GAO: War-torn gear puts readiness at risk

[TexasLawyer]

Source: Navy Times

GAO: War-torn gear puts readiness at risk

By William H. McMichael - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Sep 22, 2007 7:00:07 EDT

The strain on military gear caused by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is forcing the Army and Marine Corps to operate on the margins worldwide, shorting next-to-deploy units in favor of longer-term needs at increasing risk to worldwide readiness, according to a new report.

Both services continue to meet mission requirements and report high overall readiness rates for their deployed units in the midst of the demanding wars. But the Government Accountability Office found that those services “are operating with increasing risk to overall readiness due to equipment shortages and equipment readiness shortfalls.” As a result, the cost to repair, replace and recapitalize that equipment is going to “increase significantly,” GAO said in a report released Wednesday.

But the task of figuring out those costs is being hampered by Defense Department accounting procedures that do not require the Army and Marine Corps to report the costs of equipment reset with enough detail to give Congress visibility on whether the money is being spent as planned for the units deploying or preparing to deploy to Iraq or Afghanistan, GAO said.

And because the Army was not required to track its reset costs from the start of the wars, it has no historical data that can be used to estimate future costs, the GAO found. The precise cost won’t be known until the end of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. But, GAO said, “It will likely cost billions of dollars to repair and replace equipment.”

Read more: http://www.navytimes.com/news/2007/09/military_armymarine_gearmoney_070920w/

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I thought these wars were supposed to make us safer!

[TexasLawyer]

1. Not a big story out in MSM land

I guess it makes the chimperor look bad.


http://news.google.com/nwshp?client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&channel=s&tab=wn&q=gao

[rodeodance]

2. I can see why they do not have the data-----they get ask congress each year and there it is.

[gratuitous]

3. Geez, are these volunteers ever demanding!

Freeper logic.

[cadaverdog]

4. This is bad news for a number of reasons

The Los Angeles Times reports today that Bush is going to ask for 200 billion for the war next week, a record figure that's more than 40 billion more than this year. And he'll get it, since he can argue it's going to "support the trooops," as evidenced by this article. How do the Dems vote "no" on the war budget in this situation? Costs are skyrocketing: the new and improved Hummers which will hopefully save lives are predicted to cost up to six times what the present vehicles cost. Can't very well say "no" to that spending.

What a largesse this awful war has been for the defense industry, and you can bet they will suck every dollar out of it before we pull out of the shit hole.

Meanwhile, Bush will veto the childrens' health insurance bill.

We are so fucked.

[TexasLawyer]

5. Hey, welcome to DU!