Pentagon: All vehicles armored by June

[wicket]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/chitribts/20041216/ts_chicagotrib/pentagonallvehiclesarmoredbyjune

Pentagon officials, confronting a growing furor that has thrown the military on the defensive, have begun firing back at those questioning whether it has supplied enough armored vehicles in Iraq (news - web sites).

As part of the offensive, an Army general said Wednesday the military will spend more than $4 billion to ensure that all U.S. military vehicles in the war zone carry protective armor by next June.

Major Gen. Stephen Speakes, the Army's director of force development, told a Pentagon briefing Wednesday that the Army has moved aggressively to increase the production of armored Humvees and trucks for convoys in Iraq, as well as "bolt-on" kits that allow armor plates to be placed on unarmored vehicles already in the country.

The briefing was intended to answer growing criticism over the shortage of armored vehicles in Iraq and the overall conduct of the war that has been coming not just from soldiers and Democratic critics, but also increasingly from those who have supported it, including Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record) (R-Ariz.), retired Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf and conservative pundit William Kristol.

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I'll believe it when I see it :eyes:

[Just Me]

1. Yep. After we have diverted 200+BILLION we will use additional 100B

,...demanded taxpayer funding to "give the appearance of" protecting our troops while continuing to divert, divert away more profits to our war-profiteers.

They won't let you follow the money,...cause they don't want you to know where public wealth goes.

[saigon68]

27. AND The Resistance will use LARGER IEDs

Rather than a 200 pound bomb, they will simply increase the size to 1000 pounds or more.

That should shred an "ARMORED" Humvee or 2.

[hatrack]

2. And it only took two years, two months and 10 days!

The Bush Pentagon - redefining "planning"!

I'm sure those guys riding shotgun on convoys will be all choked up to hear about this? :wtf:

[NYC Liberal]

3. I'm not holding my breath...

[neweurope]

4. And after the elections you really wanted to pull out, no?

[LiberalFighter]

25. Don't want the armor installed until the elections are over.

[Barkley]

28. This is the lesson the religous right will learn too...

Bush doesn't reciprocate.

The troops voted for Bush and they're digging in landfills for metal to protect their humvees.

[3days]

5. And all this because someone in the military asked

He may have talked about his questions beforehand with a reporter but he asked. Do you see what power you military members have? Speak up!

And one more thing....
June?
June? This should have been done before they put the trucks on the planes or the boats. Give me a friggin break. I bet you that soldier in May will be real happy to hear his truck armor is in the mail.

[livvy]

6. I'm sure that will be very comforting to the families of those who

are injured or killed in the meanwhile. :-( The ineptitude of this mis-administration and their disregard for the service members makes me sick.

[idiosyncratic]

7. JUNE!!!

:cry:

[whosinpower]

8. This is so infuriating!!!!!!!!!

They BLASTED John Kerry for not voting for the 87 BILLION dollar bill that was SUPPOSED to armor these vehicles among other things.

They BLASTED him for not supporting the troops...and now we know the truth - or at least a small part of it - the 87 billion NEVER went to where it was supposed to go, which by the way, is precisely why John Kerry could not vote for it as there was no system of accountability where the money was going.

HELLO????????? Jesu$ - these people have no bounds to the depths they will sink.
And is anyone in the media taking them to task over that very talking point??? Have ANY of the democrats drove that simple point home?

[elehhhhna]

9. I thought the Mission was Accomplished.

[gratuitous]

10. June, huh?

What year?

[Demeter]

21. Before or After the Last Helicopter?

[6000eliot]

11. Uh, excuse me,

but shouldn't this have been done before March of 2003? I guess they had other things on their minds, such as how to divvy up the oil profits. Fucking bastards!

[Malva Zebrina]

12. Oh who believes anything the Pentagon says anymore?

They are off on a tangent of lying and public relations that involves lying to the entire USA.

They are really not credible at all being a bunch of Bush ass kissers and spending our money of public relations firms to boost their immaculate image.

They are and have been killing our troops with their ass kissing and incompetence.

[TahitiNut]

13. Six months and about 300 lives later, huh?

How much do the war profiteers collect for each of those 300 lives?

Bastards! :grr:

[sam sarrha]

14. OK we did it.. you can quit bitching now... shut up it's done, leave us

alone now there are no more problems ... everything is going fine, support our troops now, dont make us look bad, we are making democracy, now that we have leveled half the country there is no place for the insurgents to hide.. they love us and support us... see these pictures of the happy children.. and best of all we are comming in under budgit.. well we were till we had to buy all that Fucking expensive armour. but we think we can make it up but buying some cheap defective m16's and damp bullets that are on sale.

[n2mark]

15. Too late!

Many days and many lives too LATE!

[Tippy]

16. So now they say the Troops will have armored veicels by June

Don't you believe it...the Pentagon has lied to us before...22 Months after the invasion began we were told "The Army and Marines are rushing to get enough body armor into Iraq and Afghanistan by December, 2003 for everyone who needs it, as fast as it comes off the assembly line."....I know for a fact families are still purchasing body armor for their loved ones, I met the wife of a National Guardsman who was sending body armor to her hubby in Oct. of 2004.

Where in the hell has all our money gone that was approiated to purchase equipment....?

[yorkiemommie1]

17. so maybe our troops won't have to go out on patrol

until the stuff gets over there. June is ...a...very....long...time...away.

[msgadget]

18. JUNE??

The army has moved agressively...as in 'just started'. Every lie they told in the run-up to the election is being exposed and I take no pleasure because it's too tragic to gloat over.

He said, "I talk to <insert military guy's name here> everyday and ask him what they need", accused everyone who spoke against the war of not supporting our troops and swore up and down our guys had all their safety gear.

Oh, but let a few of them scavenge parts off dead vehicles so they can get in the fight to help their comrades and they're court martialed. Our soldiers are not expendable, cheap labor!

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

19. What this tells us is that they expect hostilities through June.

What with the elections next month I would have thought we'd be bringing the troops home in February and March, leaving a freedom loving Iraq in our wake.

Stupid! Stupid!

[msgadget]

23. And beyond.

Damn.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

30. Most certainly.

It's a sure fire indication that the elections next month are a fraud. I've talked extensively to a couple of troops, just returned, and it's a clusterfuck over there.

Damn.

[Javaman]

20. any day now any day....

[Rapcw]

22. But I heard that we would be out by Spring 2005

Because once the elections occur, Iraq will be united and there will be no more violence. :eyes: :puke:

[ilovenicepeople]

24. Pentagon:"We will have the turd polished by June."

I think the biggest problem is the reluctence to use a vehicle other than the Hummer.Why stick with a Extreme SUV named after a blowjob,no matter what you do to it it SUCKS.

[Barkley]

26. I bet it won't take 6 months to fix Iraq's damaged petro pipes - nt.

[silverpatronus]

29. not. good. enough. n/t