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FERN MCBRIDE (NYC)'s avatar

Excellent timing for us to ramp-up Taiwan; how best to do that?

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Dave Conant - MO's avatar

Speed up the production and shipment of any arms that have been promised to Taiwan and South Korea. Bring a couple of carrier groups to higher levels of readiness and possibly change some satellite tasking. It may not be financially or politically feasible for Xi but no one benefits if we aren't prepared and the defense production machinery can always use the money even if we don't need to use their products immediately.

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Gail Adams VA/FL's avatar

HmmmтАж isnтАЩt that how Ronnie Raygun saved the economy?

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Dave Conant - MO's avatar

After a fashion, yes. Distraction through foreign affairs is a common strategy when political players feel themselves challenged.

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Gail Adams VA/FL's avatar

I guess I was referring more to the $$$$$ pumped into the defense industry, which put us into a false wartime economy. Some may argue deterrence but the Soviets were already failing. Then again we may already have the same with supporting Ukraine. Follow the money? I have some tanks in the desert you may be interested in purchasing.

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Dave Conant - MO's avatar

It worked for both. If you're talking about the stuff we left in Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan, I'll sell it back to you at a 10% discount and we'll both make money. Defense industry accounting is a wonderful world of magic.

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Gail Adams VA/FL's avatar

The stuff with no replacement parts nor staff to maintain? IтАЩm talking about the pork projects the military had no use for, yet the manufacturers kept rolling them out the door. https://www.military.com/daily-news/2014/12/18/congress-again-buys-abrams-tanks-the-army-doesnt-want.html

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Dave Conant - MO's avatar

Or the ones that are badly needed but don't do the job, like the F-35. It's all about spreading the money around.

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Dean Robertson's avatar

Dave, thanks for the practical details here. If any plan is to succeed in action it must first be imagined in specifics. Hopelessly impractical and intuitive thinker, I walk away too often these days to wondering if every single event--no matter how urgently important (and lord knows this one is)--boils down to gamesmanship, an afternoon of chess.

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FERN MCBRIDE (NYC)'s avatar

Thanks, Dave.

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