$320 million to build temp pier in Gaza

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/30/middleeast/gaza-floating-pier-images-aid-intl-hnk/index.html

$320 million to build a temporary pier in Gaza for only three months of use? Ridiculous!

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Elections have consequences. Say what you want about the bad orange man, but WTF all the jumping up and down and screaming about him in 2016 and 2020 elections, the world was not as f’d as it has become the past few years with Joe in office. The absolute waste of taxpayer dollars that could and should be used inside our country is staggering. This is just another example, but will most likely never be known outside of our industry. Think i may be changing my vote come November.

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Spending money within our own borders to fix our own problems doesn’t track. In order to consolidate power, there needs to be continuous unrest, divisiveness, and general chaos. Hell, I think there’s even a playbook that details the method(s).

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Hear me out, It’s not a total waste of taxpayer money, because it takes the ideas US military has on paper, and we get to see them used in a real world application, It’s been like 30 years since we’ve done this for real, right? The after action report should at least be useful for the impending world war should we need to build a pier for the next invasion. Same shit with sending untested tech to Ukraine.

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The US supports 172,000 active-duty military troops across 178 countries and 750 military bases located in 80 countries. The US has contributed to Ukraine’s war chest to the tune of $175 billion since the invasion. It is currently supporting both sides of the Israeli conflict providing humanitarian aid to the Palestinians while at the same it donated $18 billion to Israel in 2023 alone, the last year the numbers are available.
In addition to leaving $7 billion worth of military equipment behind in Afghanistan, it has since been given $2.6 billion in humanitarian aid without knowing how much of it lands in the hands of the Taliban. In 2021 the US provided more than $50 billion in aid to over 150 countries and territories, regional funds, and NGOs. The country’s debt stands at over $34.5 trillion and climbing.
Spending $320 million to finance a feel-good gesture is a drop in the bucket.

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Within the last few years we did the same JLOTS dock building exercise in Australia. Probably at similar cost.

The theory was that we needed to practice in case of war with China in SE Asia.

Our military cannot even beat the Houthis.

How the hell would we win a war against China?

How is this temporary dock with a trickle of food aid landing over it that has to be distributed by the Israelis going to accomplish anything in Gaza?

The Israelis are conducting a classical siege of the Hamas “castle” (tunnels) until the Israeli (and American) hostages are released.

Does anyone really believe that Israel is going to break its own siege by distributing the American aid that comes over that dock to Hamas?

No the Israelis are NOT going to distribute the aid, that is going to be done by NGOs.
The Israelis are responsible for security at the staging point.
They will also insist on checking the shipments as they reach the staging point, although they have already check every item before loading in Cyprus.

BTW; The aid is NOT American. Both European, Middle Eastern and Asian countries have stockpiled aid in Cyprus in preparation for the pier to be available for use.
This is per agreement made months ago.

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Our military isnt actually attacking the Houthis. But also, we pulled all our intel out of Yemen, Im slightly more confident in our studies of china.

So far Isreal has done a fantastic job providing security to Gaza from NGOs. I really hope no one gets a hair up their ass and shoots at an American operation. World Food kitchen was runing a similar exercise before they got blown up.

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This JLOTS is a showcase to many adversaries that we still possess a serious logistics capability and the assets to make it happen quickly. Don’t be fooled by the pace this specific operation. There are assets in the Pacific and Indian Ocean that could have had this plan executed much faster. Politics and other factors lead to what’s happening in the Med right now. USMC was not going to reallocate assets and loose the capability with the current climate in the Red Sea.

Isn’t World Food Kitchen an American operation?

Haven’t we demonstrated to all the terrorists and tin pot dictators that all they need to do to hold off an effective American attack is use their own people as human shields, and take a few Western hostages and offer to negotiate?

I think drones, particularly submersible drones and missiles have made slow to assemble, stationary systems like JLOTS obsolete and easily destroyed.

We have serious logistical capabilities to showcase?
You mean like our old obsolete ship that caught fire on the way to Israel and had return to Virginia?

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Jose Andres is Spanish.

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Those ships were phased out of MPF. There are Bob Hope class and Watson class LMSR’s forward deployed.

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According to Wikipedia, Jose Andres is Spanish-American and World Food Kitchen is headquartered in Washington, DC.

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Ok. Thanks

Looks like they are still moving forward with the operation even after the loss of one asset.

There are photos of the dock being assembled on CNN

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The same NGOs that are getting taxpayer dollars to flood the southern US border with fake “refugees”?

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They build one of these piers 2-3 times a year at Fort Story, so it’s not like they don’t get the practice.

I just hope that when Hamas shoots at them they are allowed to shoot back, and the soldiers who return fire aren’t court-martialed.

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Money down the shitter