The welfare recipient whose benefits never get cut......

[marmar]

The MIC Assistance Program





from Der Spiegel:


The cost of modernizing US nuclear weapons, including those stationed in Germany, has risen sharply, according to estimates. Several independent experts told SPIEGEL ONLINE that the bill for renewing the B61 atomic bomb will rise to $6 billion. The project will also upset Russia, they say.
Info

The B61 is the last remnant of the Cold War in Germany. An estimated 10 to 20 of the atomic bombs are thought to remain in storage at a German Air Force base in Büchel, a village in the Eifel mountains of western Germany. Should war break out, the Tornado aircraft belonging to the German Air Force could immediately be armed with the weapons for sorties under US control.

But the fact that such a scenario is considered extremely unlikely has not prevented the US from embarking on an effort to upgrade the stockpile, as it is doing with much of its nuclear arsenal. The Life Extension Program (LEP) for the B61 -- of which there are between 160 and 200 in Europe -- is considered to be the most difficult and expensive of all. In 2010, the Department of Energy requested almost $2 billion (€1.6 billion) for the project, to be spent over four years. Later, the number rose to $4 billion.

Now, the total is expected to by closer to $6 billion, as several experts have reported independently. The first to write of the exploding costs was Hans Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). Other experts are not surprised. "The $6 billion estimate for B61 LEP is consistent with our estimates," wrote executive director of the Arms Control Association in Washington, Daryl Kimball, in an email. ................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/upgrading-us-nuclear-weapons-more-expensive-than-planned-a-833586.html

[Gregorian]

1. At the cost of healt care. At the cost of the planet.

I have an idea. Why don't we reverse policy. Why don't we tend towards bravery instead of fear. Less military, not more.

[libodem]

2. Absolutely

Totally, positively, correct.

[RC]

3. WHAT!!!11 And deprive the MIC of all that Money!

They need it to keep us safe from the terrorists. You really don't expect them to forgo their gated communities, do you?

An the other hand, can anyone imagine what 6 billion dollars could do for the health care in this country? Or for repairing the infrastructure? Or for jump starting the economy?
Of course we can. But we will us use that money to modernize something we will never use and further drive this country into bankrupting debt to enrich the 1%.