The Raptor is dead.

[Booze Zombie]

It's much easier to lock down an area with Apaches than it is to spend billions on old-fashioned, bunker-mentality "super weapons".

 

[SoonerMatt]

Hey, US government and taxpayers! It's me, education! I see you've taken out $1.75 billion from the defense's budget! Ya know, me and NSF funding were thinking, ya know, since we've been hurting and you've been, well, taking from everyone else, if you could give us back some of the money you "borrowed." I mean, you've got more than enough, and we're struggling to pay the bills and break even after rent.

 

[Neurowaste]

Despite what your favourite RTS might hypothetsise, China won't be fighting the US in our lifetime. There'll always be a hint of tension, but China and the US have a symbiotic relationship which it's in China's best interests to keep as smooth-running as possible. They're just regular folks like you and they don't have a death wish any more than the USA does.

The real security threat to the US right now is rising fundamentalism across the globe (and China is one country where this ISN'T a problem). This is best fought with diplomacy, education, higher standards of living worldwide, and a good intelligence network. I know that sounds very uncool and not as appealing as "let's blow up stuff" but it's true. We live in an age where some guys with box-cutters and a little bit of flight training can kill thousands of people, and where an IED made out of $10 parts can destroy an armoured vehicle worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. The USA is already strong, it doesn't need more money on military strength, it can handle anything around the globe that requires brute military force and will be able to for many years to come. The problems it faces today are not of that nature, so that money they were going to spend on F-22s (that would have probably just sat idly in their hangars until Air Show time) is better used in directly fighting the kinds of wars that the USA sees itself in currently rather than preparing for some hypothetical future situation which probably won't exist for at least another 50 years, in which time the F-99zqt Raptor Plus with gold stripes will be out and will kick everything's ass. It's a smart decision on every level although yeah spending it on another jet is a bit strange. I'm not jet expert so I can't comment on that.

This, I salute you sir for putting my thoughts into words.

 

[SilentHunter7]

*cut*

Yeah, North Korea by itself can't do anything, but it has a very big ally to the North that went to war against us for it in the past. And Russia has already invaded a nation because it felt threatened that it wanted NATO membership.

Well either way, I'd just like to be ready for a just-in-case scenario. Afterall, I'd rather have them and not need them, than need them, and not have them. And it's not like the money is going towards worthwhile domestic projects. It's going to an inferior jet. Which is still useless in guerrilla wars.

 

[wwjdftw]

obama seems like he is trying to ruin the nation

We cant spend 100 million dollars on THE MOST ADVANCED FIGHTER JET EVER MADE, but we can go right the fuck ahead and spend trillions of dollars trying to "fix" the economy not to mention that 1 B-2 bomber costs something like 1.2-1.3 BILLION dollars to make and we have many many more B-2's than we have F-22s

Spending money we don't have on a jet we don't need seems a better way to run a country to you? I mean, I'm sorry if you had a job building the damn things, but c'mon, we're in a BAD reccesion, folks don't have money to spend on medicine. People are losing their homes in all this crap and you think the President should be building magic fighter planes. Go out and ask people on the streets, the unemployed and the foreclosed on, the hungry children and their ashamed parents if they'd rather have a jet or economic recovery and tell me what you find out.

my point is that they are STILL MAKING B-2s, some of the stuff they say is blatant lies, he is trying to cut costs? cut the B-2, cut the huge nuclear subs. they are going to stop making a plane that is more economical than another, the replacement they are suggesting is a slow, fuel hogging bastard, even while he is mentioning all this GO GREEN bullshit. but they still produce the plane that costs $1,200,000,000 , and what they are doing is spending TRILLIONS of dollars, and are nitpicking away things that don't need nit picked they need to stop spending and cutting things that are fine as they are, all this crap is NOT helping its only causing more trouble and controversy

to every one else

AND yes, i am biased against him, he]is policies are not that horrible, but he tries to hide things, he has been caught in blatant lies and he is trying to force things on people who don't want them forced on them. I don't like him. period.

 

[666thHeretic]

Why don't we just spend less money on giant fighter jets, and more on world peace?

Because you can't buy peace, but you can buy something that will scare the entire planet into never fucking with you or your allies. That's why the Americans are so afraid of terrorists, terrorists aren't intimidated by these things and they can't be bought.

 

[SilentHunter7]

*cut*

Yeah, North Korea by itself can't do anything, but it has a very big ally to the North that went to war against us for it in the past. And Russia has already invaded a nation because it felt threatened that it wanted NATO membership.

Well either way, I'd just like to be ready for a just-in-case scenario. Afterall, I'd rather have them and not need them, than need them, and not have them. And it's not like the money is going towards worthwhile domestic projects. It's going to an inferior jet. Which is still useless in guerrilla wars.

The F-35 is not an inferior jet, its 'jump jet' capabilities are incredibly useful for proividing cover for landing forces and spear head assaults. Which is why the marines want it. We have all the air powe we will ever need. What we need now is some damn armour on humvees and for better training in officer training. We dont need a 1 billion fighter flying the skies over head while our infantry follows the same exact patrol route every night in Kabul.

I was referring to the F-35A variant the Air Force is going to use. The one without the lift fan and landing hooks. I haven't heard about whether or not the Marines are getting more F-35B variants (which I approve of, but personally wonder if it wouldn't be better if we just built more attack helos).

 

[Zykon TheLich]

Well either way, I'd just like to be ready for a just-in-case scenario. Afterall, I'd rather have them and not need them, than need them, and not have them.

You're more than ready. How many F-22's you got? 187 you say? They are cancelling 7 more. Well fuck me, you're totally screwed now aren't you? In fact you'd be pretty fucked with only 7 more...I reckon you need at least another couple of hundred, I think you should write to your senator and complain.

 

[hippo24]

Why don't we just spend less money on giant fighter jets, and more on world peace?

How do I buy world peace?
Id really like to know.
Please ohh dear one
Ohh enlighten one
Help us poor souls who deemed things like war and foreghin policy as just elaborate games we play for fun.

Unless that statement was sarcastic...

 

[SilentHunter7]

Well either way, I'd just like to be ready for a just-in-case scenario. Afterall, I'd rather have them and not need them, than need them, and not have them. And it's not like the money is going towards worthwhile domestic projects. It's going to an inferior jet. Which is still useless in guerrilla wars.

You're more than ready. How many F-22's you got? 187 you say? They are cancelling 7 more. Well fuck me, your totally screwed now aren't you? In fact you'd be pretty fucked with only 7 more...I reckon you need at least another couple of hundred, I think you should write to your senator and complain.

That canceling only 7 jets figure is misleading. Congress originally passed funding for 450 F-22s by 2010, with the chance to order more if they wanted to. Then they turned that into a build them as they go plan (Which ironically costs more per jet than if they just went into full production mode). Now they scrapped that in favor of the Joint Strike Fighter program, and extending the service length of our 35 year old fleet of F-15's and 16's

 

[geldonyetich]

Don't blame Obama. Blame Bush Jr. deficit spending sending us so far into the pit that we've got to make up that slack somewhere. Fancy new jets are just one of the first thing to get the axe. You want jets so badly? Don't be in a hurry to get your taxes cut next time, seeing how they pay for them.

 

[The Jackyl]

Why don't we just spend less money on giant fighter jets, and more on world peace?

The eternal question.

 

[Murlin]

Why don't we just spend less money on giant fighter jets, and more on world peace?

Because otherwise the people who design giant fighters would lose their jobs and they'd write the president angry letters <:0

 

[SilentHunter7]

Don't blame Obama. Blame Bush Jr. deficit spending sending us so far into the pit that we've got to make up that slack somewhere. Fancy new jets are just one of the first thing to get the axe. You want jets so badly? Don't be in a hurry to get your taxes cut next time, seeing how they pay for them.

Oh, I agree. This $8 trillion quagmire we got ourselves into with Iraq fucked us. With all the money we spent on the war, we could build 10,000 F-22's, 20,000 F-35's, and 30,000 Mine resistant APCs, and still have money left over to give everyone free healthcare.

 

[Anarchemitis]

While the Raptor looks cool, I liked the company Supermarine [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermarine] better when they were making Racing planes.[/analogy]

 

[hippo24]

Don't blame Obama. Blame Bush Jr. deficit spending sending us so far into the pit that we've got to make up that slack somewhere. Fancy new jets are just one of the first thing to get the axe. You want jets so badly? Don't be in a hurry to get your taxes cut next time, seeing how they pay for them.

Ohh I love the blame game...

It gets really fun really fast, especially with something that has as many factors as the economy. I could literally pic anyone to blame, from presidents 20 years ago, to collage students, minorities, health care, military, people with loans, people without loans, the rich, the poor, the Chinese, the Japanese, the Irish. Heck I could even blame you or me.
and guess what, my argument would still be as valid as the next guy.

Because thats whats fun about the blame game, everyone can play it!

 

[asinann]

obama seems like he is trying to ruin the nation

We cant spend 100 million dollars on THE MOST ADVANCED FIGHTER JET EVER MADE, but we can go right the fuck ahead and spend trillions of dollars trying to "fix" the economy not to mention that 1 B-2 bomber costs something like 1.2-1.3 BILLION dollars to make and we have many many more B-2's than we have F-22s

So it's the president's fault that the Air Force said "we don't want more F-22's, please stop sending them to us."

This jet was made in 7 different states, congress turned the F-22 into a pork barrel project. The F-22 was originally slated for a run of 187 jets, they got 187 jets. Congress wanted to make the Air Force take more of them. The joint chiefs and the president told congress to stop wasting money.

You can keep blaming Bush all you want but in the end, Obama has spent more than any president in history. Maybe we should use more than 7% of the stimulus first.

Except that Obama plans to tax the rich to levels almost as high as they were before Reaganomics took hold of the Republican party (most people know it as the tickle down effect, doesn't work now, never has. The money stays in the hands of the people that had their taxes cut.)

 

[SilentHunter7]

While the Raptor looks cool, I liked the company Supermarine [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermarine] better when they were making Racing planes.[/analogy]

LEAVE THEM OUT OF THIS! They invented the spitfire, and nothing can top that!

...such a great plane...

 

[Jenkins]

the U.S already has a ton of F-22's already, we dont need more, also, when was the last time we had a legitimate air-air battle? Vietnam??

that money can go for better things >.>

 

[SilentHunter7]

obama seems like he is trying to ruin the nation

We cant spend 100 million dollars on THE MOST ADVANCED FIGHTER JET EVER MADE, but we can go right the fuck ahead and spend trillions of dollars trying to "fix" the economy not to mention that 1 B-2 bomber costs something like 1.2-1.3 BILLION dollars to make and we have many many more B-2's than we have F-22s

So it's the president's fault that the Air Force said "we don't want more F-22's, please stop sending them to us."

This jet was made in 7 different states, congress turned the F-22 into a pork barrel project. The F-22 was originally slated for a run of 187 jets, they got 187 jets. Congress wanted to make the Air Force take more of them. The joint chiefs and the president told congress to stop wasting money.

Actually, the Air Force is the one that wanted more. They even shuffled their budget around and cut other programs so that they could pay for a few more. Congress and Secretary Gates overruled them.