Any room for a squid in here? I gotta give a shout out for the Navy.
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Need something moved from the U.S. Midwest to the Middle East in a matter of hours? USAF.
[/ QUOTE ]That may involve the people and some of your lighter equipment, but you still need USNS ships of the Military Sealift Command to do the "heavy" lifting. What good are the people getting there in a matter of hours if all they have to fight the enemy with is harsh language? From the MSC website:
"The mission of Military Sealift Command is to provide ocean transportation of equipment, fuel, supplies and ammunition to sustain U.S. forces worldwide during peacetime and in war for as long as operational requirements dictate. During a war, more than 95 percent of all equipment and supplies needed to sustain the U.S. military is carried by sea."
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Duh, we're Marines and we'll march to Iraq from camp Pendleton, Guh!! There's an ocean in the way? Uhhhhhh, I know! Let's ride on a ship and we'll be there in no time, Doy! Sure....sailing was slow when Christopher Columbus did it and it's still slow today.
[/ QUOTE ]Duh, Marines are ALREADY at the hot spots due to the services of the U.S. Navy. We know sailing is slow, that is why Cold war, Hot war, no war, the Navy and the Marines have always been and will continuously be on deployment. We don't ramp up only at the beginning of a war. At the very least, there are two Carrier Battle Groups and two Amphibious Ready Groups (each carrying a full Marine Expeditionary Unit) with their attendant defense and support ships on station in various parts of the world at all times. Squids and Jarheads have always had to deal with deployments whether in peacetime or not. You can take comfort in knowing that a battle group is always out there ready at the beck and call of the CiC. Why is it they always say that when an international crisis breaks out, the first question a president asks is "Where are the carriers?"
Also, when downed F-16 pilot Scott O'Grady needed rescue out of Bosnia they didn't call the Army or his fellow Air Force compadres but Marines off of the USS Kearsarge (LHD 3). Need embassies evacuated or American citizens rescued from hostile countries? Your looking for the nearest Amphibious Assault Ship. Sounds like having that slow but ready and capable ship on station beats that fast jet from the states any day. From one of Scott O'Grady's fellow F-16 pilots:
"So we got one of our own back. What a day. I wish we could have done more in the rescue but it was almost entirely a Navy and Marine show (we and the mud-eagles were in the cap) and they kicked ass. So don't bad mouth the squids and jarheads too loudly - they put on a good act today and we've got a Viper driver back because of it."
Not trying to bash you or anything, Looking4. Just getting the facts straight about Naval operations.
By the way, I salute anyone who has served this country no matter which branch or what reason simply for the fact of doing a job vital to this country's welfare, taken for granted by many, and unwilling to be taken on by the majority of Americans.
