.e., the economy and their jobs.

We wouldn't even have these problems now if he'd had done what he promised to do in the first election.

[wgbgator]

Originally Posted by brainstorm

What about waste? Maybe we have none but just maybe we do.

"Waste" is kinda vague. I bet a lot of people think propaganda/PR airshows are waste.

[orangeblueorangeblue]

Originally Posted by G8trGr8t

how about closing some of the many overseas bases and bringing those people home or making those countries pay up for their defense. (S. Korea and Japan come to mind)

I suspect the cries might be even louder if we closed a S. Korea base in the present environment.

[Lawdog88]

Originally Posted by oragator1

Yeah I don't know if they are trying to use this to make political hay, but shouldn't air show activities be one of the first things cut in any short term cutback scenario?

That would depend, would it not, on whatever other discretionary budget-cutting options were available.

[wgbgator]

Pretty much any visible cut people are going to use for evidence that the cuts are hurting or designed to hurt. Which is to say, almost all of them. I doubt there is any cut that isnt going to cost a job, hurt a local economy, shutdown something people enjoy, or eliminate something taken for granted. It seems like people think that there is all this invisible waste that can just come off the books with little noticable effect to anyone, and Obama is saying well instead of shutting down the gilded money fountain that runs on $1000 bills in the Pentagon lobby, lets ground those Blue Angels to really stick it to people!

[orangeblueorangeblue]

Originally Posted by Lawdog88

That would depend, would it not, on whatever other discretionary budget-cutting options were available.

Agreed. It would help if some media outlet did the analysis, although it's hard to be privy as to each individual department's ability to cut.

[oragator1]

Originally Posted by PITBOSS

Potd.

As soon as specifics are given - lots of complaining. And all cuts will have examples of real areas it will hurt.

In fairness to the original post, his over arching point is valid- the cuts being made don't tackle the systemic long term cost drivers at the pentagon, not that defense shouldn't b
All I was saying in reply is that the sequester was designed in a way that those things can't be cut and have value immediately.

[cocodrilo]

Just think, real cuts would completely shut down the government. There is no hope.

[gatorman_07732]

Originally Posted by cocodrilo

Just think, real cuts would completely shut down the government. There is no hope.

Maybe thats a good thing

[Lawdog88]

Originally Posted by orangeblueorangeblue

Agreed. It would help if some media outlet did the analysis, although it's hard to be privy as to each individual department's ability to cut.

We are resonating in the same orbit.

But I don't know why that kind of cutting ability should be so hard to discover. FOIA, and all.

[wgbgator]

Originally Posted by oragator1

In fairness to the original post, his over arching point is valid- the cuts being made don't tackle the systemic long term cost drivers at the pentagon, not that defense shouldn't b
All I was saying in reply is that the sequester was designed in a way that those things can't be cut and have value immediately.

This is true. It's not like you can suddenly choose to start paying $20 for toilet seats that you are contractually oblidged to pay $100 for, for the next 3 years.

[mdgator05]

Originally Posted by G8trGr8t

the communities that count on those shows for tourism dollars might disagree with you, as would the families and kids that want to see them.

maybe they could close some of the 250 navy golf courses, or keep some of those millions headed to Egypt, or .....

That sounds an awful lot like pork. So the federal government should be spending money to prop up local communities through tourist dollars (paid for by all communities), so that people can see a show.

By that logic, why doesn't the government start making blockbuster movies then? People clearly want to see them. Won't somebody think of the poor children who won't get to watch that new government-made movie? Oh wait, we decided that the private sector is better at determining what people want to see. Except, apparently, when it comes to fast planes doing tricks in the sky. Then, clearly, there is some economic reason why, if the demand was high enough to constitute their existence, the private sector couldn't provide those things. But just for my benefit, what is that reason?

It is fairly amazing how the second somebody's pork gets shut off, those that scream loudest about pork, scream loudest about the pork being shut down.

[brainstorm]

Originally Posted by wgbgator

"Waste" is kinda vague. I bet a lot of people think propaganda/PR airshows are waste.

Honestly, I don't think cutting airshows is a bad thing. I just find it odd that we never seem to be able to cut back on things we all agree are wasteful first.