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W was the last one who actually had any concept of what it’s like. The last 3 are completely clueless.

WTF...never put ketchup on a steak in front of anyone!

Fear, sarcasm, and ridicule is more than just a catch phrase. It's a valuable teaching technique!

We are dumping everything feasible to the side to modernize our fleet. Trimming “anywhere and everywhere” is the mantra here at the PP. Retirees overseas know the drill. Their choice to live where they live. We need to trim the fat faster. Certainly would be easier if we had term limits and we could close excess bases here in the States, but Congress won’t allow it. So we trim the fat.

Yeap. I mean he flew F102s, he cant be all that bad.

Somes it up man. Lol. Somebody has to live with the eternal shame of being Irish. Lol. Irish/Catholic guilt.

I live in Cypress, CA in north Orange County CA. My family has a history of leaving places until shit gets so bad that you can’t anymore. Ireland, the Deep South after the War… I’m not leaving my home ever again. Ever. Unless they need me to drop some dudes off behind the FEBA and that happens to be somewhere in the US. Those guys and girls who left this state are pussies. You can have them lol. I’m thinking more like….Orange County and San Diego depart the political bonds of indentured servitude that comes with being in a beautiful place that is rapidly being destroyed by a man name Gavin who never even lived here in OC. Look what he did to his “hometown”. SF. It’s coming to a state near you. It’s not coming into my small area of OC. I didn’t leave. The guys, who let it be destroyed while I spent 20 years in uniform handing out towels at Al Dhafra, did.

Just because California is a shithole doesn't mean all of western civilization is failing. Maybe you just need to move out of a failing city.

Six months is still too long.

We are a bit stuck in current politics...I could care less about Trump. I do know these situations were handled much better by predecessors like George W. Bush. To this day he hosts an annual bike ride for wounded warriors. I suspect sending troops into harm' way is one of the biggest burdens of the office and I would hope all would make a genuine effort to show compassion and interest.

That's a level of detail that I don't have.

Yeah. It doesn't matter who's in charge anymore.

Honestly the Walter Reed presidential dog and pony shows are shameful no matter who's in office. Clearly this was poorly handled by Biden but I don't know if trump busting in would be any better. Two slightly different geriatric egomaniacs looking for a photo op.

Biggest pet peeve for comms!

One of the most important duties POTUS has is being the Commander in Chief, sending American troops into combat has to be a very difficult burden to bear. How you handle the aftermath of those tough decisions says a lot about your character. This video shares a disturbing example of how the current clown in chief handles that responsibility.

So, does Natalie Portman get naked in No Strings Attached? Because if not, I have little to no desire to see a romantic comedy starring Ashton Kutcher-Moore.

This American goes by the name of Sarah Ashton-Cirillo. Sarah has been hired by the Armed Forces of Ukraine to be its official spokesperson for Western/English speaking audiences. - that'd be you. https://twitter.com/SarahAshtonLV/status/1687759882294861824?s=20

Well this whole discussion proves why the Marines feel the need to have their own Air Force. If I were them, I wouldn’t trust the other services to help me whatsoever. I’ve said otherwise in the past, but now I get it. Trust no one.

Yes of course it takes a lot of work to prepare to fight China, thanks for that insight Brabus. Train/equip as if it’s likely? Sure. Is it actually likely? No, and I already have a nice bottle of whiskey bet placed on an over/under date.

no we moved NATO to the border of russia you wouldn't like it if china violated the monroe doctrine and incorporated mexico into a chinese military alliance. same thing.

Seriously, why would the USAF entertain the idea of spending $69B to develop a new A-10 when they could use a combo of Vipers, EXs, and F-35s to do the same thing? When the existing A-10 already 1). works and 2.) costs well under $2B/year to operate and upgrade. If the answer is “because the senators want the airplane builders to have steady income,” ok I’ll buy that.

Bobs lie to their bosses about how things are going. The Russians did it leading up to the Ukraine invasion and I’ve seen it amongst our own O-6s+ in real time. The Full Bird Reset (where they fall in line with the orders of their superiors with the renewed loyalty of an E-1) is a real phenomenon and I swear they can’t see that they’re doing it. Policies, Guidance, Ways Forward, already decided COAs - written by a non-expert AO/staffer and approved with a nod from a 4-star - could be completely out to lunch but if there’s even a perception that an O-6+ is pushing back they’re done career-wise. Read about Xi’s Thoughts where everyone in the Chinese government is required to understand and think the same way as Xi…can anyone see echoes of that mentality in our own failed endeavors? The good news is that we’re different, because that lockstep mentality doesn’t exist at most of the Capt-Maj aircrew level. There are enough of them that they can air their informed opinions and grievances when things aren’t looking quite right, but still remain relatively anonymous. And sometimes that trickles up, skipping echelons when the wise GOs wander down to the slums to get a feel for things. Which is their duty, IMO. Don’t ever lie to your boss.

I should say - to be 100% truthy - I’ve worked with some great O-6s. But they were in the minority, and at some point almost all of them said something that made me think twice. Never let your guard down. The really good O-6s we’re the ones that shielded you from bullshit so you could remain of pure heart and mind and give them the best information possible.