• BS of the month: Pentagon loses track of $500 million in weapons, equipment given to Yemen
    20 replies, posted
And the BS award of the month goes to.... [QUOTE]The Pentagon is unable to account for more than $500 million in U.S. military aid given to Yemen, amid fears that the weaponry, aircraft and equipment is at risk of being seized by Iranian-backed rebels or al-Qaeda, according to U.S. officials.[/QUOTE] [QUOTE]Washington has supplied more than $500 million in military aid to Yemen since 2007 under an array of Defense Department and State Department programs. The Pentagon and CIA have provided additional assistance through classified programs, making it difficult to know exactly how much Yemen has received in total.[/QUOTE] [QUOTE]“We have to assume it’s completely compromised and gone,” said a legislative aide on Capitol Hill who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.[/QUOTE] ([URL="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/pentagon-loses-sight-of-500-million-in-counterterrorism-aid-given-to-yemen/2015/03/17/f4ca25ce-cbf9-11e4-8a46-b1dc9be5a8ff_story.html"]Source[/URL])
"Loses" They just [i]lose[/i] 500 million dollars worth of equipment, now more than likely in Militant hands.
Really depends on what it is, 500 million in guns bullets manpads and high explosives very worse case, 500 million in fighter jets and tanks and armored vehicles not so bad Remember these groups are after things they can use [editline]18th March 2015[/editline] Seems to be a lot of ammo, body armor and night vision goggles
[QUOTE=JIDF-Shlomo;47346896]"Loses" They just [i]lose[/i] 500 million dollars worth of equipment, now more than likely in Militant hands.[/QUOTE] Crappy paperwork and inventorying is the answer. [QUOTE=Sableye;47346926]Really depends on what it is, 500 million in guns bullets manpads and high explosives very worse case, 500 million in fighter jets and tanks and armored vehicles not so bad Remember these groups are after things they can use[/QUOTE] This. It really depends what it is. $500m in smallarms and smallarms ammunition would probably supply the whole Middle East for several years. Hopefully it's some high maintenance equipment that will quickly become useless without the right training and tools.
Please. That's nothing compared to what we "lost" in Iraq.
Probably given to daesh
Just thankful it's only ammunition and equipment, nothing of use without a pair of hands to carry.
Accidents happen. I still don't know where I left my glock 17
i bet their mother would find it if she looked
[QUOTE=ksenior;47346938]Crappy paperwork and inventorying is the answer.[/QUOTE] It's kind of hard to inventory and write paperwork on equipment given to a country whose government is fracturing, is breaking off diplomatic ties, and has forced you to close down your embassy, leaving you with no official political presence. The article is using language that paints it as bureaucratic incompetence when really it's a matter of the country becoming so unstable and uncooperative that oversight is impossible. When we don't have the luxury of embedding US personnel in every level of their military to see where the gear is going, we have to rely on their documentation of equipment allocation. If they can't manage that and have no idea where the equipment has gone after we gave it to them, then there's not much we can do. [QUOTE=Sableye;47346926]Really depends on what it is, 500 million in guns bullets manpads and high explosives very worse case, 500 million in fighter jets and tanks and armored vehicles not so bad[/QUOTE] [QUOTE=ksenior;47346938]This. It really depends what it is. $500m in smallarms and smallarms ammunition would probably supply the whole Middle East for several years. Hopefully it's some high maintenance equipment that will quickly become useless without the right training and tools.[/QUOTE] Good thing there's a huge fucking picture right there in the article. Posting shit that shows you didn't even click the link should be bannable. [img]http://img.washingtonpost.com/rf/image_600w/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2015/03/17/National-Security/Graphics/USYemen_graphicv2.jpg[/img]
And its almost like I read it and said that it's mostly ammunition, body armor and night vision goggles The goggles are the big ticket item there though because military grade ones are very tightly controlled and 300 sets could be a game changer But the aircraft and the vehicles would eat up most of that 500mill what they would take is only a few million worth of gear and they would leave the aircraft and traceable vehicles behind
[QUOTE=catbarf;47347454]Good thing there's a huge fucking picture right there in the article. Posting shit that shows you didn't even click the link should be bannable.[/QUOTE] I think demeaning/flaming another person for *gasp* not clicking a link is, though. "Hey buddy, here's a picture in the article you may not have noticed that will answer your question." At least you were helpful. That is an alarming amount of things to "lose".
[QUOTE=catbarf;47347454] [img]http://img.washingtonpost.com/rf/image_600w/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2015/03/17/National-Security/Graphics/USYemen_graphicv2.jpg[/img][/QUOTE] Imagine how awkward that would've been in the offices or something. ''Hey John, lost something?'' ''Yeah, just some planes and helicopters though'' ''some what?'' ''oh and some boats and humvees''
Ridiculously misleading title considering that this is hardly the Pentagon's fault. They gave Yemen's government military surplus as foreign aid to help them fight off Islamist rebels. Yemen's government has been struggling with them for years now, but last year they staged a coup and have since basically taken over Yemen, prompting the US to close their embassy. If you actually read the article, the Pentagon claims that there's nothing more they could have done considering they're literally getting zero information from Yemen due to the political crisis. The only way they'd be able to know where this stuff was is if everything had a tracker installed into it. It isn't as simple as the Pentagon being fuckwits who lose track of some paperwork.
[QUOTE=elfbarf;47348623]Ridiculously misleading title considering that this is hardly the Pentagon's fault ... If you actually read the article, the Pentagon claims that there's nothing more they could have done considering they're literally getting zero information from Yemen due to the political crisis. The only way they'd be able to know where this stuff was is if everything had a tracker installed into it. It isn't as simple as the Pentagon being fuckwits who lose track of some paperwork.[/QUOTE] In my defense, I simply copy-pasted the news title from the original source. Pentagon has account of how many items they gave Yemen (when they needed), but they "lent" all those weapons & gear to Yemen, [QUOTE]...has received $500 million in aid from the United States since 2007 under an array of Defense Department and State Department programs...[/QUOTE] and are now confused/oblivious as to what happened to them, blaming a possible terrorist re-possession. Which is it, Pentagon? Aid or lend weapons to Yemen? I don't get it :words:
Did they check under the fridge?
only 400 guns, could be worse when you're looking for 500 million. That's a huge amount of ammunition and a ton of humvees though.
And yet I can't have a machine gun without paying a tax stamp and shelling out thousands of dollars.
[QUOTE=Nebukadnezzer;47349345]only 400 guns, could be worse when you're looking for 500 million. That's a huge amount of ammunition and a ton of humvees though.[/QUOTE] Between 400 rifles it's not that much. It's not enough for extended combat ops.
[QUOTE=Moustacheman;47349319]Did they check under the fridge?[/QUOTE] I left my incendiary rounds under there once, explains why my leftover meatloaf was still warm the next day.
Come on yemen, try and think of the last time you used those 250 body armors. SURELY we'll be able to find them.
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