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USAF Counter-Terror Funds Buy "Comfort Capsules"
An anonymous reader writes "The Washington Post reports, 'The Air Force's top leadership sought for three years to spend counterterrorism funds on "comfort capsules" to be installed on military planes that ferry senior officers and civilian leaders around the world ... Air Force documents spell out how each of the capsules is to be "aesthetically pleasing and furnished to reflect the rank of the senior leaders using the capsule," with beds, a couch, a table, a 37-inch flat-screen monitor with stereo speakers, and a full-length mirror.' Congress told the USAF twice that they could not spend the money on this frivolous project, but they did it anyway."
"McMahon said he does not recall intervening on the leather color change, but said he was sure it was unrelated to the Air Force's color. He said that it was probably because blue would not show dirt as much as tan or brown would. "
Good to see they have their priorities straight!
Pork anyone?
I've read several articles and I still have no clue what the hell a "comfort capsule" is. Is it a whole plane? Is it an add-on to a plane? Is it one of those napping pods like you can find here? Am I alone in this one?
The game.
How does this happen?
Who's actually in charge of how they spend it? Is it not Congress?
If Congress says no, is this a "we think that's frivolous, bad dog, no biscuit", is it a "you will be breaking the law", or are congressional meetings about this stuff just for fits and giggles?
--Q
Would this be anything different from the way money is being spent on irrelevant "security measures" at public transportation access points?
One holds white meat from self-indulgent hogs, the other holds pork.
...Also, I didn't know Buggalo could fly.
Production of the first capsule -- consisting of two sealed rooms that can fit into the fuselage of a large military aircraft -- has already begun.
Air Force documents spell out how each of the capsules is to be "aesthetically pleasing and furnished to reflect the rank of the senior leaders using the capsule," with beds, a couch, a table, a 37-inch flat-screen monitor with stereo speakers, and a full-length mirror.
Honestly, the s/n ratio keeps getting worse and worse here. News flash: government wastes money. Next.
I was worried that these capsules might leave our betters and brass fatigued when they arrived at their destinations, until I saw that the vulgar and degraded brown leather had been replaced with suitably dignified blue, and the wooden fittings replaced with cherry, restful to the eyes and mind of the higher orders. The DVD player, also, will be of incalculable military utility, I have no doubt.
Seriously, I can understand the logic of having people be able to sleep on the flight, so as not to waste time at the destination; but how could anybody possibly justify this level of ostentation(or, for the amoral weasels who just don't care, how could they possibly believe that they could get away with this level of ostentation(erm, besides a quick assessment of what people have been able to get away with these days, that is, never mind about that one))?
would be rectal redecoration so they'd had something to look at while their heads were up their asses. Adding a 37" TV I think would be money well spent.
...doesn't surprise me at all
The USAF doesn't report to Congress. Since their Commander in Chief treats Congress like a jizz rag, it's unreasonable to expect anyone in the armed forces to show them any respect. They won't cut budgets, and the most that they every do is write Sternly Worded Memos, or go running to the courts like little snivelling bitches, wailing "Pretty please make everyone obey the law."
I swear, the USA is one lost staring contest away from a bloodless military coup. I mean, if it hasn't already happened. How would we tell the difference?
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
But the question is, how much is this in relation to all their funding? A drop in the bucket, or could that much money achive something substantial they aren't already doing? I think the reference to training more personell etc needs to be backed up, do they not already have enough money for their intake levels?
What about fluoride filters for the generals' water? Did you ever think of that?
Slashdot "libertarians": Small government for me, big government for those I disagree with. -1, I disagree with you
Guess you can't fight terrorism without your comfort fix, eh?
Yeah, it's not like the USAF, USMC, Navy, and Army are all on the same team, or something...
Did anybody else read the headline and think cyanide pills?
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
usaf has never been on the same team as the others you mention in this regard. from building the golf courses on a base before the runway to lavish living conditions for staff - they've always been very different.
It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
Now ask me again why I hate paying taxes. It's not OK for me to not pay taxes, but it is PERFECTLY OK for our officials to squander our precious hard-earned bucks -- well, wait, the bottom is dropping out of the USD right now, so our hard work is worth even less. Oh well...
Ruby Neural Evolution of Augmenting Topologies
Bullshit, the USAF does NOT build golf courses first. They build the O-Club first then whatever money is left goes to the golf course. They delay the runway and other necessary ops till the Army has to have them and pays for 'em.
"comfort capsules"..."aesthetically pleasing and furnished to reflect the rank of the senior leaders using the capsule," with beds, a couch, a table, a 37-inch flat-screen monitor with stereo speakers, and a full-length mirror.
Lt. Col. Brilliant: "General, I have an idea! Lets call them "comfort capsules" instead."
Gen. Protection Fault III: "Comfort capsule...? CC... umm... catchy... BRILLIANT Brilliant! Write that down and start ordering. I'll be in my f... in my comfort capsule."
Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens
Oh yeah, I forgot. No government contracts to convicted felons. What these people need are comfort suppositories. Don't ask, don't tell... See JE
What?
You pay me $16.2 million.
I go down to the local RV salesman and buy a couple 30-foot travel trailers.
I spend another couple thousand to paint UNITED STATES OF AMERICA on the side.
You roll 'em right into your planes and lash 'em down.
I pocket $16.0 million.
It should be mandatory viewing because among other things it shows how little real power politicians have.
After all, how long does a general serve compared to a senator? And the general doesn't have to fight a war every 2 years and defeat his rivals.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
Obvious question:
Does the comfort capsules come with a companion cube?
Ronald said nothing. He flung himself from the room, flung himself upon his horse, and rode madly off in all directions.
So congress told the Air Force not to guild these things, twice, and they went ahead and did it anyway? Obviously, the Air Force thinks it is in charge. Now, either congress has to discipline them, harshly, or the Air Force really is in charge. If the Air Force is in charge, then you've got the beginnings of a military state on your hands.
When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
Weird. All the main Army posts I've been to have a golf course. I'm sure Navy and Marine bases are the same. Even the Army camp near the JSA on the Korean DMZ has a golf course.
Congress has full control over spending. "No money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in consequence of appropriations made by law." - U.S. Constitution, Article 1, section 7.
Congress can exercise detailed control over spending when they so choose. Sometimes bills will contain language like "No federal funds shall be expended upon...", and that's binding on the executive branch. It's not unusual for Congress to explicitly turn off some project in this way.
You can imagine it, the 'top brass' person gets loaded into his little pod (presumably windowless) and then gets hoicked into the back of the C130. Bump, bump, thud... 37" plasma screen accepted, this mode of travel is as bad as how illegal immigrants travel and a tad antisocial. What type of person would want to travel like that in the first place? Sounds a bit silly.
Regarding the general expense, the outlay is nothing compared to the $2 billion (or is it $11 billion) currently being spent upgrading the doomsday planes that only ever saw any real action on 9/11 - but *that* was denied somewhat...
More generally, Air Force 1 and the rest of the U.S. fleet is beginning to look like a bad movie-set accessory. Soon Roman Abramovich will be getting an Airbus A380 as a personal jet, to go with the 767 and 737 (for small runways).
I find it kind of odd that congress told the Air Force that when a four star general flies to the AOR they cannot make use of a higher class accommodation on board a military aircraft but whenever a member of congress flies their they get their own personal high class commercial aircraft. I'm not saying that the Air Force is right here, I don't think any of our public servants should be getting first class rides at taxpayer expense.
It's not only a waste of money, it's horrible leadership. Any officer in the military pushing for this kind of thing should be immediately railroaded out of the military - being a good military leader and seeking this kind of fluff are absolutely mutually exclusive. Some pig high ranking General lavising in luxury while ordering people to risk their lives and live in cramped air carrier quarters is fucking disgusting.
What about war is comfortable exactly? And why are we trying to shield officers and civilians from reality (even further)? Why isn't this being spent on the comfort and (psychological/physical) well being of our troops?
Twinstiq, game news
An anonymous reader writes "The Washington Post reports, 'The Air Force's top leadership sought for three years to spend counterterrorism funds on "comfort capsules" to be installed on military planes that ferry senior officers and civilian leaders around the world ... Air Force documents spell out how each of the capsules is to be "aesthetically pleasing and furnished to reflect the rank of the senior leaders using the capsule," with beds, a couch, a table, a 37-inch flat-screen monitor with stereo speakers, and a full-length mirror.' Congress told the USAF twice that they could not spend the money on this frivolous project, but they did it anyway."
If you read the arcticle carefuly it explains that this money was going to be used to 'improve' the provisions already in place for Executive officers. I am a crew chief in the military and i will tell you that we already have these things. They are basically 'silver Bullet' campers with a bit of some overhauling on the inside. We already have these things in place, and they are being used. Forget the fact that 102 soldiers fit on board uncomfortably with the center line seats. But i have an idea. why not stop the medical evac missions with their wasted space of 36 litters and just put the 'silver bullets' on board so that General skippy won't spill his F*king martini.
Seeing an insightful mod on the parent made me want have to reply... mods should stop and think about what the author is saying, so that they don't mod up false posts and make people believe crazy things.
O-clubs come before a golf course because the Officer clubs is usually a required component of a military golf course. However, this has nothing to do with delaying the runway or necessary operations. MWR is alotted a certain portion of the budget to build Morale, Welfare, and Recreation centers and to fund certain activities for the benefit and entertainment of military personnel. While the Air Force may allot a certain amount more MWR money than other services, it most certainly does not due so to the detriment of vital operations, necessary runways, and so forth.
By that logic, we should dramatically increase the budget of the Department of Window Breaking.
Or the Department of Hole Digging and Filling.
Money that gets spent locally - but for which we get no benefit.
paintball
Um. They were ordered not to do it. Twice. They then ignored it. (so, in this case, congress was being GOOD!)
This won't go down well.
For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
Reading from the story, the original idea was good but things got out of hand when people start deviating from the original objectives. The Air Force saw that there was a growing need for top brass and government officials to work and rest on long military flights. They have some planes for this purpose but in some areas for the world (and for security reasons), it would be more practical for these officials to fly on military transports like C-17s. Transports can be fitted to carry troops and personnel but they have the most basic of seats. So modules could be built and put into these transports like UPS or Fedex modular containers but are not made for packages but personnel.
With the idea of a traveling office in mind, some basic elements are probably necessary. Chairs and table for work. Bed for sleep. The module should probably be sound proof/vibration proof as much as possible because these transports have no shielding from either. For communications, the module might need to be plugged into the airplanes communication or its own separate feed. The module probably requires some modest power for equipment. Everything should be bolted down for obvious reasons.
After basic requirements, then it got out of hand. Certain generals wanted leather upgrades to match color. The chairs went from being standard commercial airline chairs to ultra-luxurious first class. TVs and DVD players were added. While a TV/monitor might not be a stretch if used to convey information (video uplinks), it is frivolous if used for entertainment.
Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
We're talking about high-level military executives here. Guys who have to make Really Big Decisions.
Now let's say you have one of these Generals in Washington, and they need to go to Iraq.
How do you get them there?
Do they fly commercial? Probably not very regular commercial service from DC to Baghdad.
So you fly them military.
Now, do you fly them in the jump seat of a cargo plane?
That might work for your average soldier, but do you really want the guy in command of all your forces arriving somewhere absolutely tired? Do you want to provide them with a work area for the 12-24 hours they're going to be in the air?
Regular troops have the luxary of not having to go straight from getting off the plane to directly into the battlefield. Generals are high-level decision-making executives who have to be effective all the time.
Capsules give those personnel a work-area where they can be productive on planes, and a sleep area so that when they do get wherever they're going, they're not running on a day of no or crappy sleep. There's a reason that in the commercial sector businesses pay thousands of dollars for business class seats that employees have a chance to sleep in isntead of hundreds of dollars on a coach seat. If they're flying their staff to someplace, it's important, and they don't want their staff operating on poor rest when they arrive.
So, what makes more sense: Spending millions of dollars on aircraft for moving around top military personnel, or spending tens or hundreds of thousands on some pods that can convert any standard-issue cargo plane into a flying office?
Give the guy in charge of keeping 150,000 people in Iraq alive a bed and a desk when he's got to spend 20 hours in the air. That's not a waste of money. And it sounds like building pods might actually be the least expensive way to provide those facilities.
paintball
Fill the plane with virgin stripers and they might be able to trick terrorist hijackers into thinking they're already in wherever terrorists think they go long enough to land the plane safely.
Wanna fight ? Bend over, stick your head up your ass, and fight for air.
They probably could if they budgeted it in with their own funds. But instead they tried to use counter-terror funds, were told no, and did it anyway.
Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
The only reason Congress is upset with this is they didn't think of it first. When I was in the USAF, we routinely hosted VIP's that included top civilian employees (GS15+), political figures and aides, and of course, senior military officials. Some of the Generals would eat what we ate on the flights, "boxed nasties", usually a box lunch of a sandwich, chips, fruit, drink, and some dessert (Hostess or Little Debbie). None of the political people would even stoop to the level of eating what us lowlies had to eat. And don't get me started on "demanding". As a crew chief, I'm not an in-flight steward, but they treated all of us, including the flight crew as if we were their hired servants rather than the other way around, with them as our elected servants.
Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong fix.
They aren't on the same team. They are all employed by the same government but they are each different branches. The animosity between the branches isn't just tolerated, it is encouraged.
A Marine, knowing he has had a rougher training and is a better soldier makes him all the more eager to go into combat first. A person in the Army, knowing he is smarter, is more than happy to ride into combat on the red carpet left by the Marines. (The red carpet is the blood of the Marines who died in the initial attack.) The Marines hate the Navy but they actually have good reason to. *grins* The Navy provides the corpsmen (medics) to the Marines and the Marines provide their ships protection and the Navy provides the Marines with transportation.
As for the USAF? Most people seem to think that they don't serve a whole lot of function when it comes down to it and cite their tendency to get public attention for their mistakes such as, oh, bombing the other department's troops, crashing aircraft, and generally treating their officers and pilots like deities. The reality is that they're actually really damned good at what they do, for more information see Marines in helicopters...
It is these rivalries that actually make for better soldiers in most cases. But, when it comes down to the matter of combat they even love the Army guys in the field beside them because they know that they're all doing the same job.
When it comes to being factual you can even get an honest Marine to grudgingly admit that a Navy Seal Team is a formidable force and, on a good day, you might even get him to admit that they're even better than the Recon's. The rivalries get better soldiers and the banter is usually good humored if a little course.
"So long and thanks for all the fish."
So why can't the USAF have something similar?
Because Congress told them no and in this country Congress has the power to regulate how taxpayer dollars are spent?
I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
Gains a new dimension in perverse accuracy for the Banana Republic States of America.
"Flyin' in just a sweet place,
Never been known to fail..."
Generals and admirals are a peculiar breed, but USAF generals in particular seem to be afflicted with a sense of entitlement. It mostly appears to affect those officers typically derided as "careerists", whose personalities and actions are focused on their own advancement above all else, and once they reach general rank, they grab with both hands at the privileges denied more junior officers. That's when some of them begin to display genuinely eccentric behavior, as well as cultivating the attitude that no mere civilian can tell them what to do.
I highly recommend that everyone here read "Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War", Robert Coram's superbly-written and excellent biography of Col. John Boyd, the maverick officer whose theories reshaped the U.S. military's warfighting strategy. Boyd was one of the great original thinkers of the 20th Century. His Energy-Maneuverability Theory of aerial combat is the foundation on which all modern fighter jets were designed, and he has been called the father of the F-15, the F-16, and the F/A-18. He was also the creator of the OODA Loop, a decision-making tool with great utility to any organization, and is largely credited with devising the strategy that liberated Kuwait during the first Gulf War.
The most interesting parts of the book to me, were those that dealt with Boyd's stints at the Pentagon, and the eye-opening look at the inner workings of the military bureaucracy. The comparisons of a general's staff to the "court of a pasha" are quite humorous, as well as the details of some of the eccentricities and personal foibles of some of the Air Force's (unnamed) senior officers of the time.
- There was the general who decided that he didn't like the fact that all the stop signs at his command seemed "incomplete", so he ordered that the backs of all of them be painted brown;
- For some reason, another couldn't abide facial hair, so none of his subordinates were allowed to grow a mustache (he couldn't legally enforce this requirement, but his authority was never challenged);
- Then there's the one who would wear different uniform headgear throughout the day, and required his staff to follow suit for the sake of uniformity. His staff were never notified beforehand when he was going to change his hat, so they were all forced to bring to work all their headgear so they could change them at a moment's notice.
- This is the one that killed me, and in my opinion this man had mental problems. This general was so determined to control who saw him that whenever he left his office, he'd press a button that flashed a red light in the outer office. This was the signal for the entire staff, including those walking the corridors around his command suite, to vacate the area and find themselves behind closed doors immediately. That way, when the great man emerged, he was met with absolutely empty offices and corridors and no plebes around to sully his presence with their eyes.
I served in the Army, and even the greenest recruit could immediately spot the difference between the careerist officers, and those who put their responsibilities above all else. These were the men, including generals I've met, who bunked with their troops in the woods during wargames, stood in the chow lines and used the communal showers, along with everyone else. The careerists were those who segregated themselves from the enlisted men and more junior officers, and seemed more concerned with enjoying the perks that their positions allowed them. Three guesses which ones the troops would follow to hell. If the mindset and culture pervading the upper echelons of the Air Force is that of the careerist, it should come as no surprise that something as minor as "comfort capsules" was authorized in direct defiance of civilian oversight.
you, as citizens, are going to take up arms as per your constitution states, and make them obey by congress/senate's will.
Read radical news here
Then again what do I care? I get all those things plus high speed internet access when I'm deployed in Iraq. Army, eat your heart out, I'll curl up in my queen size bed and take a nap.
I grew up as an Army-brat and never quite understood why the other services have no respect for the Air Force..... until now ;)
I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
So the only reason you don't rape someone is because you'd get arrested? Does the concepts of "right" and "wrong" mean nothing to you, only "can do" and "can't do"? Jesus.
i dont see the point here. your president, secretary of state, commission members in senate all HAVE to do such trips, and they do it. its necessary to do that kind of travel when you are at the helm of anything important.
barack obama, is a very high chance, your next president. EVEN if he is not, he is practically the top democrat in the nation, and therefore can probably replace any other democrat in their duties, being the leader of the party that holds the majority in the congress.
you better be funding his trips with taxpayer money. you didnt do it with the last president, and he has made a fool of himself with his ignorance, and a mess of the world.
Read radical news here
The previous VIP container, called "Silver Bullet", actually was an Airstream trailer, minus the wheels and with an aircraft pallet base added. The new "Steel Eagle" thing was designed based on an aircraft-qualified shelter module, which is basically an empty metal box on a pallet base. Then the USAF had to engineer an aircraft interior into the box, with lighting, HVAC, comms, and furnishings. It was a tight fit (the Airstream was bigger) and much custom engineering was required to cram everything in.
Looking at the pictures, one can see how the project got out of hand. They're doing the engineering required for an aircraft interior, but only building two or three units. There are companies that do luxury private aircraft interiors, and they would have had this done years ago at a lower cost, but the USAF apparently did this in-house, which ran up the costs.
If someone in the military isn't tough enough to fly a troop transport, they don't belong there in the first place.
"National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
I suppose what I'm asking is: Can we bury these 'special' people in them and dig them up in fifty years' time?
"Three eyes are better than one" -- Lieutenant Columbo
we put the wheels on these capsules.
When the plane reaches flight altitude, open up the back and let the capsule slide out.
that or counter terrorism funds, its a waste of money anyway
They are the precursors to the maintenance workers who will repair the robots that will fight wars in the future.
D6 63 0D 70 89 81 BB 8E 7B 7C 5F 5D 54 EA AB 73
how dare these high ranking officials have any sort of comfort! What have they done to deserve it anyway? Serve in the services for 30+ years? pffft! That is so lame. And while I am thinking about it, how dare any american corporation make a profit! That should be highly illegal! Stupid freaking liberals and children under 45. Ain't got a clue at all. Whine whine whine, nag nag nag. Don't even know your own place in a class based system. Probably why you are sitting in front of a computer in the first place. I hope you all die
Being ex-Navy, I'm no fanboi of the USAF. I understand that they've turned down control of all Naval Aviation because they're afraid of carrier landings. However, let's give them credit where credit is due: they're the only branch where the officers go into combat and the enlisted men almost never do.
Good, inexpensive web hosting
The military brass has a lot more stuff to get done on their flights than a family flying to Disney world.
The pods are not about comfort, they're about productivity. Although productivity does go up with comfort - I get a lot more work done in my office than I do on my laptop on a plane.
paintball
It's about productive.
There are generals. Presumably, they're generals because they have important shit to do.
If you are flying your general around, do you want him able to work, or do you want him twiddling his thumbs in an airplane seat?
The idea behind the capsules is that you can fly generals around WITHOUT it having to take them 'out of action'. They can be on the plane and doing all the things they could do if they were not on the plane.
Hell, we spend hundreds of millions of dollars making sure the President can be productive on his 747. A few hundred thousand for the next level down in the command chain doesn't seem unreasonable.
paintball
"Why is this a problem? if I could get away with spending other's money for my comfort, I would too."
The problem then would be that it's so easy to get away with it, no?
Productivity doesn't require "a 37-inch flat-screen monitor with stereo speakers, and a full-length mirror". Nor does it require a trip to some insulated "front line" to market PR for some war which has nothing to do with national defense.
"National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
What happens when $person meets with "the general" on his plane, and they get admitted to a shabby office? What kind of a psychological impact does that have on the person on the other side of the table? On the general?
What happens when top brass gets tired of schlepping around in a shabby office, and decides to go work for Halliburton instead? You might retort, "we don't want generals who can be persuaded with money and perks, we want loyal dedicated staff". Well, even the best get loyalty and dedication fatigue at some point. In some respects, the military is a corporation that needs to extend the proper perks to retain executives.
Like it or not, some of this shit is necessary, and everybody knows it.
If anything concerns me, it's that the brass was either: 1. Not aware that a project like this needs to be flown under the RADAR. or 2. Not smart enough to figure out how to do that. Given that the reports on this story indicate efforts were made to change the language in the specifications, case 2 seems more likely.
So. The Devil's advocate has to ask, "why can't we get smarter people in these positions?" and "why are we taking away the perks that help retain them?".
For all intensive purposes, "whom" is no longer a word. That begs the question, "who cares"?
Blue leather shows tan or brown-colored dirt less than tan or brown-colored leather??? Seriously, what imbeciles are running our military? No wonder they can't find Osama and manage to forget to remove nuclear warheads from planes...
Windows 3.1x calc: 3.11 - 3.10 = 0.00
The article says:
An Air Force document specified that the capsule's seats are to swivel such that "the longitudinal axis of the seat is parallel to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft" regardless of where the capsules are facing.
The statement is pretty convoluted. I would think that the longitudinal axis of a seat is vertically through the seat (the long way). I know the longitudinal axis of a plane, but a seat really doesn't have a defined longitudinal axis. I suspect they are talking about beds.
Are they trying to say that no matter how this thing is installed, all the seats can be slept in and the brass can face there feet (or head) forward?
Why? If they do sleep why must so much space be wasted so each seat can do the longitudinal thing regardless of the capsule orientation?
I suggest they bolt them to the wall, and force the capsule so the wall is perpendicular to the aircraft longitudinal.
machinator omnis sine licentia
A tired grunt gets himself and maybe his buddies killed.
A tired general gets hundreds or thousands of grunts killed.
You're also missing another aspect.
Your general is going to be making mission-critical decisions on-arrival, or maybe even on the plane. The people 'actually doing the job' have buffer time between when they arrive and when they are in mission-critical environments.
Or put another way, when the 'people doing the job' get off the plane, they get a chance to get a night's sleep before they're involved in battle. That's not a luxury available to your military brass.
paintball
actually I visualized on a modern version of Caligula's orgy ships used on lake Nemi
Apocalypse Cancelled, Sorry, No Ticket Refunds
Have you seen any pictures of the capitol?
Congress treats itself like royalty.
Members Only.
All your database are belong to U.S.
"-- 37-inch flat-screen monitor with stereo speakers --" I reguarly see the word "stereo" mentioned with speakers. In 2008, is stereo still such a big deal? Have you seen any flat screen with integrated _mono_ speaker?
when I was in the Army, the aircraft approached along the golf course to land at the helipad; the rotor wash could sure screw up your drives too.
Apocalypse Cancelled, Sorry, No Ticket Refunds
Don't worry about any of this, it's not going to go on for ever.
The US has been living on tick from Beijing for a long time. Sometime in the relatively near future the tick is going to run out and Beijing is going to foreclose. At that moment the US population - all of you - are going to learn how to live under the command of a New Colonial Master, and I assure you that the PLA High Command is not going to put up with any of this sort of nonsense.
btw, exactly how is this "News for Nerds"?
Do the Top Brass run Linux, a BSD, or a similar o/s on their laptops connected to that enormous screen?
When I first read the words "comfort capsule" I thought they meant something like the giant diaper astronauts use.
Finally why can't the USAF Top Brass fly first class on a commercial flight from the US to Dubai or Bahrain and then on to the theatre of war in a small plane?
Are you a general?
You all are oblivious to facts such as spending $68,240 to change the capsules' seat colors and pockets. If you think that's justified because these "brass" need to be as comfortable and productive as possible, you're an idiot.
The more money the US pours down the drain, the less remains for them to do harm. If a general watches a DVD, not only does it divert money that would have been spent on weapons for killing people, it also takes an hour of his time away from planning the next crime against humanity.
(I am reminded of the old joke about the fire at the offices of the Inland Revenue Service: the fire-department's prompt response meant that it was extinguished before any serious good could be done.)
You know, considering how they're using the rest of their (counter-)terrorism funds, I think this is a relatively good idea. :)
Comfort women?
"Not an actor, but he plays one on TV."
Let the politicians fight the wars. Hillary should be first.
During PLDC, we had a field training exercise, Fort Knox in February. After reaching our bivouac site, we set up our pup tents. A cold front arrived the first night, bring 6 inches of rain and soaking us to the bone in our pup tents. Didn't really matter to the cadre NCOS, as they had a heated GP medium tents. By the next morning the rain was gone and the cold front moved in, everything froze (nothing like trying to open a soaked, frozen sleeping bag).
The weather continued to worsen as cold front came trough, bringing wind and snow. The overweight, out-of-shape cadre sergeant that was one site (the rest were at home in their comfortable beds) called a formation from his heated GP medium, saying "We are all cold out here, but we have an exercise to complete." I wonder how many of us were looking for live ammo at that time. :)
As people started getting medevaced for frostbite and hypothermia, they called the exercise.
So yes, any recruit can tell a careerist from someone who actually gives a shit in a heartbeat, and this applies to all ranks.
"Be grateful for what you have. You may never know when you may lose it."
The fact that junior officers leaked this story to the Washington Post is ample evidence that the corps of senior officers in the USAF is totally out of touch with the fact that we're in a war. Of course senior officers should be more comfortable than their juniors. After all, we DO want them well rested and ready to make decisions that may very well save lives in the long run. HOWEVER, I'd tend to doubt that the above justifies the extremes to which this program has gone. The SecDef has just fired the Chief of Staff of the USAF and the SecUSAF. Looks like he needs to prune some more deadwood!
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It just seems like common sense to have a real bathroom. At the very least you don't want the pilot distracted by a large load he can't dump.
The load can be dumped only over hostile territory, and preferably onto the target.
Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. - Voltaire
Pork anyone?
TFA says the comfort level of the capsule depends on the rank of the occupant. Porking companions are supplied only for full generals and senators. Light generals and representatives rate a BJ.
However, congressleeches who tend to vote against military procurement may find nothing is procured on their behalf.
Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. - Voltaire
... assume that the Bigwig who is flying in that capsule must get better rest than the rest of the troops in order to be effective at their jobs.
But people! Can't you see that THEY HAVE NOT BEEN EFFECTIVE AT THEIR JOBS ANYWAY???
If we had a real important general who was going to win the "war" in Iraq or elsewhere, then WHERE THE HELL IS HE/SHE???
I will answer my own question: that person does not exist.
The people who have made the U.S. soldiers overseas effective at their jobs have been U.S. engineers. THEY have been doing their jobs properly. But the higher officers, and the generals, and the President, have not managed to put together a strategy that is making this absolutely awesome and historically unprecedented tool -- the current U.S. military -- a winner. There has not been an effective lead of the U.S. military overseas since the first invasion of Iraq. The current leaders of our presidential administration and military also are obviously inept. Either that, or they do not actually want us to win.
So I say, give the capsules to the people who actually earned them, and who will actually make a difference: the engineers.
Until these rich fatass Republican appointee generals start earning their living, let them sit in webbing and piss in the corners like all the other soldiers.
This is SOP, folks. Just keep sending in your money.
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, it doesn't go away." - Philip K. Dick
What you should do is have leaders _lead_ the frontline in _spirit_.
Basically, if leaders are going to send troops on an _offensive_ war (not defensive) there must be a referendum on the war.
If there are not enough votes for the war, those leaders get put on deathrow.
At a convenient time later, a referendum is held to redeem each leader. Leaders that do not get enough votes get executed. For example if too many people stay at home and don't bother voting - the leaders get executed.
If it turns out later that the war was justified, a fancy ceremony is held, and the executed leaders are awarded a purple heart or equivalent, and you have people say nice things about them, cry and that sort of thing.
If it turns out later that the leaders tricked the voters, a referendum can be held (need to get enough signatories to start such a referendum, just to prevent nutters from wasting everyone elses time).
This proposal has many advantages:
1) Even leaders who don't really care about those "young men on the battlefield" will not consider starting a war lightly.
2) The soldiers will know that the leaders want a war enough to risk their own lives for it.
3) The soldiers will know that X% of the population want the war.
4) Those being attacked will know that X% of the attackers believe in the war - so they want a war, they get a war - for sufficiently high X, collateral damage becomes insignificant. They might even be justified in using WMD and other otherwise dubious tactics. If > 90% of the country attacking them want to kill them and their families, what is so wrong about using WMD as long as it does not affect neighbouring countries?
You might consider use of WMD evil, well I consider war evil. If a large majority of the people want a war, then they should get one, and too bad if they get completely wiped out in the process. Right now the problem I see is countries starting wars when most of their citizens don't actually want one.
I'm not sure I see the problem. It looks like business class seating for what would typically be a business class passenger. When Air Force "brass" have to travel, should we stick them in the cargo hold of a C-130 and tell them to hold on until the flight is over, or should we sit them at a desk and tell them to earn their paychecks and keep working?
We could buy them business class tickets instead, I suppose, but can they then really do their jobs in such a public environment? I'd rather not have our military leaders discussing strategy in seats E4 and E5 on United.
Oh, and hey, for the record, if there is a war I want to be sure that the top of the command chain can travel AND command at the same time. Call me old fashioned...
My favorite quote doesn't fit into 120 characters. Now no one will like me.
That's fine - I just wanted to figure out whether you were retarded or a cunt. You cleared that right up, lickety-spit.
You don't want politicians to see the wars they're making policy for because, why, exactly? And, judging by your sig, nothing more than a lame excuse to trash Obama.
This sounds like a pretty stupid use of money. I mean yeah I understand the arguments that these officers need to be pampered, massaged and played soothing melodies to keep them in tip top decision making shape... but like really aren't there more important problems we could solve with that money? Opportunity Cost anyone?? Aw well this is boring, im gonna watch some political humor at http://www.digitalfuntown.com/
-- Hot chick + lightsaber = http://tinyurl.com/sxtmsg
This smells like another typical example of outrageous spending improprieties and poor contracting procedures at the Department of Defense. Unfortunately, it is so common that it is not surprising. However, it reinvigorates the need for substantial, meaningful reforms to the way that the DOD does business. The Bipartisan Bridge (www.BipartisanBridge.org) has posted a proposal to address these and other shortcomings in DOD contracting. Please view the proposal titled "Exempt From The Rules: Defense Contractors?" at: http://www.bipartisanbridge.org/S4C11.html Visitors to the website are also invited to post their own bipartisan ideas on the Your Bipartisan Ideas tab.